The End of the Road

January 4, 2009

After our long trip, it was nice to be off a schedule and able to sleep in a bit. We didn't have many plans for my last day in Naples, except a few errands here and there.


After finding out the cable was not working at the house, we discovered the box had gone bad and had to make a trip to Comcast down the street. In and of itself, this isn't a great story. Booooring.

But good luck was on our side ... we got to Comcast only to see about 50 people waiting in front of us. The number system read 93 and we pulled 52. Sigh. We were planning to grab lunch anyway, so we went across the way to grab a sandwich, thinking, after we ate, if the wait wasn't terrible, we'd stick it out. "Wouldn't it be great if, when we got there, they were on number 51?" Dad said. "It would be a dream ... but they will probably be on 12 or something," I replied.

We finished lunch and headed back to Comcast ... sure enough, we walked in the door just as they were calling #51. Not 10 seconds later, they called our number and Dad and I gave each other a high-five. All and all, we were in and out of there in minutes!

(Back at home, getting the cable to actually work was another story but, after about an hour on the phone with my friends at Comcast, it was up and running ... to celebrate, we watched Hoarders over a nightcap of Tuaca when we got home from dinner later that night!)

Aside from the Comcast debacle, we had a great afternoon. We piled into Bob's luxury ride and took a nice driving tour of the city. Amazing homes, cute shops, neat places to eat ... if they could just do something about the humidity in the summer, it could be perfect!

24,000 square feet anyone?

5th Avenue

Vintage Palm

Across the Gulf of Mexico

Condos Everywhere!

After our strenuous driving tour, we headed back to the condo for a nap and refresh before heading back over to Bob and Pat's to, you guessed it, eat and drink more. A few tid-a-lees later and we we headed out again ... this time to Naples Pub where everyone enjoyed some wine and "ungrouper" fish and chips.

Me, Bob & Pat


So, here we are back at the condo ... the last night together in Naples and, like I said, we watched Hoarders over a glass of Tuaca before heading to bed.

It's bittersweet for both of us. Looking into the future and knowing we had this time together, seeing new places and experiencing what we did - all without an ounce of stress I might add - is something neither of us will forget. I enjoyed spending quality one-on-one time with my Dad, and I think he enjoyed getting to know his daughter better.

A month from now, I will be back in Naples; this time for the one-year remembrance celebration of my Mom's passing. This, too, will be bittersweet. It will be good to be together with family and long-time friends again, all of us trying to move forward, trying to be strong and positive. But there will be a void - always will be a void - in this celebration.

Aesthetically, Florida is beautiful and it's a great place for Dad to flee to during the winter months. But it will always be tainted for me. Just the thought of making the early morning trek and flying into Sarasota airport makes me cringe just a bit. But, I know waiting on the other side, will be my family ... sister, brother, and my road warrior partner in crime, my Dad.

Thank you, Dad, for the memories.

Banyan Tree