Wednesday Treasures and Wrong Turns

 Good Wednesday Morning!  I'll start out with these pictures of my "Wednesday Treasures" for today:

"Someone", a.k.a. "Blackie", or should I say "King Blackie", has discovered how to leap up onto the back of Daddy's chair and perch there near his favorite person...

I must say he totally surprised Daddy by jumping up there behind him...

And he became rather aloof when we noticed him and started taking his picture...

This morning is cool and rainy !!! Yes!!! Praise God! It rained yesterday and is going to rain more today!! Still not enough to fill Still Waters Pond, but it's a start! Anyway, because it is cooler and rainy, it's a good day to bake biscuits:

and eat them with some of this delicious Cherry Berry Jam that Mari from "My Little Corner of the World" brought us when she was visiting here in Florida last month :

They were so good, along with some scrambled eggs and bits of our Easter ham...

It was a lovely way to start today after yesterday's very LONG day...read on...

I'm sorry I missed yesterday totally...but thank you for all of you kind comments on my Monday post and before that too.  I am way behind in commenting/reading other's posts. Last week was so busy and this week seems to be starting out the same.  Yesterday hubby and I both had appointments with eye specialists in a city about an hour + away from us...and my eyes had to be dilated, and that pretty much took care of the rest of the day for me. I was unable to read or write as my eyes stayed pretty much dilated until bedtime!  I went to the specialist to determine whether or not I am ready for cataract surgery.  Although the doctor said that yes, my eyes are pretty much ready for cataract removal, they aren't that bad yet and I could wait a while if I want to. However, he did say that he's more concerned about the possibility of something he saw that makes him think I could have the beginnings of glaucoma, and he wants to do further tests on that the next time. However, my next appointment isn't until July, so it can't be anything too urgent. He just wants to watch it for now.  So I will be praying about that and hoping that what he saw was not really anything to worry about.  

The most interesting part of our day yesterday was the trip there.  I told hubby that I wanted to try a different road that connects to the main road that we normally take to travel to that city. I thought it would be a kind of by-pass to a lot of traffic that we normally have to go through.  And so he dutifully followed my instructions to turn onto that road, trusting that I knew where I was going. It was actually a very nice, quiet road, without any traffic and many lovely scenes of woods, pastures, cows, and farms. However, when we came to a certain crossroad, we weren't sure whether to turn left or right to get to the next connection road to the main road we wanted.  I didn't have my map app open yet on my phone, thinking I knew where we were and that my "instincts" said we should turn left and it would take us to another road to turn right, which would get us to the road we wanted.  Oops!! I guess my "instincts" aren't as good as they used to be in giving directions.  No sooner than we made that turn and then the next one, it became obvious to me that we had missed our connection and we were heading a bit out of the way from where we wanted to go. It would get us to our destination eventually, but it would take us a bit more to the west before heading due north east. And hubby didn't want to turn around and backtrack for fear of it making us late for our appointment, so we continued on in the direction we were headed.  It was a lovely ride through the woods and country and there was no traffic...so all seemed perfectly fine until we came to the end of the paved road and discovered that there would be nothing but a dirt road for the next 5.5 miles! 

I forgot to mention that it was raining! Yes! Precious rain! Finally! Of course while we are trying to drive through the woods on an unfamiliar road! But still...and actually it was a blessing on this dirt road, because it was just a light drizzle and it kept the road dust from swallowing us whole. (And it wasn't enough to be muddy yet).

Here's what I didn't tell you OR my hubby as we were driving on that long, very remote road through the woods...the little "town" we had passed through ??? (Where? I didn't see any town???) was named Bardin. It's nothing more than a spot on the map, and apparently there was a small grocery store, but I didn't notice it because we were so intent on figuring out if we were going to make it to our destination on time.... (we did, thankfully, with time to spare, so no harm done).

But I have since looked it up online, and yes, indeed there was a little grocery store...we just missed it...

(Google earth view)

I vaguely remember seeing this, but we didn't have these blue skies yesterday and again, I was concentrating on making sure the road would get us "somewhere" on time...

Internet Photo

(From their Facebook Page)

Anyway, there was a lot more that could have been seen in the little community of Bardin, if we had been so "blessed"...LOL...you see, there is a legend of a creature known as the "Bardin Booger"...yep! That's what they call him...and there have been books and stories and newspaper articles written about him...

I looked him up on the computer to see what I could find out to share with you:

"AI Overview

The Bardin Booger is a legendary, Sasquatch-like creature reported in Putnam County, Florida, specifically around the small town of Bardin since the 1940s. Often considered a regional variant of the Florida Skunk Ape, it is described as a tall, hairy,, foul-smelling biped that sometimes appears in local lore as a harmless,, costumed figure.
The Florida Times-Union +3

Key Aspects of the Bardin Booger:Origin: Sightings began in the 1940s, with reports describing a tall creature resembling a man covered in fur or a "raincoat".

Characteristics: It is often described as a 6 to 9-foot tall hairy creature. Some legends claim it carries a lantern or smells intensely, sometimes inhibiting witnesses' ability to act.

Cultural Impact: It is a well-known, lighthearted mascot for the Bardin community. Local residents, such as the late Billy and Lena Crain, used to dress in costumes, sing songs, and appear at local events to celebrate the legend.

Location: The sightings are concentrated in the rural, swampy areas near creeks in Bardin.

Explanations: While some view it as a real, undiscovered animal, others attribute the sightings to misidentified wildlife, a local hermit, or a person in a suit."
The Florida Times-Union +4

Here's a "song" written and sung about the 'Bardin Booger'.   I have actually read the book that was written about it, but I don't have a copy to share,  and they are no longer in print apparently. 

Well, all fun aside, we finally made it safely through the woods and "swamp" where the "Bardin Booger" might be living, and we were quite happy to get back to the familiar road that we normally take to this eye doctor.  It runs alongside the St. John's River, and here's some pictures I took as we passed by in the rain...

As I said,  all's well that ends well...we made it to our appointment on time, and then we headed back home on the right road,  and because it was already past our lunch time, we stopped on the way home to eat lunch at a new restaurant that just opened up in Palatka, "Master Steak and Seafood", and we had the "special".  

(Not my plate...internet photo...but the Country Fried Steak looked like this:)

They gave us huge portions and we had to take home a 'doggy bag'.  

So all in all, it was an interesting day. As I said earlier, my eyes stayed dilated almost until bedtime, so I wore dark glasses in the house and I think Blackie was afraid of me. LOL.

Hubby said last night that he was glad we had prayed before we started our trip yesterday. We were thankful that He kept us safe and got us on the "right track" even though we might have made a wrong turn.  I learned a good lesson....

Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

And lean not on your own understanding;

6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall direct your paths.

"Lean not on your own understanding..."   Definitely consult with God before making any wrong turns...and also study the "map", whether it be on your phone or on paper, ahead of time, and be sure of which way you are supposed to go before you begin your journey!!!  Thankfully God was with us and it turned out to be an interesting adventure. But we probably won't go that way again. LOL.

Have a blessed and wonderful week. I am trying to get caught up with my reading of your posts...but please bear with me. Tomorrow is another busy day...and today I am trying to get caught up with things here at the house.  You are all very dear to me.  

 

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