Friday 29 August 2014

Dodging the storms!

We had a lazy start to the day today and I managed to catch up with blog writing and emails before we had a cooked breakfast. The sky was looking a bit ominous so we decided to drive to a nearby Super Target, just a short distance down the I-75.

The huge store was very close to the junction and there were loads of other shops in the same area. Sophie sped off and went to look for make-up while the boys made for the clothes section. Keith wanted some more Levi's jeans and Mikey wanted some more tee-shirts. Me? I did the boring stuff like buying groceries and trying to decide what to choose for lunches back at the villa! I did have a long linger in the wine section, though, and chose a new red from the Bogle Winery, a Cabernet Sauvignon. They also had Rex Goliath in magnum bottles and our current favourite, Dreaming Tree.

As we were shopping we heard several booms of thunder and when we'd finished the rain was lashing down outside. We waited a couple of minutes and then made a run for it, getting soaked in the process, but it was warm rain! In the distance we could see a Macy's store so we decided to go and have a look...perhaps Keith would get his jeans there?

Of course, what we didn't know, was that the store wasn't even open yet and we drove into a construction site! Just a bit embarrassing! Luckily I managed to turn the car around and get out before anyone stopped us to ask us what we were doing so red-faced, we headed back to the I-75 and went in search of a nearby Chinese restaurant. We found one a little further down the route 70 which is the main road we are near to, and we parked the car to go and collect a menu. If we were honest, none of us were that impressed with the place but we took a menu anyway and then called into the Big Cow Creamery next door for an ice-cream.

The parlour was very quiet and we wondered how the man running it was surviving. The ice-cream was fine, but not as good as Two Scoops on Anna Maria Island!

Back at the villa we spent the rest of the day lying by the pool and soaking up the hot sunshine. We had a small shower of rain in the afternoon, but nothing like this morning or yesterday evening when it was torrential.

Our dinner choice for this evening was a Mexican restaurant a short drive away. However, when we pulled into the car park we had difficulty finding a space...On entering the restaurant we could see a crowd of people waiting so we decided to leave as we couldn't face a long wait. We opted to go to Chili's again and luckily, here, we only had a short wait and we could sit at the bar with a drink.

Our meal was fine although Keith said he didn't really enjoy the chicken dish he chose. I had steak and it was delicious, while Mikey had a burger and Sophie enjoyed the same chicken as Keith. When we left we managed to find a good route back to the villa, along quieter (but darker!) roads and then it was time to sit by the pool and drink some good red wine!

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