The weather finally played nice and afforded me the opportunity to visit my beach. It had either been too ridiculously hot or there was too much lightning (no rain, mind you, just threats).

Tonight was just right and I enjoyed every minute of it, even if it wasn’t the most vivid of sunsets.

What should one do on a hot summer afternoon? Explore somewhere cool, like the St. Petersburg Museum of History. I had the exhibits pretty much to myself as I wandered through the city’s past.

One odd-shaped curio cabinet caught my eye and, of course, I couldn’t resist the “Press Here to View” button. I didn’t know what to expect but I was not prepared for a mummy; the actual 3,000-year-old mummified remains of an Egyptian woman.

How in the world did she end up here? Well, after the discovery of King Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922, Egyptmania swept around the globe. Thousands of mummies (and related artifacts) were exported for display. In 1924, one of them ended up in a traveling carnival on a ship bound for Tampa.

When the ship docked it was in need of expensive repairs that the captain could not afford. So, in lieu of cash, the Port Authority accepted the mummy and her sarcophagus as payment. In 1925 “Our Lady of the Nile” was donated to the nascent St. Pete museum, where she’s been resting for almost 100 years.

This city never ceases to surprise me!

Even though I’m still not feeling great I took advantage of the cooler weather this morning to get some yard work done. Hey, when it’s cloudy and under 90 degrees in the summer in Florida one would be foolish not to (I’m sick, not stupid).

As I was mowing I came across this pepper shaker (talk about a random thing to find). This is how my mind works: salt shakers are typically accompanied by pepper shakers. Since Jimmy Buffett wrote Margaritaville down in Key West, it stands to reason that the salt he sings about must be somewhere in this state.

So, Jimmy, if you ever find your ‘lost shaker of salt’ and need its dark and spicy companion, give me a call.

(P.S. If none of that makes any sense to you, I blame my fever.)

Not sure where Brian was when he wrote this poem but it certainly seems to fit my weather. I’m really not complaining, I knew what I was getting into when I moved to Florida.

Truthfully, summers here aren’t much different from the ones I grew up with in Tucson. The monsoon season out there (where tropical storms blow up from Mexico) correlates with hurricane season here. Though we share the high humidity at least we don’t get into the triple digits. Thank goodness for air conditioning!

~ Oh the irony. I scheduled this post a few days ago when it was in the mid-90s, incredibly humid, and the sun was on full blast but today we won’t even break 90, it’s cloudy, and relatively mild. Still a cute poem though. 🤷‍♀️😂

Just a little photo collage of how Westley deals with Mondays. Actually, any day that ends in ‘y’. Ah, the wisdom of cats…

This is what happens when I’m bored at work and my work happens to be inside a health food store.

So, if using the drops helps relax me what exactly do the mints do? I think I’ll pass on them, I have enough stress in my life without buying more!

Independence Day celebrations near me started with fireworks shows over the weekend. Much like they do with their lighted holiday boat parades, the nearby communities stagger their events.

St. Pete did theirs on Saturday, St.Pete Beach’s was last night, Madeira Beach is tonight, and Treasure Island will go off tomorrow evening. Which means I get multiple opportunities to enjoy the pretty lights.

Though to be honest, I think our sunsets can be just as showy and they happen way more often!

Wednesday night the library near me hosted an adults only comedy and magic show featuring Cesar Domico. Since it was too hot for most outdoor activities I decided to pop in and I was not disappointed!

Cesar was not only funny but obviously quite skilled at his craft. I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more of his shows in the future. Many thanks to the St. Pete Beach Library for scheduling the entertainment!

Added bonus, I left with an armful of books that’d been on my reading list. Aren’t libraries amazing?

Be sure to watch all three videos…

I spotted this Black Witch (Ascalapha odorata) while waiting for my car to be serviced this week. This moth is the largest noctuoid in the states. The term comes from Latin and translates as night owl which seems fitting.

While I was impressed by the roughly five inch wingspan, I wish it had been a female because they are twice as large. Now that would’ve been amazing!

I was happy to see this handsome specimen until I learned that in some parts of the world they are considered omens of death or misfortune. What a cheery thought, I think I’ll just ignore that part.