Return of the Red

The green/brown algae cloud had returned during the night, and now the entire gulf was murky and nasty looking. The purple flags were back, and we decided it was a good day to visit the bayside pool complex instead of the beach. The girlies and I spent a couple of hours floating on the lazy river, and the lack of crowds (even with a beach that was, for all intents and purposes closed) made the experience much more pleasant. Mom spent her time relaxing on the lounge chair, reading and drinking in the Florida sun.

There was one kid who gathered at least six innertubes and stacked them over his body, traversing the lazy river in an unstable and threatening tower of yellow donuts. Somehow he managed to see where he was going, keep the stack from collapsing, and even hold conversations with other tubers. I would love to report that this child was endearing and cute, but in truth, he was just annoying. It seemed like he was hovering right behind me for the longest time, casting a six foot shadow over me. I just wanted to relax and he wouldn't go away.

We stayed at the pool until nearly 2:00pm, when finally hunger got the best of us and we gathered our belongings and trekked across the bridge to the gulfside complex for lunch.

We relaxed at the condo for a while, and then Mom, Jules and I decided to take a long walk on the beach. We left the two older girls in the condo to enjoy some garbage on the Disney Channel.

The Red Tide had done great damage to the native residents of the gulf, and dead fish littered the beach everywhere. Julianna was particularly disturbed by the number of fish that had succumbed and washed up on the beach. We had to watch our step as we walked the mile or so down to the Okaloosa Pier. More than once, a member of our party shrieked as she discovered an unpleasant, squishy surprise underfoot. The fish had attracted a large number of birds to the beach, and their footprints were everywhere, leaving intricate patterns of modern art in the sand.

The water really looked icky, but at least none of us were experiencing the respiratory symptoms that some folks suffer. After we reached the pier, Julianna complained that her "dogs were barking", so we turned to go back home. As we came near the boardwalk, we noticed some ribbons and chairs being set up on the beach. We found this very curious.

Up on the boardwalk, we ran into a charming, older gentleman who turned out to be originally from Cuba. He had been an official of some sort in the government before Castro took power - a policeman, or a military officer of some sort. He left the country after the revolution, and following a stint in prison as a Batista sympathizer. Somehow, just before his scheduled execution(!), he was released and came to Florida. Lorie and I were stunned by his story, to think that this man narrowly escaped a death sentence. He seemed to have made the best of things, living permanently in his retirement in a gulf-view condo at Destin West, but he seemed sad to be unable to ever revisit his family and native land. He spoke fondly of Cuba and described it as a beautiful place that, but for the U.S. embargo, would be far superior to other Caribbean islands as a vacation destination.

We returned to the condo, and spent the afternoon relaxing on the lanai. As we watched, a wedding party arrived in the area next to the boardwalk, where we saw the ribbons and chairs set up. We watched the ceremony, and even applauded at its conclusion. We were sort of sad that the couple had planned this romantic moment on the beach and it was sullied by mucky water and fishkill.

This was our last night in Fort Walton, and since we were out of Publix groceries, and to celebrate the girls' fabulous grades (which had arrived via email while we were in Florida), we decided to take them to Old Bay Steamers for crab legs. Parking was tight at the restaurant - we had to park around back by some Mexican joint. I was worried that we would have a long wait for a table, and when we walked in and saw the number of people in the place, I was even more worried. But they immediately escorted us upstairs and seated us at a nice, big, circular booth.

We started with a smoked tuna dip appetizer, which was downright yummy. Mom and I both had a salad, which was good, then shared a shrimp and crab leg platter for two. This amounted to a large drink tray filled with whole, boiled shrimp (complete with heads and legs still attached), crab legs, new potatoes, and corn on the cob. This platter would easily feed three. In fact, it came with three little potatoes, three small (soggy) ears of corn, and three sets of crackers. The seafood was great, but the side dishes were meh, at best. The two older girls shared an adult single platter (a smaller version of what Mom and I had), which they loved. They were not put off in the least by the shrimp heads. Their Mom, on the other hand, is somewhat squeamish about shrimp to begin with, and was having a bit of trouble coping. Jules picked a hot dog of the kids menu, and seemed happy with it.

We enjoyed our meals, and we all left with doggie bags. On the way out, at the top of the stairs was a bowl of candies, which looked like green peppermint discs. I grabbed one and noticed it was labeled "Key Lime". Lorie popped one in her mouth, and her eyes lit up. At the bottom of the stairs, in the restaurant lobby, was another bowl. Lorie surreptitiously deposited 10 or 12 in her purse. They were really, really good. Somehow they tasted exactly like key lime pie, complete with crust and whipped cream.

Those few candies actually lasted for a couple of months in the minivan's glove box, with careful rationing. Lorie enjoyed them so much, I tracked down a source for them on the Internet and ordered a two-pound bag for her for Christmas.

After dinner, we went back to the condo and started packing for our trip home.