One two three...go!

Every place on earth has its perks. It is these perks that draw us to certain places, if we have the freedom to choose these. There aren't just perks .  There are the floods, tsunamis, droughts and lastly the hurricanes that give us serious reality checks. I am a believer that climate changes increase the severity and frequency of natural disasters.  What I am saying is, that no matter where you live there will definitely be a time when nature shows its ugly side.  Florida is known for its hurricane 🌀  season.  Last year, in 2021 we got a little taste of it, when we had to evacuate our campsite at Fort Desoto.  This time, as the weather people kept an eye on this storm,  we knew that once it was given a name, things would possibly become a bit more serious for Joe and I and our furries here in St. Pete. Now, we're not easily scared nor do we buy into what the media likes to sensationalize. After following radar updates,  we decided it might be time to do some prepping,  in cas

               C HA N G E  Well good day, fellow humans. The day we have been anxiously working towards has come and gone already.  On December 14th 2021 we officially became apartment inhabitants. The time we've spent being vagabonds was a learning process. Challenging, rewarding and an experience we will always treasure.   But our hearts weren't in it anymore and we were so ready to become permanent residents of Saint Petersburg, Florida.   And with many things in life if things are too easy how would you appreciate the end result? Right? Finding a place to live with 4 pets was quite an uphill battle. There are size restrictions, breed restrictions, quantity restrictions. There are pet deposits, pet rent. You name it, they are tagged on.  But after endless phone calls, text messages, clicks on various websites and making Google my number ONE "go to" every day, we finally found THE place! In the middle of the hustle and bustle of beautiful Saint Petersburg! Our back

 My suggestion is: If you don't love water,  don't come here! This beautiful park is mostly used by locals.  So consider yourself lucky that I am sharing the top notch goods with you. Just kidding. http://www.pinellascounty.org/park/camping.htm   This affordable jungle-like campground is literally surrounded by water on all sides. It has approximately 236 sites and books often months in advance. There are many water sites to choose from, many of them very spacious.  You'll be by mangroves on some sites.  This is literally a Florida experience at its best.  There are separate sections of the park:  1. If you own or don't mind being around people with pets. The pet section.  2. You guessed it:  Non-pet section for rigs of all sizes and tents.  3. Tent sites that can only fit tents or very small trailers. No pets here.  There is no lighting at night except for the entrance to the park and bath houses. Speaking of bath houses. There are plenty somewhat open concept ones, al

Has it really been 6 months of jungle life? Uuuhuuuh! The palm trees, wild and ungroomed, have done me in.  Love grew in record speed. Yes I love this place.   Fort Desoto.    https://www.pinellascounty.org/park/05_ft_desoto.htm The trails, the beautiful beaches, the abundance of birds. I can honestly say that I don't recall seeing such a crazy variety of large birds anywhere before.   While the actual Fort leaves alot to be desired  (at least in my book) the rest of this luscious southern tip of the peninsula screams paradise.  We've encountered one mandatory evacuation this summer.  Call us lucky!  From what we were told, in 2020 they had 9 of these here! The downside of being surrounded by large bodies of water, I suppose. So yeah,  we packed up and left to go an hour north at friends, who were kind to take us in.   Then we turned around 2 days later and came back.  The park was unharmed. Thank goodness 🙏.  I am proud to have mastered yet another lev

  I go about my daily tasks to include the workamper duties, managing and selling my things on "Ulrike's Shop " . I am also starting a new job as an Executive Personal Assistant to a lovely couple in St. Pete, when life decides to off-rail things a whole bunch.   Yep here we were, Joe spending an x-amount of hours applying for upper management positions and doing his handyman gig on the side. That's when his body put a break on! The signal was: You're done dude.  Fast forward: THREE awful weeks of pain.  Daily pain management,  sleepless nights,, doctors visits and MRI's. Dealing with the medical non-caring system that is quick to prescribe but at snail- speed to get to the cause of a problem.  My health isn't where it should be either, adding to the daily frustration. But that seems secondary.  Times like these are challenging to say the least. Each day is filled with stuff that needs to be done and at the end of the day, I find myself exhausted.  I am ov

         Fort Desoto PAW PARK This large grassy dog park can be found inside the Fort Desoto (Pinellas County) Park in the greater Tampa Bay area of Florida.   If you happen to visit the nearby Fort Desoto campground or are just visiting the county park, it is very dog friendly. Adjacent to the dog park is the dog beach that attracts dog owners who want to treat their dogs ( and often themselves) to a day at the beach and a dip in the beautiful turquois Gulf of Mexico.  The PAW Park is separated by  small and large dogs areas. Both have a nice tall fence and some shade along with benches for the humans. What I like is that there are water bowls, faucets and hoses.  So on a hot day ( and there are plenty in southern Florida) you can hose down your hot dog or rinse him after a swim in the ocean to get rid of the saltwater or just to cool down your furr baby.  Pros : - well kept  - lush green grass -  benches - water stations  -