The rest of my vacation included a sunset dolphin watching cruise on the ocean; watching the Blackhawks lose in overtime to the Detroit Redwings (which also meant listening to my mom shout a stream of obscenities at their television- I think "dickface" was my favorite); and going on my uncle's boat down the canal at the condo complex into the Caloosahatchee River and then out onto the Gulf of Mexico. We turned around fairly quickly, and ran out of gas on the river on the way back. My uncle called the boater's equivalent of AAA, so we were unstuck in under an hour. We made a brief stop at a loud and horrible sports bar that served decent pizza, went to a nature preserve of Sanibel Island, and swan yet again in the pool. I have never been a big fan of Florida, and by no means would I ever want to live there, but I am glad that my folks have a place there. They love it and they're having a great time, have gotten younger-looking for the time they've spent, and have a great little community of friends. It's a place I look forward to visiting yearly, let's put it that way.
My flights home were unremarkable. I went back through Detroit again, this time with a much shorter layover and a less satisfying beer. My friend Anna was waiting for me at the airport, and I was whisked home in no time.
It has been bitterly cold since I returned, but we've spent a lot of time planning for our trip next month and thoughts of Europe are keeping me very warm and fuzzy. Even work has been relatively pleasant, Oddfellows Local 151 aside.