Need a Little Springtime

 Temperatures are recovering here in South Florida. 

I managed an almost 18-mile ride yesterday, but it took over 6 miles for me to warm up and no longer feel as if I was cold. I thought I had dressed appropriately for the outing, but even with the temperature at 60 degrees, it was a cold ride especially when I was biking into the wind. That would be because of the "feels like" temperature of riding about 13 MPH into a 6-10 MPH breeze. Yea, cold! Roughly a feels like of 57 degrees. 

Tulips at Publix
Tequesta, FL
February 4, 2026

It was sad to see all of the annuals which succumbed to the cold in the flower beds along my ride. All the hopes for bright cheery colors lay brown and dead on the ground.  

When Chris and I later headed off to Publix for supplies, I spied some tulips in the flower section of the store. They made me smile. It was just the piece of Springtime that I needed, all the while reminding myself that we are in the middle of Winter. Of course, the temperatures are going to be more Florida-like soon, at least according to the weather forecast I found this morning.

We might even get some boating in next week!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

After the Freeze

Walking Along US 1 in Tequesta
Tequesta, FL
February 3, 2026

 Life is beginning to return to normal here in South Florida as the temperatures have risen to a more normal range. 

It is 51 degrees this morning and we have hopes of reaching 70 degrees this afternoon. 

Chris and I enjoyed the warmer temperatures yesterday by taking a long walk with Finnegan. Finn enjoyed the walk and it allowed him to shake-out some of the "cabin fever" that he has been developing during the past couple of days. 

Tiki 52

The sky was a beautiful shade of blue and, while we wore sweaters and coats, we enjoyed the walk which began to restore some sense of normalcy to life. For our evening, we headed to Tiki52 for dinner. It was a bit cooler under the Tiki hut than we expected, but the portable heater made the experience very pleasant. For those wondering about the signage in the image, Tiki52 is located at Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) Dayboard 52 between Jupiter Inlet and St Lucie Inlet. 

It will be nice to return to seasonable temperatures. I will even look forward to seeing the small lizards running across the sidewalks in front of us.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL 

Manatees, Everywhere Manatees

Statue of Manatees
Manatee Lagoon, Rivera Beach, FL
February 2, 2026

 Yesterday was another cold day in South Florida. 

That meant that it was a perfect day for a trip to Manatee Lagoon in Rivera Beach to view the manatees, because they know how to keep warm when it is cold. 

Manatees
Manatee Lagoon, Rivera Beach, FL
February 2, 2026

Chris and I had visited the Lagoon on one other occasion a couple years ago, but it was the wrong time of year and there were no manatees. Yesterday, however, we were rewarded by viewing almost 200 manatees hanging out in the warm Florida Power and Light (FPL) electric generating plant's discharge lagoon.

It was a clear and cold day. We waited until the afternoon when the temperature crawled into the 50s to visit. It was a good choice. Even though it was cold, throngs of people were in attendance to view and enjoy the manatees in the lagoon and surrounding area. 

Manatees in the Lagoon
Manatee Lagoon, Rivera Beach, FL
February 2, 2026

I had an issue trying to get a good image given the lighting situation. The sunlight was reflecting off the ripples on the water and made getting a good image really tough--even with post processing. Despite that, we enjoyed watching the manatees along with some fish, including a nurse shark, lounging in the warm waters of the lagoon. 

It was encouraging to see the numbers of people who came out to view the manatees. Raising awareness helps to protect them. There were more than a few manatees in the lagoon who displayed evidence of their unfortunate encounters with boats. The scars are deep. One of the reasons that I try to stand when piloting the boats I am captaining is to look for manatees and debris. We have been lucky to see manatees on multiple occasions. 

I highly recommend a visit to Manatee Lagoon during the cold months. It is both fun and educational. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Monday Musings - February 2, 2026

 

Happy Groundhog Day!

1. Welcome to February! Today is the first of four February Mondays. There are 47 Mondays remaining in the year. 

Phil Predicts Six More Weeks of Winter
Gobblers Knob, PA
February 2, 2026

2. The prediction is in from Punxsutawney, PA. Phil predicts six more weeks of Winter! Ugh. 

3. Is America under siege from an internal force? Has ICE/CBP gone too far in assaulting Americans? Has the president lost sight of the fundamental principles that made America great? Is the president abusing his position to get richer at the expense of "We the People?"

4. Next week--the Super Bowl. I am ready for football to be over and baseball to get underway. I wonder how many people will be watching the Olympics and skip the Super Bowl? I believe the Monday after the Super Bowl should be a national holiday. Not a lot of work gets done anyway. 

5. It is cold! Yesterday, I had to switch the HVAC from cool to heat for the first time in three years. The temperature in the house got down to 69 degrees. Just a bit cold. Fortunately, the heat came on and we are enjoying a cool, but comfortable 71 degrees. 

6. Today in History. On February 2, 1887, Groundhog Day, featuring a rodent meteorologist, is celebrated for the first time at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. According to tradition, if a groundhog comes out of its hole on this day and sees its shadow, it gets scared and runs back into its burrow, predicting six more weeks of winter weather; no shadow means an early spring.

Groundhog Day has its roots in the ancient Christian tradition of Candlemas, when clergy would bless and distribute candles needed for winter. The candles represented how long and cold the winter would be. Germans expanded on this concept by selecting an animal—the hedgehog—as a means of predicting weather. Once they came to America, German settlers in Pennsylvania continued the tradition, although they switched from hedgehogs to groundhogs, which were plentiful in the Keystone State.

Groundhogs, also called woodchucks and whose scientific name is Marmota monax, typically weigh 12 to 15 pounds and live six to eight years. They eat vegetables and fruits, whistle when they’re frightened or looking for a mate (they’re sometimes called whistle pigs) and can climb trees and swim.

Slump in commodities rattles global markets - Reuters
Israel reopens Gaza's Rafah border crossing to Egypt, with tight limits - Reuters
Russia does not want a global conflict, Medvedev says - Reuters
Five-year-old boy detained by ICE has returned to Minnesota, lawmaker says - Reuters
Trump says Kennedy Center will close in July for 2-year renovation - CNN
Johnson must sell conservatives on funding deal Democrats pushed for, or risk shutdown - CNN
Where things stand with the government shutdown, and how soon it could end - FoxNews
Kenyan job seekers were lured to Russia, then sent to die in Ukraine - The Washington Post

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Below Freezing

Happy February!

It happened over night. The temperature fell below freezing here in Tequesta. 

February 1, 2026

The last time it was this cold, or colder, in Tequesta was December 29, 1894. Yup I wrote that correctly. There was a 32 degree temperature recorded in 

The weather services are saying that it hasn't been this cold in 16 years, but I think we beat that record last night. I used Chat GPT to see when we beat last night's cold. But, I was cautioned that specific data for Tequesta is not fully available. 

It is too cold for here! I wonder how many plants and animals will succumb to the cold. 

So hey, all my friends and family, Take the weather back!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

The Lost GFI

Not an Actual Image of the Situation

 It was an adventure and a sleuthing exercise worthy of Sherlock Holmes.

I went over to help a friend determine why one of the electrical outlets in his master bath suddenly had no power. OK, it was because a hair blower/dryer and a portable heater had been activated simultaneously on the same outlet. Poof!

Simple, right? Find the circuit breaker and reset it! 

Not so fast, grasshopper!

He had already checked all of the circuits in his panel and none were tripped. He looked for all of the GFIs in the house, none were tripped. 

Yet, this stubborn outlet refused to come to life. 

So he asked me to come help troubleshoot. He had bought a really cool circuit testing tool to assist in the effort. And we began. 

We started working through the electrical panel and outlets looking for a breaker that had no power. I suspected it was a bad breaker. 

But then, after about an hour, I noticed a breaker labeled Pool Box. Really? Could it be? I asked him about it and he said there was an outdoor box with breakers in it for the pool pump and equipment. I got thinking . . . 

The powerless outlet was on an exterior wall near the pool AND we could not find any other outlet or switch on the same circuit. 

So I suggested, "can we call an audible here and take a look at the electrical panel servicing the pool equipment?" At this point, even though he knew this was definitely a shot in the dark, but had nothing to lose and everything to gain, he said yes. And so we went out to the panel. 

He opened it and I immediately noticed that of the three breakers in the panel that the single 15 amp, GFI circuit was tripped. 

Upon resetting the breaker, the outlet in the master bathroom came to life!

Problem solved and mission accomplished. 

Very weird, but still, it happens. I learned the GFIs can be in strange places from my condo here in Florida. I have an outlet on the veranda which is supported by a GFI in the garage on the other side of the building. Took me days and phoning a friend to solve that one. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Preparing for a Freeze

Sunday Morning Cold Forecast

 Turns out even South Florida is not going to be exempt from the coming arctic blast. We are preparing for extreme cold--temperatures below freezing

Ugh!

According to some news outlets, this level of cold has not graced South Florida in 16 years!

Temperatures are expected to fall to about 30 degrees with windchills in the teens or lower. Inland, where there is no protection from the ocean it will be colder. 

Chris and I are plotting to protect some of our sensitive plants.

I included a map projecting potential snowfall from Tampa to Orlando. The forecasted snow is confined to western Florida. Floridians are not well prepared for the temperatures expected early Sunday morning. I have had to swap my usual short sleeve shirt and shorts with sandals for warmer attire. I realized that I don't enjoy wearing jeans and long sleeved shirts anymore.

I hope the northerners visiting South Florida and expecting sunny warm beach days are not too disturbed. It is still a lot warmer here than in the more northern areas. But still, definitely not good beach or boating weather. 

brrr!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Idaho? Yesterday?

Image of the S22i Screen was I started my ride
Tequesta, FL
January 28, 2026

 It was too cold to ride yesterday, but I needed to get on my bike for a workout. I am lucky because I have my trusty NordicTrak S22i studio bike trainer in my garage. I do not use the trainer as often as I probably should, but given the expected unseasonably cold weather expected for about the next two weeks I think it is going to be getting some regular activity. 

Yesterday's ride was through Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho! That is the really great thing about the S22i, I can take rides through many different places accompanied by a tour guide/trainer. I took an image of the S22i screen just as I began my ride. 

The tour through Craters of the Moon was enlightening. The scenery is very stark. I enjoyed the ride and it made me want to go to Idaho, during better weather, and actually make the ride. The only problem is that Idaho is a long way to drag my bike. But, it would be a fun road trip!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Work at Home Companion

Rex Working at Home
Glen Burnie, MD
January 27, 2026

Photo by Patrick Doan

 Working from home is a great benefit and one not to be abused. Some professions are more able to work from home than others, but even so, there is something called accountability. 

Dogs are often our closest allies in the home setting. Wouldn't it be fantastic to train our dogs to help with the working from home duties so that we might attend to other items, like dripping faucets? And wouldn't it be even better if they would actually do work rather than just keep the keyboard active, as some validation programs check for?

Enter Rex--the perfect Work at Home Companion! Apparently, Rex had evolved into to more than just a play and walking partner. He, apparently, has become part of the active work at home system. Hopefully, his at home working requirements do not interfere with those of his owner or they might need a create a separate home office!

It is a great pic of Rex. He is truly a great dog and Chris and I look forward to seeing him when we visit. I'm sure he is be up to the work at home task!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

It was How Warm?

Weather Forecast
January 27, 2026

 I apologize to the those residing in eastern half of the U.S. for living in South Florida. 

The temperature in Tequesta hit 88 degrees yesterday. Officially, the temperature was 90 degrees in West Palm Beach! It was mostly rainy and overcast--but pleasantly warm. 

Watching Football @ Tiki52
Tequesta, FL
January 25, 2026

We are trending down and, although I cannot believe it, I even see a low in the 20s Sunday morning! I dearly hope it changes.

These temperatures are a long way from our most recent Sunday when Chris and I headed off to Tiki52 and enjoyed watching the Broncos-Patriots game under the open air Tiki. 

There were a lot of people gathered; the mood was festive and we all enjoyed watching the game. There was a good mix support for both teams, although I detected a few more Patriots fans than those of us cheering for Denver. It had been some time since Chris and I watched football with a group of our new best friends at a bar! It was fun, even though the Broncos lost. 

Looking at the weather forecast, it may be a while before we return to Tiki52 to enjoy adult beverages and food. Tuesday is usually dinner at Tiki night, but it looks a bit cold for tonight's visit and we will likely heat to somewhere enclosed and warmer. 

I also will not be riding my bike, unless I head out during the afternoon. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL