Morning is Breathtaking on the Gulf

This morning I ran down to the beach to catch the sunrise. The vista view portlights in the Airstream were signalling that it was going to be absolutely lovely! The pictures speak for themselves but there were definitely several thoughts emerging as I walked by the shore. I am...

• my Father's daughter because I love the early morning and enjoy the beauty of nature with a spirit that wants to protect it
  
• my Mother's daughter because I love to walk along the beach, breathe in the fresh air and listen to the bird song and the sound of the sea

Being by the Gulf, feeling the warmth, taking in the beauty and discovering the little treasures that the sea surrenders after every storm just makes me smile!

Today Was Florida!

Today we had a wonderful day. I did a load of laundry and hung it out to dry in the Florida sunshine...an environmentally friendly choice I would say. I chatted with one daughter and instant messaged the other. We surfed the Internet for a while and then enjoyed the patio with friends and with more friends dropping by to chat as we soaked up the sunshine. The beach walk was about 3 km today, no shelling, just chatting and listening to the waves as we walked. Near the Crab Trap restaurant, that is adjacent to the beach, we sat on a large driftwood log and searched the aquatic horizon for sea life....

Shells From The Beach Walks

I was asked to post some pictures of my shells and choral samples so here they are. In this picture are my "miniatures" - perfect little examples of shells for which we have much larger versions as well. In this photo the white one in the top left is called a Baby's ear - it is a flat shell that looks like a little ear when you turn it over. Next to it is a Sharks Eye on the right and a Spiny Jewel Box on it's left and below it. Beside the Spiny is another Baby's ear that has some colour to it. Next to it is a Calico Scallop shell. Next to the quarter is a Lettered Olive on the left and on the right a Pear Whelk. At the bottom, left to right, a Lightning Whelk, a Calico Scallop and another Sharks Eye. All tiny! This grouping (in the next two photos) are larger: at the top is a rare Scotch Bonnet. Clockwise from the Scotch Bonnet is a Lettered Olive, a Sharks Eye, and a Florida Rock Shell.

These are samples of Choral that have drifted up on the beach. These are my largest pieces. Using the quarter for scale you can see they are fairly substantial. Usually the pieces of choral I find are small, single branch segments.

Beach Walks - 5 KM Most Days....

On our walk yesterday in the absolutely beautiful sunshine and 72 F (22 C), we passed the old Beach house again. This one has lots of character and seems to have weathered many storms. It looks very humble from the outside but it is about 4000 square feet of living space and the land it is on is very costly. Inside, I imagine it to be decorated like pages out of the Coastal Living magazine in cool blue and green shades, punctuated by white wicker and sandstone tiles. Ahhh beach living at it's best!

The waves were high and the first signs of the blue green waters we had last year are appearing here as the Gulf gets warmer. The sun glinted off the water giving us a moving backdrop of silver studded waves to chat by as we walked along the beach.

The condos are beginning to open up with more and more visitors coming south from colder northern climes both in Canada and the US. We met a couple enjoying the beach who were from Minnesota and reflected on the beauty of this, as yet, undiscovered winter location. We mused about how lucky we were to have this natural beauty all to ourselves; at least for a while....

How Many Skype Conversations Did You Have Today?

Skype is wonderful! I spoke with two of my brothers today, one computer to computer, and one computer to land line. It was really great to connect. The brother without the computer complains that I sound like I am in a barrel but he could hear me and I him so all was well! My airstreaming friends from Arizona, Dean and Sheri, also called me this morning to talk about Quartzsite and what they are up to there. It was great to see them both and the video call was absolutely free! Our friend Suzy just instant messaged me from Skype to say that she would be back in the park tomorrow after her trip to Fort Myers, Florida for a week. Connecting with friends and family via Skype is a gift! Sign up now...you won't be sorry.

The picture is one of my two granddaughters skyping and colouring with Grandpa who was in Florida while they were with Grandma in Ottawa!

Corn Bread for Richard!

Richard has always loved corn bread...now that I know how the convection microwave works I can make it...a little less sugar and skim milk, no salt...Richard says it is excellent! I will post the recipe tonight on www.danishhomecooking.blogspot.com

Perdido Key Weather...

They say "wait two hours and it will change.." and it is true! We started the day with our usual 5K walk on the beach and it was quite nice, warm and 70 F (20 C or so). Now it is raining again and we are using the time to catch up on the inside chores of retiree.s..wash vegetables and fruit; check e-mail; blog a little; read and relax. I do have some work to do, putting together a proposal, but the inspiration must also be there for that kind of activity. Maybe later! :-)

We had a nice visit this morning with Bob and Jo who are from California. They have two adorable pugs and run a business with their family, centered on Volkswagons. Check out http://www.bugorama.com/ for details... They are off further south in Florida tomorrow to Riverside RV Resort and Campground in Arcadia ( www.riversidervresort.com ) near Sarasota.

5050 BMX Rolls into Playa...

A group of pro BMX riders rolled into the park yesterday with their rig and trailer in tow. They were very cool and seemed to enjoy the great Florida weather. I did not see them doing any fancy stuff on their bikes but check out their blog at www.5050bmx.com/blog/ there is some great video there of them doing their thing! They are almost as cool as the Airstream... :-)

In this shot we have the BMX team members, and Richard, John and Glenna (from Australia) and Scott! What a great day it was lots of sunshine!

Love the shadows in this shot...and the poses...

Stormy Saturday Jan 16th Shots..

The weather was stormy over the gulf with lots of heavy rain and we did take a walk by the beach. The surf was very high on the beach, almost up to the protected sand dunes. And the waves were reported to be 7 to 10 feet at times... Very noisy!

Rainy Day in Perdido Key

Today the truck is getting a great bath with the heavy rain outside! We have had a few beautiful days of sunshine and warmth. It went up to 70 F yesterday ( that is 21 C) and we walked on the beach in the morning for about 4 km. The beach was deserted! Once the spring breaks start at the colleges and universities in Feb and March the beach will experience a metamorphosis. There will be beach chairs set up, people playing volleyball and swimming and lots of beachcombers.

Oh, last evening a 25 foot Class C motorhome pulled in with a young family on board. First one child was spotted, then two...wait a minute there are two more, and, what on earth, another three !!! For a total of seven children with their two parents. The story, on the road for a year, home schooling the kids...Can you imagine what that would be like on a rainy day. There were three under 3 among them...Wow...