Gulfport, St. Petersburg and (maybe) Squirrel Pie

I just spent four glorious days visiting my Grandmother in Florida.  The weather was ideal each day – mostly sunny and in the mid 70s.  Back home the Arctic Vortex kept temps in the teens and twenties….  I have just two words for you – outdoor shower.  My Grandmother has one and I reveled in it every morning.

My Grandmother, as she puts it, is just over 16.  She definitely has the teen spirit regardless of her near centenary status.  She ran me ragged with errands – the supermarket, the bank, the office supply store so she could have plenty of paper and ink for her voracious computer appetite.

 We enjoyed a meal from her favorite seafood place, Leverocks, and had a lazy night of take-out pizza.  I simply had to snap this pic, because the slice of pizza is bigger than my Grandmother’s entire head.  That didn’t stop her from digging in with gusto!

Here’s the Florida homestead.  A simple, unpretentious and typical one-floor Florida home.

And here’s one of its other residents, looking back at me with a questioning tail.

Unfortunately, I discovered that some other, less-welcome creatures had taken up residence in the attic. 

Back in the day my parents had cats.  Sometimes the cats would get a little hyper and would chase each other throughout the entire house.  Back and forth, over and over again.  My Mom used to call it “elephant races” because they made an enormous, rumbling noise wholly disproportionate to their mass.  Well, whatever was in the attic enjoyed the races, too.  Either that or high-impact aerobics.

I was afraid these houseguests might be rats.  The noises were simply too powerful to be mice.  Or birds.  Or bats.  Or attic-dwelling dromedary turtles.  I don’t do rats.  Or mice for that matter.  So we called a pest control company.  The good news is that the creatures kept to themselves and to the attic – no evidence that they were sneaking into the rest of the house.  They were just heavy walkers.

Verdict?  Squirrels had found their way into the attic through an unscreened gable vent and had decided to settle down and raise a family.  Swell.  The pest control guy set out a trap near the plum tree in the back yard (probable food source), and said someone would be back in a day or two, probably with more traps.

More on the squirrels in my next post.  In the meantime, back to visiting my Grandmother….

So, aside from pesky varmints, chores happily undertaken and hours of quality conversations, laughs and reminiscences, my Grandmother kept insisting that I should have some fun.  She wouldn’t take me at my word that visiting with her was a lot of fun all on its own.  She was alarmed that, despite my numerous visits over the years, I had never really explored Gulfport or the attractions in nearby St. Pete and Tampa.

So I agreed to wander a bit while she was busy working on her computer – she is the chair of a committee for one of her genealogical societies, and she wanted to be ready for a meeting.  She was also putting some things together for my dad’s family-tracing efforts.  And, although she doesn’t partake in elephant races, she does enjoy the occasional catnap.

 I explored Gulfport Beach and the historic and quaint “downtown” area two hours at a time over the course of my stay.  Much of Gulfport began life as a tiny enclave devoted to military veterans.  Over time it became its own, tiny little city with an equally-tiny population in comparison to hulking St. Petersburg next door.

Above is a picture of the Gulfport Casino.  No gambling there – it’s a dance hall and event venue.  Dances and dance instruction are hosted there nearly every day, with concerts and other activities keeping it active much of the year.  It sits right on the thin strip of white sand that claims to be Gulfport beach.  Not the best beach by half when compared to St. Pete Beach or nearby Pass-a-Grille, but plenty for the locals.

Gulfport has reinvented itself in the last few years. It has consciously retained its small, Old Florida charm but has encouraged and welcomed artists and artisans to the community.  A large public market is hosted along the downtown streets each Tuesday, and there are monthly and periodic art and performance festivals.  Google Gulfport and you’ll see what I mean.

Tuesday Market in Gulfport, Florida

There are no hotels or chain restaurants in the historic old-town downtown.  A few B&Bs, some rental homes and local – and great – restaurants and shops.  Heck, the post office is located within a consignment shop!

O’Maddy’s bar and restaurant was a favorite of my parents’, and it’s a favorite of the locals, too.  It’s busy all day and all night.  It sits at the end of the beachfront road, just across from the small pier.  It’s also steps away from my Mom’s favorite place in Gulfport, a simple bench in a small park at the very end of the beach.  I visited the bench, too.

 Lots of fun wandering around Old Gulfport.  And did I mention that street parking is completely free?  Beach parking, too.  Never hard to find a spot.

In my next post (as this one’s getting a little long), I’ll update you on the dancing squirrels.  I’ll also take you along with me to the Salvadore Dali Museum in St. Petersburg.

Oh, and if you’re wondering about the title of this post – "(maybe) squirrel pie"?  While my Grandmother and I were joking about the dancing squirrels, she let me know that squirrel pie wasn’t too bad.  By the end of my third night, I was ready to take the plunge and try some – humane trapping be damned!!