Saturday 17 January 2015

Beach Sights & Oddities

Even better than Christmas lights on the beach -
we had some lights, but not on this beach elephant!
He lives on Redington Beach looking out to sea.




What can I say when you happen upon this during your beach walk?
















Or walking to your friend's you find she has a palm tree that follows the sun.  I kid you not this palm moves through 90 degrees and sometimes blocks the path to her front door!



The stone crab fisherman is hard at work  . . and so too are the pelicans who follow diligently after him hoping for a morsel or two.



On Christmas day (after a meal with the largest piece of beef I have ever seen!) we took a walk and found college students preparing for the Bitcom Bowl (college football playoffs) and letting off a bit of steam with a tug of war leaving their instruments in the sand!  To be honest, I didn't know anyone still engaged in tug of war games.


and here's a chance to cool off and have a bit of fun at the Tradewinds resort.
.
Planning a dip in the sea?  You have been warned . . .

Monday 12 January 2015

AAAHHHHHHHH . . . CCCCCOOOLLLLLDDDDDDDD

First the AAHHHHH . . .As I look out the window - what do I see but a dolphin calf leaping fully out of the water - wonderful, but I am not quick enough with the camera.  Also our first sighting of water skiers race by our condo.

I am no camera whiz and only have a point and shoot, but still this picture makes me marvel at Mother Nature.

A boy glides by using the incoming surf and a short board to do the beach equivalent of skateboarding a rail.  This a common sight on the beach.

Next a less common sight, but one I suspect is being played out around the country.  Someone experimenting with his new Christmas toy -- a drone buzzing around the beach.

And hark what do I hear, but two drummers (yes drummers) creating a beat on the beach.

At 1:30 am last night I see bright lights rolling down the beach ...what could it be, but our sheriff patrolling the beach by car for night life -- human or animal I am not sure.

Just when one thinks they have seen it all on the beach . . .
This is the beach refuse truck that went into the sea in December when the driver was taken ill (driver is OK).  We do have more conventional things in the water too . . .

Refuse truck in sea

Just cruising by . . .











Gorgeous sailboats blow by too
Then out comes the moon .  .
Full moon over snack shack steps from our door
If you need inspiration for the New Year see my friend, Carole's Blog.


Now, the cold. Although much colder in the Northern USA, here on the beach it has dropped to 38 degrees Fahrenheit overnight (3 C). This gets one of two responses in Florida:

(1) from the natives/long-time residents: 'It's freezing, when will it stop, blah, blah, blah.'  It warms up in a day or two.  Mitigated by a few transplants who say 'Oh good, now I can wear my mittens, scarves, and sweaters.'

(2) from snow birds (regular winter visitors from up North): 'What's the problem - seems warm to me for winter.  Where I am from (insert Michigan, Wisconsin, Canada . . . ), it is much colder blah, blah, blah.'
Even in cold weather
the Great Blue Heron must catch dinner

And we thought the British national pastime was discussing the weather!

Today is warmer with foggy outlook and damp/humid (meaning frizzy hair, slow drying paint & countertops, etc) . . . mini me feels right at home!  Great weather for a spot of crocheting and hubby is hanging the quilt . . . picture in the next blog.










Monday 5 January 2015

Out the Window?

Something like this has been flying past my beach-front window every so often, but although noisy (with a distinctive ultralight whine to it), it is quick and I haven't managed to get a picture myself.


HangGlider Trike Amphibious / Ultralight Amphibious

There area a few other possible variations of exactly what it is including:

The holidays brought out a tug-of-war rope game along with a few beach football matches.

And of course we had the ultimate sand castle village builders!
Am not sure what to make of the plane crash!
(look near the feet of the two walkers)
Sailboats, motorboats, jet skis, para-guilders and the occasional cigar-boat all cruised by ...
Local motor cruising by
Perhaps house hunting by sea??

highly recommended
And the shifting beach continues to amuse and engage us.  We now have several books to help us interpret what is going on right in front of us.  You might recall we have had a flat beach, an incline, mini-cliffs (see post of 22 November) and now 'lagoons' all formed by the waves, wind and shifting sands.

Mini me celebrating New Year's  Eve
We had a good turnout of neighbours at our get together -
apparently something new at our condo block!


Never a dull day at the beach!
A happy sand crab!