Correspondence 2sday!!

After a month of anticipation, we’ve finally arrived at our second Correspondence Tuesday!  Enjoy^

JJ in MT writes: Is it still rainy season down there in Florida?

Not really…but kinda?  It seems to rain a couple times a week, but for the most part the weather has settled down into a sunny and warm climate (as I write this, it’s raining…).  No, the new season is “Love Bug” season which is much worse.  Apparently every April and September, little fly-like bugs descend upon Florida and wreak havoc.  They are named “Love Bugs” because they are actually 2 bugs in one (image here: http://bit.ly/qr02pH ).  Why are they so bad you ask?  Let me break this down for you:

1.       The bugs’ innards are extremely acidic.  So you don’t want to squash them on anything valuable…like say…a leather car seat (note: I may or may not have done this before learning what it was…stress)

2.       The bugs are VERY attracted to the smell of gasoline.  So you find them all over the highway and when they smash into your car…they splatter their acidic goo all over your car…taking the paint off if you don’t wash them off every few hours.  And let me tell you blog readers…these bugs like to congregate in numbers!  Their like a cloud of smoke when you drive through them on the highway except they leave a residue that your wiper fluid only partially wipes off… (note: I may or may not have allowed some love bug guts to sit on my car too long). 

ES in Nevada writes: Do you have a favorite local meal?

Fantastic question ES.  As I’ve written in the past, Citrus County is largely a melting pot of residence from the Northeast and Upper Midwest.  So the term “local cuisine” doesn’t really apply down here unless you think of seafood.  So to speak to “local” food as it would apply to the state of Florida, I have had more seafood since I’ve been here than I’ve had in my entire life.  There is a local restaurant called “The Freezer” which I will be going to this Thursday to try.  Apparently they have phenomenal fresh shrimp and grouper.

Now to speak to “local” food as it would apply to who lives here: there is an unbelievable pizza place that was recommended to me by a patient who was a native of Brooklyn.  I ordered the large meat lovers pizza…had my first bite…and literally could not stop eating until it was gone.  It had bacon, pepperoni, ham, hamburger, sausage (without that fennel seed that I hate) and (my favorite part) meatballs!  Needless to say, I’ve been back a couple times.

DW in ND writes: Who did you end up sending the Super Hot wings to? Because I was definitely shot down. Also – has the skin grown back on your lips?

Listen DW, RT and I decided that there was no way that the USPS would allow something that toxic to enter the mail system.  The last time I heard, the wings were still sitting (uneaten) in RT’s fridge which is where I suspect they will remain until some unlucky form of mold tries to grow on them.  And yes, the skin on my lips has returned…the deep purple color has dissipated as well.

CM in TN writes: Have you grown tired of the red polos?  Do you wish you had another color for success?

Let’s be clear, I will never…ever hate the fact that I get to wear red polos on a daily basis.  It helps that I didn’t purchase a bunch of plain red polos to wear to work…I got a couple different shades and designs so it isn’t as monotonous as it sounds.  If I have one regret, it’s that it has taken away from my ability to wear my favorite red polo.  I feel like I can’t wear it anymore because I wear red so often. 

AS in IL writes:  How excited/nervous are you for the Dundee Dozen with me during capstone?  Also, what is the over/under of Omaha burning down during those two weeks?

(Ok so back story: before I left Omaha, I tried to finish the Dundee Dozen which is 12 scoops of ice cream and 12 toppings piled onto a cookie sheet.  If you finish it in 20 minutes, you get your picture on the “wall of fame.”  During my first run, I finished it all in roughly 26 minutes after having had a large supper.  AS has said that next time around we will accomplish the goal together and take a picture for the wall of fame.)

Back to the question: I’m more excited than nervous.  I feel like I’ll need to step up some of my dairy eating habits before that time, but as this will be my second time going in, I feel like I’ll be more prepared.  As for Omaha?  All bets are off…I’d say that Omaha has a better chance of burning down than NOT burning down at this point.

JM in MN writes: I dreamt last night that big noses were the next big “it” thing in Hollywood.  Can you see this day ever happening or at least help me cope with my own big nose?

First of all JM, you and I have some of the girthier noses that have ever been produced by humans…there’s no getting around this.  I don’t think Hollywood will ever come around on this one.  To prove my point I’ll enlist a case study:

Let’s look at an actor who was once the hottest thing that Teen Beat had ever seen. His name? Jonathan Taylor Thomas.  In 1991, he began doing work on Home Improvement in the role as Randy Taylor. In 1994, JTT gets to play the voice of Young Simba on Disney’s The Lion King (a movie you can catch in theaters for the next week or so in 3D).  In 1995, he hit America with the double tap known as Tom and Huck and Man of the House…classics to those of us who were just about to hit our pre-teens at that time.  Now you’re saying to yourself: “Zach, JTT was gorgeous.  He didn’t have a big nose…if anything, his fault was that he was TOO good looking!”  There’s no denying it…he had it all…that is until he got an unassuming role in 1996…as the voice of Geppetto’s little puppet boy…IN THE ADVENTURES OF PINOCCHIO!

Let’s look at his filmography since 1996: Speedway Junky? Walking Across Egypt? Within two years he was even off of Home Improvement!  IMDB him once…his career went on a downward spiral.  No offense to BS in PA, but the poor guy was even forced to act in a couple episodes of Smallville…now if that’s not proof of the nose bigotry taking place in Hollywood, I don’t know what is.

As for you JM in MN…hold your head high and remember: Things could be worse…you could be bald…like our next writer

JCAM aka The Worst aka Dry aka “OHHHHH NOOOOO! Look everyone…IT’S JUSTIN” in NE writes: How long does it take to clean the pool?

The answer here is an easy one: we have a self cleaning mechanism that keeps everything clean…and the pool is screened in to keep love bugs and wild life out…so the pools is clean!

The following are comments from readers:

SN in FL writes: You forgot to write about the port-a-potty!

And she’s right…I dropped the ball!  The bathroom facilities that were provided for the tailgate in Gainesville were extravagant!  They had flushing toilets and could have passed as more of a bathroom than the one I left behind in the last house I lived in!  Again, job well done.

DW in ND writes: I really appreaciated XX from America’s SCT story!  Hilarious.

I’m not sure where he is right now, but if he’s reading…I’m sure he appreciates your enthusiasm.

And that’s all for this month’s Correspondence Tuesday!  Thanks to all the readers who made it fun!  Still looking for a story for this week’s SCT so if anyone has a good story, send it my way.