See Cows

I've been taking a lot of morning walks while I figure out what I want to do with my life. Walking is pretty enjoyable, especially here on the Florida Gulf Coast now that it's bragging season. Dude, I get to see some cool things around here, too. I see dolphins pretty much every day. They're like the squirrels of the ocean to me now.

But manatees are NOT something I get to see every day, even though they came off the endangered species list earlier this year. So I was beyond delighted to see a mommy and baby manatee yesterday!

Actually, manatees are not that hard to photograph. They are huge and really slow and hang out in shallow water. I'm just a terrible photographer.

I was lucky enough to get up close and personal with manatees when I went scuba diving in Crystal River a few years ago and learned that they are pretty curious about people. I was going to put my tank on in the water, so I threw my dive gear over the side of the boat - and within 30 seconds, a manatee poked his nose above the water to sniff it. During my dive, others allowed me to pet them. One even rolled over for belly rubs.

So, yeah, I had to restrain myself from jumping in the water to go cuddle the baby manatee. Good thing I saw something else that distracted me:

Pikachu wearing a Santa hat is pretty much the cutest thing in the Pokémon Go universe.

So I put him in a gym. Normally, that would be flawed strategy because he's kind of weak and super easy to defeat. But I figured other players would leave him alone because he's so damn cute, and I could hold the gym and earn lots of Pokécoins over the next few weeks:

Really, what sadistic a-hole is going to go in and beat up on Pika Claus?

The bullies from Team Valor, of course. They didn't even let me leave the park before they took over.

snook74,  I wish Pokémon Go had in-game messaging, because I have some choice words for you. But I suppose the only thing I can do is take down any gym I see you at in the future. Who's with me?