Escape from Rochester - Naples

A view of the Gulf of Mexico from the boardwalk at the Ritz-Carlton resort.

We drove to the west to spend two days with Ralph and Buffie Richardson.  Ralph and I first met when we were five years old in kindergarten at St. James School in Kansas City.  From there we attended Rockhurst High School and then Rockhurst College (now Rockhurst University) both in Kansas City.  Ralph went on to earn a Ph.D. in physics at St. Louis University and then to a very successful career at Stanford Research Institute and then as a Vice President of Air Products and Chemicals, a provider of gases and chemicals for industrial purposes.  Ralph and Buffie started dating in college and so I have known her for a long time as well.  They retired to a beautiful home in Olde Cypress in Naples.

Dean, Ralph, and Jerry.  I completely missed this
island green and thus am taking this photo.  All
three took par threes.

While we were on the road to Florida, Ralph sent me an email saying that he had set up a golf game for Friday morning with two other players.  He said that he had a set of clubs that were "old but usable" that I could use.  I replied that his clubs sounded like me:  old although perhaps not so usable.  I told him that I hadn't played in a couple of years but that did not deter him.  He insisted--gently--on playing with his two friends.  He kept assuring me that his game wasn't that good and the other two were just "great guys."  He even had a pair of golf shoes for me to wear along with a sleeve of balls.  There were also plenty of old balls in the bag if I ran through those three.  I told him that could well happen before I made it to the first green!

I am so glad that Ralph persisted.  We played with his former boss, Jerry, and Jerry's brother-in-law, Dean, and they were excellent playing companions.  I felt a part of the foursome right from the beginning and I actually played better than I thought I would.  Admittedly my expectations were very low.  I actually took par on three holes although, true to my way of enjoying golf, I didn't keep score.  And, amazingly, I only lost one ball over the 18 holes.  We finished with a delicious lunch on the club patio.  I felt so good that I decided to give the game another shot this summer.  As I reminded Ralph, in the north we have golf seasons, not entire years.

That afternoon we enjoyed visiting in their lanai and pool.  We thought about going to a wolf preserve or the Big Cypress Swamp preserve but decided to just stay put.  Actually, their house backs on to that very same Big Cypress Swamp Preserve so technically we did go see that!  That evening we went to dinner on Naples Bay.  We strolled the boutiques in the area and enjoyed the evening air and the beautiful sunset.

The next morning we packed up to head back east to Fr. Lauderdale-Port Everglades where we were to board the Independence of the Seas for our five night cruise.  We enjoyed Ralph and Buffie's gracious hospitality.  I always enjoy reminiscing with Ralph, especially about our time at St. James School.  This time he reminded me of the visiting Mexican dance troupe and the regular paper drives.  More about those some other time.

Click here to view the photo album of our time in Naples.

Timing note:  I am writing this on Saturday at my brother Tom's in Northern Virginia.  We are returning to Rochester this Monday.  The next trip blog will cover our cruise and then a final one for our time here in the DC area.