Making a List and Marking Off

At 2 a.m. Monday morning we arrived home from a 10-day visit to the Jupiter/Palm Beach area of Florida where I was swept up into a different life style. We started each day with a big breakfast, then headed over to the baseball fields behind Roger Dean Stadium. Six were in use by the St. Louis Cardinals, and the ones with most of the players were a long walk away. When rain and wind didn't close things down, we spent most of our time there. Lunch at Mugg's right across from the stadium was a special treat. I don't know many sports bars that provide scenic views as well as sounds from the nearby stadium. Sometimes I joined in the line of people by the gate where Cardinals players and other personnel park. Fans wait there, supervised by stadium aides dressed in orange flowered shirts. Everyone hopes a player will stop his car on the way out and sign autographs. Some do, but most don't. Each evening, we had a delightful dinner experience--most at the Islander restaurant at the Palm Beach Shores Resort on Singer Island. The lobster dinner there was excellent.. We feasted on 1 1/2 pound lobsters shipped from Maine earlier in the day.

One day when the Cardinal fields were not open, we shifted over to the Miami Marlins fields. To our surprise, we found the Marlin players were not blocked off from the fans by high fences. Instead, stars wandered from one field to another directly through the waiting fans. They even stopped to sign baseballs and other items. People were buying lots of items featuring the new Marlins' logo.

We returned home to a different and more demanding life pace. I've found the need to make long lists of projects left undone. Since I had little time to access the Internet while away, writing a new blog post is near the top of my list now. Another must-do item is to catch up on the blogs of friends. I hope I haven't missed anything too important while away, but now I feel refreshed and ready to start marking off my to-do list items.