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Borrego Springs, CA

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Houston, the Bugman has landed!

Woohoo!  About 2:30 this afternoon, I headed over to Okefenokee Pastimes to see if my friend Jack and his fiver had arrived yet.  He had.  After I supervised his set-up, we headed into the refuge to show him the Volunteer Village.  Then it was time to head out for dinner.  That’s one thing I can count on when Jack comes to visit… meals out!  No Waffle House tonight!  We checked out some places in Folkston, and then headed to Hilliard, FL, for some seafood.  It was maybe 20 miles away.  We chose a family run establishment called The Hilliard House.

I ordered shrimp, and Jack ordered the catfish dinner.  As we began to eat the ‘Grandfather’ of the restaurant came to our table to ask if we were enjoying our dinner.  Then he asked if we lived in the area.  I told him I was volunteering at the refuge, and he thought that was wonderful.  He then asked if I had tried their fried chicken.  Tonight’s buffet included the chicken, pork chops, and something else.  I told him no, I’d ordered the shrimp.  Then he went to the buffet table and got us a bowl of fried chicken, and told us to enjoy!  It was very good.  Then the waitress stopped by with a bowl of apple fritters sprinkled with powdered sugar.  They were delicious.  I came home with half my meal in a box as the servings were that large.  Other local folks came in, and we bantered a little with them.  What a great friendly place this was.  I think when my sister comes to visit next month, we will have to return here.

As we headed back to the refuge, I told Jack to slam on the brakes.  I had seen another gopher tortoise on the side of the refuge entrance road.  Sorry to say, as we backed up, the tortoise high tailed it to the forest and dove down its hole.  Shucks!

A short time later, a Sherman’s fox squirrel made an appearance, but once again he was gone before Jack could get out his new camera.  Just last week he bought a Cannon D-60 (I think).  It’s got a lot of bells and whistles on it.  He remarked that he really liked the pictures of the cute owl on my blog the other day, so I asked if he wanted to try to find it.  That’s another good thing about Jack; he’s up for trying an impromptu adventure.

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                                                                  “Oh no, not you again!”

Even though this owl has been MIA for the last few days, we were lucky enough to find it.  What a little cutey it is!

IMG_2031                                                                        “Buzz off, sister!”

It was getting towards 7:00, so Jack dropped me off at my rig and headed out for Okefenokee Pastimes before the gate at the refuge closes for the night.

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What he left behind though, was a collection of huge longleaf pine cones.  Why??  He remembered how much Emma likes to play with them.

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And it surely didn’t take her long to discover them.  She doesn’t eat them, she just plays with them and rips them apart.

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I hope Jack brought a large supply of them, as Emma has already demolished about four of them as we sat outside this evening.  As you may have noticed, there aren’t any pictures of Jack tonight.  He’s a bit camera shy, especially without a striking pose.  I don't know smile

I’ve got an exciting adventure planned for us tomorrow, so I’m sure I’ll get a good shot of him.  Perhaps wrestling alligators??

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

22 comments:

  1. Owls are the strangest birds. That one is too cute though!

    www.travelwithkevinandruth.com

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  2. Those are some huge pine cones!

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  3. Sounds like a lot of fun ahead! I love that owl. He looks either really sleepy and bored, or very mean, doesn't he?

    Have fun!

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  4. The way to a lady's heart is through her dog.
    I have plenty more.

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  5. What a nice friend to have for both you and Emma. :-)

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  6. So glad you had a fun time. Jack sounds really nice! I know Emma enjoyed her treat too. The owl is just the cutest ever...my how he just sits there.

    Cant wait to see what tomorrow brings...love your posts!

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  7. O boy - man wrestles alligator while woman takes photos. Story at eleven!

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  8. That looks like one angry bird - but he's so cute. Have a fun time with Jack and try to stay out of trouble you two.

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  9. What a fun and cheap dog toy. That little owl is just so adorable! He isn't camera shy is he?

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  10. Sounds like you found a great dinner place to enjoy with Jack. How fun. Love the owl pictures and your captions. Make sure you get some good pictures if Jack wrestles an alligator - you can rescue him later haha!!

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  11. I knew you could find a good place to eat! We love mom and pop's!

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  12. Jack should allow you to take his picture... when you write about him, all I can think of is seeing his backside in back of his truck.. you know the photo I mean :-0 He might want folks to have different perspective of him... but then... maybe not ;-) Have a great visit!

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  13. Jack sounds like a great guy and I'm glad he came to visit you. Come on Jack, we want to see a picture of you (from the front).

    Love the cute little owl!

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  14. What a lovely wee owl! I do adore owls. Glad you had a fun reunion and hope you have more fun days while Jack is there. C'mon, Jack, strike a pose . . . vogue! ;)

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  15. I never knew a tortoise could be so fast.

    You have the greatest eyes. How did you see that guy? What a cute picture.

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  16. Yeah, tell Jack we want to see his face (instead of his back) this time! Thanks for the cute owl pictures... this guy looks so unimpressed :)

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  17. Sounds like a great place for dinner. Amazing that you went right back and there the owl was waiting for Jack to see him. Although he looks a bit sleepy with the squinty eyes. The owl not Jack. Oh right no picture of Jack....YET!

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  18. I just want to KISS that little owl!!! I have tried to get a photo of owls before, but when they are around and awake, I seem to be asleep...Jack SOUNDS like a great "catch", so to say...Y'all goin' fishing??

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  19. George Stoltz said...

    Good blog, Judy. You are wise to include owl photos.

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  20. Love the owl picture, I may paint it, if that's ok

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  21. I'm okay with you wrestling gators, just don't try to shave their legs... ;c)

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