Letter to Everyone from Cathy and Joe

         October 14, 2001, Kissimmee

Here’s a photo only Barbara Parla can appreciate.  Yvonne too.  Before we hired Adam (Diane and Patrick also) to

refinish the pool it looked nothing like this. Good price, swell job.  Thanks Adam.  In fact, I’m gonna take a break right now, stir the spaghetti and take a dip... be right back.

  Cathy wonders: Do you think Catherine is in here?       

We must be evolving into Floridians;  it’s 80 degrees, but pool water seems too cold and the air

temp seems chilly. Cath and I both noticed that last night when we were to see my niece Rita May sing at

the Kravitz Center for the Arts down in West Palm Beach (3 hours and 280 miles from here - yeah we did

a lot of driving lately!) My bro-in-law and sister Nancy strolled the two of us out on an enormous balcony

over looking A1A and West Palm’s Oakachobee Blvd. A hesitant breeze lingered over a wide pond with

4 fountains before giving us a palatable taste of steamy southern air.  Yet we were very comfortable - it

had to be in the upper 90’s way down there! Later as a side-trip during our drive back to Kissimmee we

stopped in Stuart to enjoy a dinner at one of our very favorite restaurants - Jolly Sailor.  We chose a table

in the street - Jolly Sailor is in the historic area of Stuart right on the water but faces the town square with

its fountains and statues - the weather was marvelous; dry and bug-free.  Still a sweater would not have

hurt any.  It was late also, around 10 pm.  Not just then either, the other night at our local hangout I find

myself describing an item as “John Deere Green.”  And when someone comments that some gal thinks

her beau’s tractor is sexy, we find ourselves agreeing.  Yikes!  Mike Blom said I was turning into a

Jimmy Buffet Parrot Head.  Nope, it’s a southern cowboy - errr, cowguy. 

We were delighted to find that Laura Morgan’s hit song: ‘He Drinks Tequila, She Talks Dirty in Spanish’

is still on the jukebox. I mentioned to a pal that back in New York they did not know how to take our tee

shirts sporting Laura’s song.  They giggle, some think it offensive and others just appeared confused.  My

pal chewed at his tobaccy, nodded and dryly replied, “Sounds right. I can’t envision New Yorkers in

pretty pink jammies (pajamas) and dancing the night away to the Mariachie, can you?”   The more

Floridian I become the more I tend to agree with him.  

So where are all the bugs you might ask?  I guess they left with the heat, I respond.

Our favorite spider mentioned in past letters has left home.  Intact, the web still stretches from our

patio to the pool, but that big black and white spider is gone along with all the mosquitoes and endless list 

of insects.  I can’t find any fire ants either.  Oh, they’re around, I know it.  But they’re mounds are gone

and so are they from sight. Lots of lizards (we call them Get-gos ‘round here) especially baby lizards.  I

have no idea what they are eating; usually insects.  Still they are dashing about everywhere to the utterly

mesmerizing  delight of Chubby and Cuddles - our kittens.  Taking full advantage of this lack of wild life,

I ordered more trees, plants, lots of building block and marble chips along with tons of other stuff.  I will

likely spend all this week re-doing the back yard turning it into paradise from what it is now - simply

heaven. 

As you surely can tell, this is a community letter.  Sorry if that offends one or two of you, but there is

only so much paper here and so many ink cartridges in the printer.  So grin and bare it, you are still in our

thoughts completely.  

 This was us just as we pulled into Virginia.  

Because some of you are not directly in touch, here’s the scoop on PJ  to date:  Patrick and PJ

have been reunited in Virginia.  Cathy and I feel that PJ is OK with it and seems to be getting along

A-OK.  So we came home.  Now we hear Patrick might return to FLA (Cathy called that one ((too)))

and we might have PJ back for a week or 2 or 3 or 4......  Well, this time ‘round may be a bit different

since we have re-established a relationship with PJ’s mom and she appears to be very willing to help in

almost any capacity... stay tuned. Well, as you’ll discover, it has taken me over a week to write and

develop this letter due to a bad computer so I do have more news.  PJ and Pat decided to remain in VA.

Pat will travel down here soon to sell his house then it’s northern climes for them.

  PJ right before we left. 

I haven’t posted it online yet over at http://www.mydrawingboard.com/mardi/  but we might have

to re-think the Mardi Gras trip this year.  Talk ‘round these parts is that the Mardi Gras Beads are a

perfect way to transmit Anthrax.  Kind of makes sense.  Not likely, but why gamble on our lives?  Me

thinks we should just curve it down to a 2 week party over here at our place.  There won’t be any cute 

gals exposing their nasty breasts or Mardi Gras Beads, or a city that smells like warmed-over trash, but

there is Disney, Universal, Sea World, China Empire, Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, Old Town and tons of

fun we’re still discovering!  

Maybe Catherine’s dangerous sons are just over there?  

Talking about the locals: you’d think that the economy is still flying high by the way things are

down here.  Orlando Intl. Airport just approved a $250,000,000 expansion including another entire wing

of hotels, malls, restaurants, and attractions.  The Houston Astro’s Stadium (We’re division champs right

now - yeah, go Houston!!!) is also in a complete revamp.  Even with Disney’s layoff of 4,200 people and

a freeze on hiring, no one near here is suffering.  Even those jerks you see at the major intersections

palming for nickels and dimes are all wearing new clothes!  (While we were in West Palm Beach, we took

notice that our “homeless” were more upscale than theirs.)  There have been two more black families

who moved in on our block which did worry me until I asked around about it.  No one grasped the

concept of blacks driving prices down or ruining neighborhoods.  There are all White, Islamic, Black,

Hispanic, Jewish, and Italian neighborhoods in the Kissimmee-Orlando area.  Some such neighborhoods

are very scary, especially that Jewish one down by South Park. And, of late, everyone is very suspicious

of the Islamic crowd down by Route 4. But firstly ours is a very affordable neighborhood - average home

is $75 - $90,000 - and secondly, just ain’t anyone down here who agrees or even understands the concept

of ‘them and us’ as far as where one lives.  “That ain’t what my teachers told us about the deep south,”  I

comment to my friends - one who is an old Seminole Indian Chief.  “This ain’t Alabama either,” he

retorts.  “Your investment is safe.  Or, if you want, go buy one of those $350,000 homes down the road

apiece.  Don’t get no property, live on top of one another - Black and Whitey - and the rest of us laugh

our butts off at how dumb you are.”

We’ll stay right here, thanks.     

Cathy has been riveted to Riven every spare moment since we’ve been back.  She got into The

Cyber high-end game with the first edition called MYST when last time we were down here and without

PJ, but this game has captivated her.  I enjoyed MYST also, however, I am not a game-guy so I enjoyed

the cutting-edge graphics and the exquisite mood enhancing music, though little else.  This Riven - blows

me away.  And to think we are still a game behind; game 3: Exile is still $60 - the costs of all that marble,

blocks and border stones combined! and that’s just a lil’ above our “game budget.”  Riven has 5 CD’s -

so that alone tells you it is packed with power!  And not only great graphics but, folks, it’s a movie! 

You’re inside a movie playing that same MYST game of finding Catherine in a surreal world.  So I don’t

expect to have Cathy back till Catherine’s hubby kills his sons, returns all the ancient tomes back to the

libraries in the forests, sails to all those esoteric islands - by sail, boat, submarine, plane and rocket ship -

turns all the switches, sits in all the mind machines and wins the game.  Well, I’ll be working in the yard

anyway.

Cathy and a  scene from Riven.

This is how I spent a lot of my time since we got home; trying to fix my computer while stuffing Rold Gold Pretzel Sticks in my mouth.  You’ll notice my hair is wet from the constant trips to the pool.  Surprised I never get an electrical *OUCH!*    well, till now that is.

  Because it has taken days to even get my computer working - and it’s still not right (it won’t print as of yet)  I’m happy to report that  all that work I was going to do around the house is done.  And Cathy refused NOT to help. 

Here we see Cathy tugging on a draw string of one of the shades which we hung to enclose the porch.  You’ll notice that string on the left of the image.  Cathy’s part of the task was to arrange those strings - trust me, it was not as simple as one might believe.  She also lent a hand holding the shades while I sized and cut and hung them. You’d think that a cinch right?  Wrong.  Every shade - I mean every one of the 5 shades where all 2 to 4 inches over size and needed to be trimmed.   Which means trimming equalling on every side!

This area is our pride and joy.  I laid all the block (and you can’t see them all in this photo)   and I spread all the marble chips.  But it was Cathy who carried all the bags of chips and the border stones from across the yard for me to lay.  Talk about holding the candle while she chops the wood, huh?  Barbara, Desert Joe and Yvonne can appreciate the difference.  Just in case even they don’t recognize this portion of the yard; it’s on the bedroom side of the porch, see the pool filter?

	This photo is from the corner of the pool cage shown in the above photo looking toward the pool area looking at Mr. Snip ‘Em Before They Multiply Joe.  Because it’s Autumn here, there ain’t a lot to snip.  But it sure is nice spending all day outside and not even once see - no less get bitten by - a mosquito.
	OK, so I’m a big HAM   but I skimped like mad on laying those blocks, I have to confess.  I just laid them in place.  Not to worry though, I will clean out the soil, lay down paper and level them one day soon.
	That’s exactly what I did do to the blocks in this next picture simply because this door is very often used - it leads to the front yard and is where we store the trash cans, garden hose and our personal gardens.      And it is as level as a table top

Cathy decorated the entire house for Halloween.  Now if we could only get those UNO guys to spend the big $35 on SouthWest Airlines tickets, we’d have a really Floridian Halloween Uno too!   And, yep, those are pumpkin underwear you see on the table in the pictures on the following page.  And it’s not because I’m flamboyant, it’s actually the craze for the kids down here to wear their undies out (much like you see in NY but here they have a lot more style ((well, some do)) and, although I’ll never actually wear the things, I kind of think Cathy would look cute in them - giggle!)

                   Before I close,  I want to thank those of you who helped out with the care and entertainment of PJ while we were up your way.  Barbara and Mike for making PJ feel  at home.  Mike for his giving PJ his first “pal” and a sense for music that I trust will last all his life.  Above all Patty and Jennifer who every weekend were there to give us a well earned break.  And above all, we should and do all applaud my dearest Cathy who not only changed my grandson’s life for the better, but who bestowed a sense of motherhood to a lil guy who was very lost and alone.  She can play Riven all she wants to, and do anything she cares to do with all my blessings and gratitude.  Then Cathy and I MUST thank a whole lot of people who cover my reputation and run my businesses; they are the ones who actually make this semi-retirement happen.  Michele has to get the “from the heart” nod.  Dave, who without nothing would run right - and that’s the relationship we’ve had now for over 30 years!  A big thanks to Moses who single handedly makes MyDrawingBoard the unique and successful website it has become.  And who can ever forget the selfless and always sincere efforts of Luann, Bob and Gina?  Not us. And a thanks to Kelli, who without, Luann, Bob and Gina would have no rest at all.  And since you’ve all sent us here to relax and leave the day-to-day stuff up to you guys, well, I’m heading for the pool right now!

CowGuy Joe

&

Grandma Cathy