Our hero Jack Chrisman, and a day in the country
My good brother Andy, visiting from England was running short of his essential Warfarin medicine. I remembered that my friend and colleague the Revd John Chrisman (Capt. U.S. Navy Ret.)
Jack was good enough to give Andy enough Warfarin to use for the next few days before he (Andy) returns to the U.K.
Many thanks Jack, we are sorry that Donna was not at home when we visited this morning.
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Then I took Andy and his wife Izzy to downtown Arcadia, the County seat of DeSoto County.
I had told them that Arcadia is a town that time forgot. There are so many vacant lots where homes destroyed by Hurricane Charley in 2004 were razed to the ground and never rebuilt.
The main street has some attractive old buildings (it looks like a T.V. "Western" town) but it is all but dead.
What business is there is devoted to Antique and chachki stores.
Jack was good enough to give Andy enough Warfarin to use for the next few days before he (Andy) returns to the U.K.
Many thanks Jack, we are sorry that Donna was not at home when we visited this morning.
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| Donna and Jack Chrisman ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We left the Chrisman's home to travel out to Arcadia, FL. for a visit to the Oak Grove Town Cemetery. That's where Twenty three R.A.F cadets are buried in a section maintained by the Commonwealth Graves Commission. They had come to Florida to learn how to fly in WWII, but they crashed in training. Some were but 19 years old. I take all my U.K. visitors there.
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Then I took Andy and his wife Izzy to downtown Arcadia, the County seat of DeSoto County.
I had told them that Arcadia is a town that time forgot. There are so many vacant lots where homes destroyed by Hurricane Charley in 2004 were razed to the ground and never rebuilt.
The main street has some attractive old buildings (it looks like a T.V. "Western" town) but it is all but dead.
What business is there is devoted to Antique and chachki stores.
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| Inside an Arcadia shop.
I understand that every once in a while these stores attract many antique and chachki aficionados from many parts of Florida, and thus add a little wealth to a very (financially) poor part of Florida.
Mostly I take my U.K. visitors to Arcadia so that they can see a bit of Florida which does not share in the relative prosperity of places like Sarasota.
Here are some facts and figures
Median Family Income
Sarasota County $62, 326
De Soto County $38,996
Arcadia $29.593
Per Capita Income
Sarasota County $33,045
DeSoto County $15, 989
Poverty Rate
Sarasota County 12.2 %
DeSoto County 29.6%
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On our way home, hungry as we were, we stopped for a late lunch at "Geckos", a Sports Bar and Restaurant at Frutville and Cattlemen.
A "Sports Bar"? Yes indeed , with an enormous Flat Screen T.V. showing American Football, complete with "fans" who were wearing their favoured team shirts,
Izzy,Andy and I escaped the ra-ra-ra noise by eating outside on a deck which overlooked a pretty retention pond.
We each were well pleased with the food we chose and ate.
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