Going Out of My Way

I have never been a fan of the dentist.  I've never had a root canal and I've not had that many fillings either, but it seems like every time I go to the dentist for my cleaning I end up with a TMJ-induced headache and canker sores a couple days later. 

Hubby doesn't like the dentist either.  In fact, it's safe to say he HATES the dentist and he has every reason to (lets just say he had a bad experience as a teenager and leave it at that).  Anyway, the dentist I had when I was in braces has an office near where I used to work.  When I stopped working, I used a dentists more local to our house and regretted it.  I then decided, the drive was worth it.

Today, I had a dentist appointment around lunch. Being that the dentist's office was 30 miles away, I knew it would take a while, but last night I received an email from a friend (thanks Jennifer) letting me know that there was a big celebration that would have traffic on my normal route a bit backed up so I found a longer route that would completely avoid the area in question. 

I pulled up to the dentist with two minutes to spare.  Good thing, because I parked way across the parking lot so that I could park in the shade.  You see today is supposed to get close to 100.  I am a firm believer in going out of my way and parking far away from the store/ doctor/ dentist if it means parking in the shade (especially if you know you are going to be inside for more than 5 minutes).  It was SO worth it, because when I got back to the car almost an hour later, it didn't feel that bad. 

The thing that gets me, is that people give me a look when I park way out in the parking lots.  It's like they think I'm crazy for passing up the parking space that is closer to the store.  Yeah, I walk outside in the heat longer, but I will be getting into a car that feels like it's in the 80's rather than the 100's.  Which of us is smarter?  Hmmmm....

Roasting

Leaving the Manatee Hammock campground was a bit sad.  We'd been there for 4 weeks so we were quite comfortable.  The staff were friendly and so were the other campers.  The location was great!  Pretty much the entire campground was shaded which made evening walks very nice. 

The campground we are at now (in Tampa, FL) is VERY different.  There are all kinds of activities planned each day.  They even provide breakfast and lunch 6 days a week (if you get there at the right time of course).  Trust me when I say, we're paying extra for those services so we plan on using them as much as possible while here.  So far, we've used the pool, done a craft, and jumped on a bungie/trampoline thing (see pics).  (Let me say, lots of fun and quite the workout!)

There are two things about this campground I don't like.  Our campsite is really far from everything.  The pool, bathrooms, laundry, etc are pretty far away.  And it is SO hot here.  We have a thermometer attached to the outside of the camper (in the shade and 5 ft off the ground like you're supposed to) and it's been reading 100 degrees each day.

Because of that, we've decided to cut our time in Tampa a few days shorter than originally planned and head South and West to a campground 1/2 mile from a BEAUTIFUL beach.  There are no planned activities at the new campground, but based on the last campground, I think we'll all be ok with that.  At least we'll be able to get out of the camper for more than 1 hour a day without feeling like we're roasting.