Sugarloaf paradise
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The Florida keys are a string of islands south of Miami that are connected by a network of bridges all the way to Key West. Once you get out of the Miami area, the drive is fantastic, mostly just a two-lane road, the Gulf of Mexico on one side, the Atlantic on the other. Our destination was our agent’s home on Sugarloaf Key, where we went last summer.
A hundred miles lie between Key Largo and Key West, and the easiest way to identify the various islands in between these two spots is by mile markers. They are posted every mile alongside the road. The largest islands between MM 100 and MM Zero (Key West) are Marathon at MM 54 and Big Pine Key at MM 30.
Marathon has all the usual grocery and drug stores so we either stock up on fresh produce there or at another grocery store on Big Pine. We bring the rest of our food because Sugarloaf is at MM 15 and there isn’t any grocery store on the island, just a bait and tackle shop and a couple of family-run restaurants. If you have to run out for milk, the closest place is Murray’s Market, MM 24, a small, crowded place with maybe four employees.
Also, this house isn’t a place from which you need a break. It’s paradise, pure and simple – sun, water, tranquility – and kayaks!
But one morning we found ourselves leaving paradise for a milk run. It was around noon, hot, maybe 94 degrees. We drove to Murray’s Market. All four of the employees were busy at the deli counter, making sandwiches for customers, so no one was at the only register. The line began to form. The woman in front of us just rolled her eyes and said, “Oh well, we’re in the keys, right? Life is more laid back here.”
The man who was first in line then asked where everyone was from. It turned out that the woman who had spoken was from our town and lives just a mile or so up the road from us!
So at MM 24, we had a synchro – a little one. She didn’t identify herself as being from the West Palm Beach area, but from Wellington, which is way west of West Palm Beach, about as far west as you can go before you hit the Everglades. If we had extended the conversation, we undoubtedly would have found that we have friends in common. Six degrees of separation seems to have shrunk to about half that.
I wish that we had orbs to share, as our blogging friend Mike Perry did during his recent trip to an old English village. But hey, we left Murray’s feeling that we were in the flow.
What a beautiful place! Heaven, for sure. Hope you have a wonderful vacation.
It was great, and now done!
wonderful MM synchro story! 🙂
and like renie said above…10 seconds either way and…
Yep, that good ole 10 seconds!
I love these little synchros and I get them all of the time, 2 happened today.
Last night my husband and I were discussing our plans for a little vacation we are going on in a few weeks. We will be seeing family, friends of mine from HS and were trying to fit in a visit with friends of ours. We realized that there was just no way that we could fit them in, but I commented, “haven’t they been trying to get us to go visit them at their house in the Keys? I’ve always wanted to go there, why don’t we head down for a long weekend soon? ”
Then I come here and NOT to my surprise you’ve got a story about the Keys! 🙂
The other synchro was; one of the Father’s Day Gifts we got my husband was a tin of different kinds of popcorn from the Popcorn Factory. He loves to have popcorn at night or if we watch a movie. Last night we were discussing sending a Large tin up to our friends that we would be visiting. I mentioned that I wished we could send them the popcorn from my favorite vendor in NYC called Kettle Corn NYC. I searched and lo and behold they can ship! You just have to plan it out because they make it to order on the weekends and ship on Mondays. I bought some for us.
Anyway, this afternoon after running errands I stopped at our local Market. it is a small supermarket that offers some different and gourmet items and great take out food. As I finished up I walked by the chip aisle and lo and behold “we are now carrying Kettle Corn NYC!” Haha! I bought a bag and laughed!
2 crazy synchros, maybe they are telling me that all is well and I’m on the right path. I don’t know but they do make me smile!
Too funny! On which keys is their house, Mom? Or, rather, at what mile marker?!
These are both good, daily synchros!
What a beautiful setting. I like synchronicities like this one. They’re high points in a day, and tell me I’m doing what I should be doing. Also, it’s not all that small when you consider the odds. If either of you had been 10 or 15 minutes earlier or later, it wouldn’t have happened.
Wow, looks like paradise alright. If we think of all of the variety in the world it really is a wondrous place – with something for everyone. For a holiday break I’d get as much enjoyment from the keys as I did from the small cottage I went to the same week in England – thanks for the mention.
“Sun, water, tranquility – and kayaks” – plus a synchro as an ‘extra’ – perfect!
That cottage certainly held some mysteries!