I found a quarter this morning during my run, a rare treat on these neighborhood Florida streets where we now live. During my years in Portland, I would find pennies nearly every day and some occasional silver. This is only the second time I’ve spotted gutter  money in the last six months and in both cases it’s been a quarter. Only 50 cents earned for over 500 miles of sweat and toil. However, there are no homeless living down the street and only limited activity compared to the traffic in downtown Portland. It may be months before I find another one. 

I have a Band Aid on by left bicep, the only indication of yesterday’s flu shot. There was a little bit of stinging shortly after the injection, but so far no other side effects other than the new found ability to spot a quarter on the street. We also had unexpected company yesterday after a short conversation with a couple moving into our neighborhood. My wife invited them in, as they were still considering options for their new place. They were here for three hours as we got to know each other. They were fast friends but I never thought they would leave, especially since we were both looking forward to a nap. After they left, we grilled some steaks and watched more episodes of The Morning Show. 

There was quite the nature show outside as we were showing the new neighbors our lanai. An alligator was lurking in the pond, waiting to pounce on some newly hatched ducklings. We have a yard full of birds as a result of the illegal feeding that our next door neighbors have done. It’s now starting to attract the predators, which is exactly why it’s against Fish & Wildlife laws. My wife doesn’t like the idea of alligators in our back yard and intends to do something about it. Please do not feed the animals!  Neighbor Wars!