Field Notes
A record of what stays, what moves, and what gets renamed.
01/01/2026
On the road again.
This time cutting through Center Hill, Bushnell, Floral City...
Names softer than the places themselves.
Cattle out everywhere today, clustered in the shadows. The land still opens wide here, but not for long.
Battle Creek RV Park appears and disappears in a blink. I saw it was packed with campers.
Some places feel temporary until they don’t...
A bottle of pee catches the light on the shoulder. A landmark for long hauls and short options.
Hydraulic cylinder repair sign grabs my attention... Even pressure has a maintenance plan.
Avenue of Oaks lined with red ribbons. Holiday spirit stretched thin along the road.
01/02/2026
Havana. How are things there?
On the road again. Fire danger: moderate today. Cutting through Lake Alfred.
Holiday builders - MODEL HOMES OPEN. Further on: 6-10 Industrial acres FOR SALE.
Holiday Manor, named for something that didn’t stay.
Signs passing. US 92, roadwork still.
Shady Oaks Mobile RV Park, where Ryan loves Crystal.
Greater visions...promised everywhere. It's been nothing but beige foods today.
01/03/2026
Is that a little sprinkle? Getting closer. Crows had a big meeting today. Lots of noise, but nothing is resolved.
On the road again, but can't go far this time.
Risewell Homes - NOW SELLING.
FOR SALE. All or part. 26 ACRES.
Slice and dice. That’s the plan.
School bus drivers needed as the land keeps multiplying. The distance does too.
01/04/2026
Everything looks gray.
Another car wash coming soon. How many do we need?
Waterstone - NEW HOMES.
Stopping for antiques. Inside voices drifting through dusty objects. Talk of a painting, an easel, light and shadow.
Five of something. A set. One always missing. A cigar box. A bottle. Something marked 759. Someone remembers a grandma who hated spiders and snakes.
Memories land and move on.
Angels keep appearing in pictures and figurines.
Jacob is called. Easter comes up. So does an auction. So does a hurricane.
It never quite clears.
Prices are discussed. Then family. Then nothing.
01/10/2026
Cows in the shade. It's a hot one.
A palm tree is dying with the cross nailed on it. Belief needed something living to hold onto.
One cow stretching through the fence for greener grass on the other side... Rural.
Road work. The sign flashes. Your speed is 52. The counting never really stops.
Tiny storage coming soon.
Estate Sale. Another OPEN HOUSE.
Same story. Different street.
01/11/2026
Cold front moving in. It rained.
New builds rising in the damp. Rainwood. Unfinished. The air smells like freshly paved asphalt and badly cut 2x4s.
Trilogy. Beginning, middle, end. Everything comes in phases now.
Sunday Scaries settling in with the cold. Tomorrow comes preassembled.
01/16/2026
Heading north. 27 → Turnpike → 75 → 301 N.
Lots of Baptist churches between gas stations, pawn shops and feed stores. Tire repair. Boiled peanuts. All doors facing the highway.
Orange Park.
40% off wine. Fairy shops and payday loans.
40 miles to I-10.
Wild places and public spaces.
Waldo.
Another crack in the windshield, I think.
Wild game jerky ahead.
6-piece nuggets + 1 dipping sauce $4.99.
10-piece nuggets + 2 dipping sauces $6.99.
Survival, scaled, sauced and priced to move.
Nothing hunted anymore except time.
01/17/2026
Missed sunrise. The day had already moved ahead.
A stranger on the beach mentions Brothers in Arms. The title hangs in the air longer than the conversation.
Isle of 8 Flags. Flags rose and fell like tides. The land stayed. Claims faded.
01/18/2026
No reservations. No plan beyond motion.
Rain. Trains. Orchids.
A museum visit. Hot tea. More beach.
Seafood for dinner. The day closes quietly. All of it enough.
