Gasparilla

Welcome to the fine Tampa tradition-- Gasparilla!



Think of it like a combination of Mardi Gras, Pirates of the Caribbean, and a 4th of July parade.

The weather was less than perfect, but nothing to slow us down.




Jeff and Crissy on our way into Tampa bay.

Some of the other pirates dress a little...um, scandalously.

There is the main pirate ship that holds all these men in full pirate regalia, they are the old money in Tampa or something.

Whoever they are-- on this day they are grown men on a pirate ship in full pirate gear waking up at the crack of dawn to pretend to invade the city...it's pretty awesome. There are cannons and everything!

Our beautiful boat hostess, Jen. Howard was behind the wheel all day-- he made sure we didn't hit any of the hundreds of other boats.

In nicer weather there is a lot of ladies flashing for beads, that is why we have B-Titty.

He does all the flashing for our boat.

Even when it started to rain, it was still a good time!

Thank you Jen and Howard for another unbelievable day out on the boat!!

Things found in my pocket at the end of the day

First graders are amazing collectors. They like to hoard tiny little treasures in their desks and then wait for the perfect moment to: throw it at a buddy across the room, tie it REALLY tight around their finger, use it to make stamps all over the classroom, put the fuzzy part in someone's eye, or just bang it on the desk until the teacher goes insane and confiscates said treasure. Here are just a few days worth of treasure...