Badda bing badda boom, I did it!

Last year on my trip to Joshua Tree National Forest, my camera died, so I decided to buy another one on Amazon and have it shipped to Quartzsite where my base camp was. I did it with relatively little flourish, much less fuss than I normally make over something large-ish. 

 So I settled on an Olympus thing called "Tough" that had good reviews and you were able to take underwater, which, to me, was completely non-essential. Until, like, wow, today. I shot all these photos. I was scared to dunk my camera in water, but fortunately, our tour guide had the exact same camera and put me completely at ease.

This one particular guy really enjoyed chewing the boat's rope. Apparently, they think (the scientists, not the manatees) it helps their digestion to chew on something. Kinda manatee gum.

Momma and baby.

I took mostly videos, and this one is the best. It's about 4 minutes.

CLICK HERE TO SEE MANATEE VIDEO

or cut and paste this link if that doesn't work

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmKZ4tacjIw&feature=youtu.be

The spring stays about 72 degrees consistently throughout the year. They come in from the rivers to the springs to stay warm in the winter, then head back out when there's a warmer day to feed. Today it was chock full of manatees! There are usually 600 or so in the springs at any one time during cooler weather.

I have to say, the biggest worry for me was the cold water. I am very cold averse. I told the woman at the dive shop and she double wet suited me which was really nice. AND they offered to babysit Choochi for three hours on the house(they said she was the best behaved dog they have ever had there!)  She was given free run of the place, and I think had a really good time.

Even with the double suit, my teeth were chattering violently the  time. I lasted about 45 mins, then had to bail for the boat, which was even worse for about twenty minutes cause the air was colder than the water. But somehow I peeled two wet suits off of me in the wide open pontoon boat, peeled my bathing suit off and got into dry clothes. It helped that everyone else except the captain (who respectfully turned his back) was face down in the river so nobody was looking! They put a cup of hot chocolate in my hands and I chatted up the captain for the rest of the time everyone else was still  in the water. 

The one BIG BIG challenge still which is chaffing at me daily  is the "where can I feel safe to sleep". Here's where I was last night with three other Boondockers. Walmart in Inverness which is east of Crystal River about 15 miles. I was really unable to get to sleep until about 12:30 (I was in bed at 8:30) freaking out about a security person booting me out even though it was ok'd by Walmart. I then conked out hard until I had to get up to catch the boat  at 4:30 for the swim. I only got about 3.5 hours and I'm TIRED.

  This feels like some kind of spiritual test thingy for me I think. I haven't called it that but  I'm really "leaning in" to my discomfort which is what one of my favorite Buddhist teachers, Pema Chodron,  recommends doing. I want to quit about every other day. I get mad, confused, sure I'm heading home soon.  

I love the freedom of boondocking. I love the challenge of it. I hate not sleeping well. I hate insomnia. I hate the whole bathroom situation issue. My brain and body make this harder than maybe it is for some folks. But then again, most folks my age have an RV, which would be a piece of cake.  Except you have to then always park in a Walmart or a campground. I get to park at my friend's houses undetected and scoot away as quick as the wind with almost no fuss. 

I got to enjoy some beautiful parts of Inverness yesterday, which oddly enough has a huge commercial strip mall section and looks very vibrant (pet marts with expensive items, health food stores with expensive food). But looking up the stats on this place, there are only 7500 people with the average household income of $26,000 per year and average house price $86,000. I don't get it.

Here are some lovely shots from one of their little water parks where I did yoga with some lovely cypress trees at water's edge. I hope I can convey the amazing beauty of Spanish Moss on these trees. It's tough to get that on film. 

So ONE of the big goals of the trip has been achieved YAY! which was to swim with the manatees! I have a new one now, which is to play shuffleboard somewhere. The park in Inverness had a shuffleboard court and the clicking of the pucks, if that's what you call them, brought me back to my little two or three year old self. The brain is so amazing! That sound was so familiar and so comforting. I'm going to try to get an updated shot of this. I LOVED shuffleboard when I was a toddler.

Here I am on the court!

Next stop, I dunno!

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