Alabama Parking Hall of Shame; Not a Dune Buggy? A Very Big Bridge! Looking for Shade? Manatee Medics

My brother-in-law Brent Smeltzer sent me this photo of a parked car in Montgomery, Alabama. When he told me the circumstances, I was somewhat concerned about his regard for his personal safety. While he was taking the photo, a very large gentleman came out and asked, “Why you takin’ that?”  Brent replied, “I have never seen anyone take up FOUR parking spaces with one car before!” The guy answered, “Well, another car was there before.” Brent laughed, and the Big Guy smiled and said, “Have a blessed day.”  (That's sure better than getting smacked!) 

Our “Good Friend” Chris Lavender sent me a useful email today. Having read about my misadventure with burying The Bus up to the axles in sandy dirt, she offered this very helpful information: “DUNE BUGGY - A dune buggy is a recreational vehicle with large wheels and wide tires, designed for use on sand dunes, beaches, or desert recreation. It is called a beach buggy in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and many other English-speaking countries. The design is usually a modified vehicle and engine mounted on an open chassis. Modifications usually attempt to increase the power-to-weight ratio by either lightening the vehicle, increasing engine power, or both."  Chris then included the two very helpful photos below with caption.  (Thank you, Chris; you just got dropped from my Christmas card list.)

Dune Buggy; not to be confused with RV

We have driven over the Sunshine Skyway Bridge across Tampa Bay on eight separate occasions, and it always impresses us. The Skyway was completed in 1987, replacing an older bridge built in the 1950s and partly destroyed when hit by a ship. It is considered one of the Top Ten bridges in the world. One of the most interesting bridge-related incidents occurred in 1997 when a group of amateur daredevils, led by a Fort Lauderdale bartender, performed an unauthorized “mass guerilla pendulum swing bungee jump” after debarking from their stretch limo at the apex of the bridge. Unfortunately, they failed to accurately engineer their bungee cable, and the cable parted when they were still 60 feet above the water. Luckily, there were only severe injuries and no fatalities. (Do you think alcohol may have been involved that night?)

While in Sarasota, we noticed a very helpful sign for people who were overheated by the subtropical sun; in this case, either overhanging trees or perhaps large umbrellas at the next intersection... how thoughtful!   

Speaking of signs, we had just crossed the Manatee River and were driving through Bradenton, Florida, when this sign for Manatee Memorial Hospital grabbed my attention. I had no idea that there were so many injured or sick manatees that a three story hospital was required to nurse them back to health. Since manatees often weigh over 1,000 lbs., I wondered how many heavy duty elevators must be required to move them from the ER to surgery to a semi-private room and then to physical therapy...  and then there are the bedpan issues... Yuck!