Exciting Day

2012 Jan 10

Wow! Yesterday was surely one of our most exciting days so far! 

Raymond decided he wanted "meat" and so was going to walk to the closest grocery, which according to the iPhone map, is 1.7 miles from our current location, just beyond the I-75 overpass. It was 80 degrees F, and the sun was shining. It was also  nearly noon, and I really didn't want to be out in the sun at that time, so Greyla and I passed on joining him for the excursion.

Instead we took to the shaded "yard", admired the clouds, and finished reading the Jean Shepherd book that had me laughing out loud, as Greyla napped. When I finished the book, I came inside to check the time. It was nearly 2:30. Raymond had been gone for nearly 3 hours, which seemed long, even for someone still recovering from an Achilles tendon injury. My worrying mode kicked in. What if he re-injured himself? What if he got hit by a truck and didn't have any ID on him? As my fear began to mount, I decided that Greyla and I should walk out to the highway and up toward the store, in hopes of meeting him along the way.

It was hot! And although Bayshore is a major roadway, there is more than ample sidewalk, so some of my "hit by a truck" fears abated. We walked as far as the I-75 overpass and saw no sign of Raymond (or any other pedestrians). My poor old dog was tired, so we turned back toward the campground. At this point, I began to pray that where ever Raymond was, God would keep him safe. And I also began to wonder if perhaps he had stumbled across a local pub and gone in for a beer with the locals. That was preferable to the hit by a truck scenario.

Greyla and I put in about two miles, all totaled and were hot and thirsty as we made our way past the shuffle board court, where our neighbor, George, was practicing. We spoke briefly, as I explained my concern for Raymond. Continuing along, through the Park, just as we made our way to the corner of Crockett and RV drives, I spotted Raymond, approaching from the other direction. Poor guy was  looking red-faced, sweaty and worn out. I was so relieved to see him! 

We entered the RV and checked the time. It was 3:45. Raymond then began to related the events of the afternoon. Seems he was a little confused about the location of the closest store. When he got as far as the I-75 overpass, he thought he had somehow missed it, or that it didn't exist anymore. He thought that the map had showed the store's location as on our side of I-75. Oops. So, he had turned around at the overpass and instead of coming back to the RV Park, he walked past the RV Park in the other direction, determined to find a grocery store.

He ended up walking to Sweetbay Grocery, which when checked on the Iphone map, turned out to be 3.6 miles from our location. Poor guy! On the way, he stopped at a Dunkin Donuts and bought bagels, muffins and donuts, because he wasn't coming back empty handed and also because he thought the staff in Dunkin could tell him if he was close to a grocer.

By the time he reached the meat department in Sweetbay he was exhausted and dehydrated. He looked at a beef roast and decide he didn't want to carry it in the heat. He did end up buying some hot sausage, along with peppers & onions, two cans of beer and a bottle of wine. 

The sausage with peppers and onions was delicious. The wine is in the fridge, to be shared, perhaps, when we visit our friends. The beers are gone. One having been consumed roadside in a shady spot on his way back. The other, after he rested and put his swollen leg up for a while on returning home.

Here are the lessons we learned: 1. We need to have a second cell phone;  2. We need bikes;  3. Perhaps a toad is a good idea. But, most importantly, always pray instead of worrying.