Holiday Fun in Florida

Tis the Season…to sit around in shorts around the Xmas tree. This was my first time spending Christmas in Florida so it was hard to get into the spirit when it is 85º, but I made it through it 🙂 It was nice, Donny, Rachie, Kevin and Jason spent the day with us. It was kinda sadot to be spending it on the Farm at Deal Island. The highlight was sitting around the TV thatight with Donny and Rachie watching the movie Polar Express for the first time, just relaxing and drinking eggnog. Next in line for Holidays was New Year’s Eve. Well again nothing exciting. We spent it at our favorite Pub, The Celtic Ray. The highlight of the evening was getting bottle rockets to shoot at Kevin for old time’s sake. It had been a while since I have “lit someone up” 🙂 I also had a great time chatting with Greg, and if you are reading this I hope your NAPS doesot progress too quickly as you and Helen are truly two of the “good ones” in this world. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!! But on New Year’s day, Donnie, Kevin and I went on a kayak trip to Matlacha (Pine Island). We wondered for a bit but finally settled on a spot to launch the kayaks from. It was a perfect spot, we were in the middle of a mangrove forest with channels leading around in all directions, we paddled for hours around the area, ifot for the GPS we would have surely gotten lost in the maze of mangroves. It was so quiet and peaceful, the crowded, disney world like Florida seemed miles and miles away. It was Donnie’s first time on a kayak and heow has the fever for one of his own. While kayaking through the cuts and canals i had been trolling a small plug just in case “dinner” was swimming by us. As we were just cruising quietly along, there arose such a clatter, a large fish had justailed my plug and pulled my rod out of its holder and ifot for i catching on a bungee cord it was gone, the fish unspooled all of my line! I quickly tried to gain composure after the shock. I started getting some line back and gaining ground so to speak on the fish, he did make a few runs but he was soon reeled in. It was a large Jack Crevalle. I didot have my pliers though and the hooks were caught in him deep. Not being a fish I usually catch I wanted to set him free. There happened to be a fellow angler who offered to take him off my hands in exchange for getting him off my hook. Apparently they are good smoked as he informed us. Right about then hunger started to hit us, and so did the tourist side of Florida as we emerged along the main channel going past Matlacha’s business district. We pulled up to a tiki bar and enjoyed a well earned lunch and a beer. The end of a great start to the year 2007! Thanks for a great time guys!