Saturday 1/7/12
The day started a bit foggy so we were in no hurry to get underway. The trip from Ortona to Ft. Myers is rather serene. There are several small towns to go through. First is LaBelle then Alva (Thomas Edison’s middle name) next comes Ft. Myers Shores, Tice and our destination, Ft. Myers. I spent my teen years here and graduated from North Fort Myers High School in 1966. Linda and I moved from N. Ft. Myers in 1978 and this is our first time back. We heard about how things have changed from family and friends over the years but seeing the high rise skyline was a bit of a shock. When I first moved here in 1958 the population of Lee County was 27,000. Today the population is 618,000 with 61,000 in the city limits.
We arrived at the Ft. Myers Yacht Basin just after noon. Soon we settled into a slip that will be home base for the next three days. We contacted Casey and Barb to let them know we arrived. Casey was the best man at our wedding. There is a story behind that.
Casey and I met at J. Colin English School in the 5th grade. Both of us suffered from asthma and many times we had to stay inside at recess while everybody else in class went out to play. We made a pact that we would be each other’s best man when we got married. When Linda and I were engaged (in PA) Casey was in the Air Force at Homestead AFB near Miami, FL. My Dad called his CO and arranged for a two week pass so he could come to PA for the wedding. Linda and I left for Ft. Myers on our wedding night. After Casey left the Air Force, he met a young lady and I fulfilled my end of the bargain.
Casey and Barb picked us up and we spent the evening eating dinner at Sam Seltzer's Steakhouse then we went to their river view home in N. Ft Myers. There was a heap of catching up to do.
Sunday 1/8/12. Casey and Barb picked us up at 10:00A and took us to the Shell Factory. In the 10 years Linda lived here (only 3 miles away) she had never been there. Lunch was at the Shrimp Shack. In the evening Casey made steaks on the grill while Barb and Linda fixed mashed potatoes and salad. I just kind of chilled. Then to the disappointment of us all we watched the Steelers get beaten by the Broncos in overtime.
Monday 1/9/12. We rented a car to tour the area and see what has changed. It can be summed up in one word….Everything! There are four lane highways where there were no roads before. Our house had to be torn down to widen Pine Island Road. About the only thing I found was Lehr’s Economy Tackle. This is the small shop where the entire neighborhood’s fishing supply needs were met. 
There used to be the Fort Myers Jungle Cruise that went up the Caloosahatchee River to Orange River where they would feed alligators from the boat. That has long since disappeared but now there is a dinner cruise on the Captain JP a boat that takes a leisurely cruise up the river. I assume the dinner is for the passengers...not the alligators. I didn't notice if everybody got off the boat when they returned after dark.Tuesday 1/9/12. We carry 70 gallons of fresh water aboard. When we are in a slip we try to use as much out of the tanks as possible and refill with fresh before getting underway. I was hooking up the water hose and saw two familiar figures walking along the sidewalk at the marina. It was Bob and Sheryl. Their boat “Mistress” is docked across from ours at Duffy Creek Marina, Georgetown, MD, where this whole adventure started. They were on their way for breakfast and stopped by later to trade stories on the passage south. It was really neat to see someone from home.
In the afternoon we ran errands and saw the sights. While pulling into Tropical Hardware I mentioned to Linda this is about where the Biff-Burger used to be. They had the best burger in town smothered with their own secret sauce. Inside we mentioned this to the young man who waited on us and he said “This is the Biff-Burger”. But it closed before he was born.
Wednesday 1/10/12. Linda was up around 12:30A catching up on emails while I was snoring away in the cuddy cabin. She heard a loud explosion. She looked out the window expecting to see a boat or building on fire. Then she saw the Texaco sign flicker back on. Apparently a transformer blew up downtown. Then the inverter that powers the refrigerator by battery when we are underway, started to sound its alarm. The power surge must have spiked voltage back through the cutoff relay and fried both the relay and the inverter. She checked the fridge and it was not working. Her first thoughts were, what if we lose all the food we have stored in there, and the hassle of having to buy and install a new refrigerator. She came down and woke me up. I determined that the receptacle that the relay operates is dead. Plugging into another receptacle brought the fridge back to life. But now we have to find a new inverter and relay. West Marine said they have two on order that should be in tomorrow afternoon and they would reserve one for us. The relay is another story. I searched the internet and called every electrical supply house in town….NADA! Finally at the end of the day I called back to Heim Electric, in Harrisburg, where Linda used to work, and they are trying to find what we need and get it shipped to us.
Jim, “Jimmy” when we were growing up, came by with his sister Jane, and we went out for lunch. We had a good time catching up on where our lives have taken us and of course the favorite topic of kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids. Jim and I spent almost every day together for years. I worked for Jim mowing lawns until he went away to college. 
Tonight was a cookout sponsored by the Fort Myers Yacht Basin. They supplied the burgers and dogs and everybody brought a side or dessert. It was quite the spread including salads, beans, pizza and homemade desserts like cookies, cakes and pies.
We met some really great people who have made this trip many times. Their advice was surely welcomed. One couple we sat with was Vic and Sarah. They asked where we live and when Linda said New Oxford, PA Sarah laughed out loud. They are from Spring Grove only about 12 miles away. As we talked we mentioned that our son works at Stewart’s Lawnmower Sales in Jefferson. Vic looked at me and said he just picked up his chainsaw from there last week!
Another lady was sitting with us when we mentioned how our house was taken down to widen the road. She said that’s where she got her grapefruit. After the house was gone a grapefruit tree was left standing. She was a meter reader for the electric co-op. She would back her truck up to the tree, so she could reach the grapefruit, and put them in a box. Then one of her coworkers would deliver some to her mother when he went to read meters on Sanibel Island. This world keeps getting smaller.
Ft Myers Yacht Basin: N26°38.841 W081°52.186
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