Statues - Queen of Peace Roman Catholic Church - Ocala

Photos by Lois Anne.

The theme for May is "statues" - Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

98.9 % redneck would not be enough

We're entertaining some family for a few days, thus our photo blogging and commenting will be somewhat hit or miss...

Thanks for all your comments!

Downtown Ocala - What more doth one need?

The Marion Cultural Alliance

Being that Ocala (and thus Marion County in which Ocala is located) is the horse capital of the world, it is understandable that the Marion Cultural Alliance (located in downtown Ocala) is involved with horses. Here are a couple of them.

When the other dogs pass you by...

...and all you want to do is play!

Starbucks - Downtown Ocala

For when you gotta go...fast

We here in Ocala aim to please and provide every necessity...thus if you have to go fast, we offer Florida Express!

The horse with no eyes...

...one of the 55 plus "Horse Fever" horses that grace the City of Ocala and its environs...for some reason this one appears to be missing its eyes...

A few shops along Fort King Street - downtown

Highway 40 looking west - downtown Ocala

Sunset reflected - Ocala

Cactus Car Wash

The Cactus Car Wash opened for business last year. It is a modern, up-to-date facility, offering those who wait wireless Internet, food service, and a fireplace for those "cold" Florida winter days.

We've been there twice. The first time they did an excellent job. The second time, not so good. We'll probably try once more.

An orphan

Found in a parking lot. Just laying there. All pinkish. One little girl's shoe. How did that happen? To whom did it belong?

One could even write a poem about this kind of thing. Wait, I did that! In fact, it's called "Orphans of the Feet," and you can find it here.

Spring has arrived for the barren tree

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a photo of this tree, barren of any foliage. Some folks wondered if it had been pruned so severely that it would die. In Florida, it is hard to kill most plants, and even the slightest weed will grow into a tree if not cut down!

You can see the original shot here.

Trilight at twilight

Heh, heh. Actually, this wasn't taken at twilight, but I liked the play on words!

All alone!

I'm not sure what this is - some kind of child's toy. It was sitting all alone on a low beat-up wood rail between two old buildings in downtown Ocala. Why it was there and who put it there, I have no idea.

A local horse breeding/training operation

A reflection of downtown

Some people wear their heart on the car

What happens when you don't clean your bathtub

Rooftop dining - downtown Ocala

Tijuana Flats - Managed by Justin

Tijuana Flats is a Tex-Mex chain, begun in 1995 by a young man, Brian Wheeler, while he was a student at the University of Central Florida. He opened his first restaurant in Winter Park, Florida. Since then, the chain has taken off, and now counts something like 60 restaurants in several states (most are in Florida, however.) It is noted for its hot sauces (700 of them!) and colorful decor.

Justin, the manager of Ocala's Tijuana Flats, is an upbeat young man who greeted us enthusiastically, assisted in our menu selection and continued to ensure that the food was prepared to our satisfaction.

We'll be back!

The ivied walls of downtown Ocala

Verbena - Nested Treasures

In downtown Ocala, this small but delightful shop offers a plethora of goodies, most of which are handmade by the proprietress, Laura V. DellaPorta. Laura graciously posed for our photo although she was very busy arranging her beautiful and delicate wares.

Thank you, Laura, and we wish you the very best in the future! May Verbena grow and prosper!

On Silver Springs Boulevard

House for sale

This beautiful home is located in the east side of Ocala. It is quite large and has been for sale for several months. One problem might be that it is located right next to huge power lines (just out of the photo to the right).

Car on fire - downtown Ocala

Regina

We met Regina on Saturday afternoon in downtown Ocala...she had just stepped outside of the En Ve beauty salon for a breath of fresh air. Regina was very sweet and agreed to let us take her photo. While I didn't ask, methinks she was getting all spiffed up for her husband. And, of course, for Easter Sunday.

Like a gnat, the little plane keeps buzzing around!

Reaching for the sky in anticipation of spring