Travel in a mind blink

             Buffalo, N.Y. Fort Myers, Fla.-moving in a mind blink

      We arrived in Florida at Ft. Myers International at 11:00 A.M on a hot and sultry morning this week. The outside temperature was a toasty 93 degrees. The heat factor (think wind chill) sat at 104 degrees. We were clad in bulky sweat suits, having left Buffalo, N.Y. in the dark of a chilly morning. It had been 43 degrees out with a light rain. In centuries past, a journey like this might take weeks or even months, travel difficulties met and overcome every day.

    The enviro cultural shock was immediate. Outside, it felt like wandering into a toasty sauna with clothes on. The condensation of the windows at the airport, ran down the glass in rivulets. Those inside were walking about in air conditioned comfort.

     We signed up for a taxi outside. The tab seemed a reasonable $38 for the ride out to Estero. The cabbie, as talkative as a sphinx, must have been in training for Lemans or Daytona. He hit speeds of 80 mph on Rte. #75 South, often doing the NASCAR “crawl up the butt” of vehicles in front of him. We felt it imprudent to comment anything to him, lest we distract the lunatic from his speedy task.

      Soon enough, we logged into the Spring Run Gate on Coconut Rd. and then were dropped off at our condo on Sandycreek Terrace. The anomaly of travelling door to door, in seven hours, was amazing. Our last bunch of runs North and South had stretched out to four and five days, as the driving became increasingly more difficult for the 75 year old pilot.

     Neighbors, Terri and Ron Socol, intercepted us as we walked to the castle. They had been scheduled for a driving tour of U.S. Western Parks, but had been euchred by the Covid-19 virus. They said that they could not procure the drug that is supposed to ease the virus in patients, anywhere around the Jackson Hole. Wyoming area. There was none available within a fifty mile radius, because Covid-19 had raised its ugly head so prominently. A relative in Denver, a few states over, was able to help them out. Bummer for them. Maybe next year they can mount that scenic trek.

     We opened up the castle, dragged in our bags and attempted to settle in. I am always taken aback with how quickly you can change living venues and settle in, like you had been living in the new location forever.

     A few things in our Hyundai took some re-orienteering to adjust. Which nob did what and which gauge indicated what. The car was literally covered in the accumulated s detritus of air born dirt, from living on a golf course. Task number one was to hose the rascal down at one of those inexpensive car washes. It helped, but was not good enough. Tomorrow I would take it to the local car wash, run by our Hispanic brethren, for a compete cleaning inside and out.

      Next of course, you have to mount a shopping expedition for provisions. The local Publix Grocery is a pretty good store, not as good as Wegman’s but pretty decent. Thus provisioned, we returned to the castle to unload and settle in. The Library for books and several other chores would confront us tomorrow. The massive cumulus clouds were boiling upwards with the afternoon heat. Some of the area would get a pretty good drenching this afternoon. We settled in, watched the news and Jeopardy, like we had been here for months. The Israeli invasion and massacre dominated all of the News leads. Thoughts of the “Big B” (Buffalo) now receded like a fading yesterday. We would see the lads again (Bills) on Sunday night football, hopefully playing a little better than they had in London last week.

          Now, we just have to dodge a few hurricanes, get used to the intense heat and get ready to enjoy the warm Florid sun for the coming Winter. Life is good if you don’t ask too many questions.

                                               -30-

                                          (684 words)

                                  Joseph Xavier Martin