Azaleas

The azaleas are in full bloom in Tampa this week. Here are pictures of some of them in my neighborhood and nearby areas.  (Click on the image for a much better high resolution version.)

14005 Briardale Lane

13904 Cherry Dale Lane

13809 Cherry Brook Lane

13801 Cherry Brook Lane

The homeowner was picking up his mail as I stopped to take this picture.  He told me that these azaleas have been there for 38 years.

13809 Lake Magdalene Blvd.

3000 Ehrlich Road  (Magdalene Court Apartments.)

 3000 Ehrlich Road  (Magdalene Court Apartments.)

12733 Sebring Blvd

12721 Armenia Blvd.

12315 Oakleaf Ave.

1304 Pine Lake Drive

819 W. 131st Ave.

  819 W. 131st Ave.

No Young Guys Wanted

Cian Goes to the Fair

There was no school in Hillsborough County Friday.  It was "State Fair" day.  Since Michael's employer doesn't recognize this as a legal holiday, Cian had to stay all day with us, his grandparents.

Cian got a free ticket at school.  So why not go to the fair?

Here is Cian with "Granma" just inside Gate 2.

There were all kinds of yummy food for sale at the fair.

Fortunately, we had just eaten lunch before going to the fair.

This is not a place for agoraphobics.  Times Square has nothing on the midway at the Florida State Fair.  Fortunately, Cian coped with the crowds very well.

There were long waiting lines for the rides, some worse than others.  Fortunately, Cian has no more patience for standing in line than I do.  We choose rides not on the basis of how exciting they looked, but on the length of the line.  Here is Cian in line for the Skyride.  It only took us about ten minutes to get on.

There were multiple Ferris wheels.  But Cian wasn't interested.  (Too tame?)

 Here we are waiting for a go around in circles and up and down very quickly ride called the Himalaya.  I think this girl was ready to get off!

Once we got on and got started, I thought it would never end.  The operator teases us by slowing down as if to stop and then speeding up again.

Fortunately we finally got off, cookies intact.  Cian spotted his friend Gabriel in line to get on.  Gabriel's mom expressed some admiration for my getting on the ride with Cian.


Here we are at the roller coaster.  Mercifully, Cian was too short to get on, even accompanied by an adult.

Cian climbed to the top of this really big slide by himself.  (No adults allowed!)

Here he is at the bottom.  He said that he was not afraid.

The paddle boats were really cool.  This was the only ride where you could stay as long as you like.

Cian wanted to go under the fountain.  I didn't.  We compromised, and I carefully steered the boat beside the fountain so that the water fell on Cian but not on me.

Here is Granma Sherry sitting on the shore, waiting for us to get back. 

There was a live animal exhibit, where you could buy stuff to feed to the animals. 

A very bored giraffe, in a small pen.  It really seems  unconscionable to keep a large animal like this penned up.  He should be running across a savanna in Africa.


People were holding up carrot strips for him, which he grasped with his tongue.  But by the time Cian got up to the wall, he (the giraffe) had lost interest.