Harney Pond and Laundry Day

Yesterday Billy and waited until noon for the weather to warm up a bit and then we launched the boat down the road in Harney Canal.  Along the Rim Canal to Harney Canal is also where I try to walk Maggie every day.  I say "try" because if it is too hot she sits down halfway and refuses to go farther.  If the wind is blowing hard she also sits down so the wind does not pick her back feet up putting her in a walking dog handstand.  Where we launch the boat is in the town of Lakeport, in a park that's alternately known as the Harney Pond Canal Recreation Area and Margaret Van De Velde Park.  It affords the best view of Lake Okeechobee.  This walk is long on scenery.  Scrambling up two banks to a boardwalk that's pointed towards the stars, you can see increasingly beautiful views of the Indian Prairie and marshlands around Fisheating Creek as you walk up, up, up.  At the very top you have a panoramic view of canals, marshes, and the ribbon of open water in the distance.  It was a beautiful day; however, not a good day for us to catch fish.  Guess we should get serious and get out there on the water at daybreak!  We came home and Billy treated me to a Valentine's Day dinner at Cheers and Beers.  It is our favorite place in the close vicinity to eat and is quite reasonable to boot. Tuesday night is dart tournament night at Cheers and Beers, but it has been a long long time since we have thrown darts.

The Seminole Reservation is about five minutes from Twin Palms RV Resort.  The Seminoles of Florida call themselves the "Unconquered People," descendants of just 300 Indians who managed to elude capture the US army in the 19th century.  Today, more than 2,000 live on six reservations in the state - located in Hollywood, Big Cypress, Brighton, Immokalee, Ft. Pierce, and Tampa.  The Seminoles work hard to be economically independent.  To do this, they have jumped into a number of different industries.  Tourism and bingo profits pay for infrastructure and schools on their reservations, while citrus groves and cattle have replaced early 20th century trade in animal hides and crafts as the tribe's primary revenue sources.  Maggie goes "bonkers" when pass fields of cattle here because she believes they are buffalo.  While becoming economically diverse, the Seminoles also maintain respect for the old ways.  Some still live in open, palm-thatched dwellings called chickees, wear clothing that is an evolution of traditional styles, and some celebrate the passing of the seasons just as their ancestors did more than two centuries ago.  "Chickee" is the word Seminoles use for "house."  The chickee style of architecture - palmetto thatch over a cypress log frame- was born during the early 1800's when Seminole Indians, pursued by US troops, needed fast, disposable shelter while on the run.  So popular, efficient and functional is the chickee that such Seminole architecture can be seen all over South Florida.  It appears to me that each Seminole homestead here has a chickee on the property.  The chickee structure should last about ten years and needs to be re-thatched every five years.

This morning I loaded up the truck with dirty laundry and went to the laundromat on the Seminole Reservation to "Git R Done."   Returned to find Billy nursing a very sunburned face. After Maggie's walk today  I plan to go into Wal Mart (the $100 store) to get the green sunburn "stuff" (Aloe).   Maybe time for some more sewing!  Life is Good Today as always.