London?? and Thanksgiving

What to do in a Florida Fog?

Pilgrims

Well pretend you are in London of course!  So whilst everyone huddled inside (home or car) moaning about sea fog and dampness, mini me (missing London) decided to go around all the local shops and get her errands done. Worked pretty well until the end, when the London-like mist turned into a Texas downpour.  Mini me tucked safely inside a pocket was fine, but life size me arrived home drenched!

Sky over cell phone lot
Cars all oriented towards the big board

Fortunately the next day was sunny as it was the day before Thanksgiving.  Since this is the only four day holiday in the USA, families travel far and wide to be together with the airports having their busiest days of the year. So off we went to TPA to pick up Sis and we found a very user-friendly cell phone lot.  You can park here for free, use the facilities and watch the big board to see when your relative's flight has landed.  Allowing 25 minutes (official guideline) for your party to get their bags and give you a ring, one then sets off to the terminal for a curbside pick-up.  Police and parking attendants managed the traffic flow so all very efficient . . . except for when one's car battery dies in the cell phone lot.  Alas we couldn't have been the first, since they have an 15-15 service - in 15 minutes for $15 someone comes and jump starts your car.  Sis' bag took awhile to arrive at the carousel in baggage claim, so all worked out fine.

carving the turkey

Thanksgiving Day is dominated by FOOD and American FOOTBALL (the latter for those so inclined, which leaves out mini me!). Thanksgiving of course is the celebration of the harvest for those fleeing the motherland and settling in the New World when it was still wild lands.  After watching the Macy's Day Parade and ensuring Santa arrived safely, it was time to eat.  We celebrated with our neighbours and their granddaughter, splitting the food preparation, and having a good time all round.  More on Thanksgiving history can be found here: http://www.wsj.com/articles/pilgrims-and-the-roots-of-the-american-thanksgiving-1417029561

Main Meal - Yummy!

gooey choc-peanut pie and pumpkin pie

Twinkly solar system table - they have 2

Black Friday (how ironic to have the biggest shopping day full of consumption just after the Day of Thanks) we went off to see the Oakdale Christmas lights.  Now in its 38th year, there are approximately 600,000 lights costing just under $5,000 to light nightly between Thanksgiving and New Year.  Having stopped by the Fresh Florida Orange Stand, the Sanding Ovations (see previous post) and 'Shopped Local' on the beach, we needed a coffee to tide us over for the lights.  The only place we could find en-route was bizarrely a British tea house named Chattaways! Quirky (who knew, ha ha) and decorated for Christmas, it fit the bill perfectly.

Chattaways

An egalitarian Christmas - even Wally the Walrus had a place!

A Christmas Palm Tree anyone?

And at last the lights:  a modest light display around one man's home in 1977, it has grown annually to include an 18-train model railroad, a Christian message broadcast on TV, a light show, several snow globes, a teddy bear parade (or two), etc. etc.  It takes circa 10 people three months to erect and 3 months to take down - so more or less a year-round occupation. As you can image it has to survive the Florida sun and thunderstorms, so is in various states of repair.  All in all an amazing sight and gave us a few laughs too!

And just to get you in the spirit of American Christmas decorations -- saw this 'reindeer' on the road.
This was followed by a jeep decked out in Christmas lights like a Christmas tree - no kidding!

You just gotta love those antlers on a Ford pick-up!

Meet a Florida Forest Hammock

About 15 hours into the work

a bit ghoulish for mini me
Titled:  Love Never Dies

This weekend was the 6th Annual International Sanding Ovations contest at Treasure Island (just over the bridge southwards from us).  30 hours of sand sculpting over 3 days for a 5 figure $$ cash prize; winner is the picture to the right with the ribcage being very technically difficult to execute. Finale was fireworks we could watch from our balcony. Not sure what the theme was - you can decide for yourselves.

Mangroves

According to Wikipedia, a "Hammock is a term used in the southeastern United States for stands of trees, usually hardwood, that form an ecological island in a contrasting ecosystem. Hammocks grow on elevated areas, often just a few inches high, surrounded by wetlands that are too wet to support them."

Our Saturday morning included a Hammock walk at Fort De Soto to see some native habitat. Fortunately we missed the rattlesnakes  and coyotes, but did see some fiddler crabs - they are just to fast to catch on camera!  The Florida Panther and Bear live further inland much to mini me's relief as we sauntered through the conifer leaf mould.

Here's a salt shrub - the showy white one is the female and the duller yellow one the male - what a turnaround from the brighter male birds and less colourful female birds.

female on left, male on right

Leaves of 3, let it be -- poison ivy berries!

The area was very varied and the pine needles made for a lovely walk on a sporadically sunny

Native slash pine

Saturday morning.  And at last life size me found the native slash pine, almost totally overtaken by the invasive Australian pine, the latter causes many problems.  Life size me had to be on the lookout -- as poison ivy is everywhere and she doesn't fancy another run in with it. The birds, however, favour the berries, which although poisonous to humans, are fine for them.

bootjacks on palm tree

The strangler fig typically grows from a seed dropped by a bird at the top of a tree and works its way toward the ground; here the strangler has engulfed a palm which you can barely see - look closely.


And then we found the discarded shell of a horseshoe crab - their blue blood is used to test for bacteria in intravenous drugs -- but this does not kill them.  The horseshoe also sheds its shell as you can see here.

All too soon the walk came to an end as the clouds rolled in and the wind picked up.  Off to the Black Forest Cottage Restaurant for German potato pancake lunch.  

No, not off the kid's menu

 

Back home strange overnight ripples 

appear parallel to the shoreline

(Sunday morning)

Damp coastal sea fog rolled in Monday morning and stayed all day despite the sun's efforts to burn it off; an't see much and everything is wet -- with a very high tide.  The Fog is localised along the shoreline and concentrated in specific spots, as when I drove 2 miles south Monday afternoon the fog lifted dramatically and there was none inland.  

Along with the human Canadian snowbirds, the white pelicans have just arrived from the North; these pelicans scoop in coastal lagoons for their fish unlike our year-round brown pelicans diving in the sea. Another cold front is forecast to come through this week, so it looks to be an unusually chilly Thanksgiving here in Mad Beach!

No, not a bad picture, but FOG!

And I kid you not, a lone windsurfer just zoomed by on the water in this fog with storm warnings posted - anything for a bit of wind surfing I suppose . . .

Arctic Storm Rearranges Sand

Dateline:  Monday 17th November 2014 & Tuesday November 2014

As the arctic front rolled in and the weather radio spewed forth watches for tornadoes (meaning conditions are ripe, vs a warning meaning one is sighted or imminent), we decided to get in a quick beach walk before the storm hit fully.  Over water a tornado is called a waterspout.

One chilly beach walker as
the temperatures plummet

There was one intrepid surfer just going out - crazy and frankly dangerous. Very windy and wild, yet the temperature at 75F hasn't yet dropped (but did later).  Damp and gray characterises the day outside and seeps indoors.

As rain drove us off the beach, we moved quickly meaning we chased the gulls down the beach. Oddly they sidestepped running sideways, not forward nor flying away.  This is the same storm that is dumping tractor loads of snow across the US.

Sea nibbles at the sand bank

Stormy conditions bring up lots of stuff from the depths of the Gulf, like sponges. Also storms redistribute sand.

Little 'cliffs' as the storm eats away the sand

Sea foam

We now realise recent storms moved sand onshore from our offshore sandbar where we see the dolphins fishing.  This storm appears to be moving it back offshore - all part of the sand sharing system we learnt about in our 'How to Read a Beach' course with Tonya.  It makes for interesting beach arrangements. The curved shoreline of my last post has now straightened out.

Mini Me just loves the sounds and sights of a stormy beach -- complete with thunder and lighting -- especially viewing from a dry balcony!!  Life size me turned on the car seat heaters tonight, the same ones she laughed about when buying the car thinking who would need them in Florida!?!

Ever notice mini me has no mouth; hence this blog to give her a voice.

Waiting for ceiling
paint to dry

A stormy day is perfect for doing that touch-up paint job on the ceiling where the general contractor failed to paint (including at the join with the ceiling vent).  Then voila, we can finally put up the shower curtain of squirting whales, dolphins, and turtles.  How appropriate is that - the 3 big creatures in the Gulf of Mexico!!

Much better transition between carpets
My fellow citizens don't know what they are missing!

The carpet layer returned to install our twin grip carpet bar and life sized me is very pleased; he was impressed with the quality and was thinking of offering to clients.  A big thank you to my sister-in-law for the UK shipment of said carpet bar and the shower curtain.  Who ever thought I would have to import such things from the UK?!?  Certainly not me!

How to Read a Beach

Yup, a ginormous flag at
Fort De Soto Park

Darn, just missed a photo opp of a microlight platoon bi-plane buzzing by.  What a sight.

Friday was our field trip to Fort De Soto after 6 weeks with Dr Tonya Clayton studying beaches.  The course was aptly named 'How to Read a Beach' and was a great deal of fun as well as insightful.  We now appreciate the numerous types of waves and shifting sands in our 'front

Sand cliff on right is known as a checking account withdrawal

yard.'

Entering the park one encounters this ginormous American flag and as it was a windy day also a very noisy flag flapping somewhat wildly. Life size me didn't fancy trying to take it down or having it land on her in a wind storm - she reckons it could do serious damage.

Dune sunflowers

It was great fun to be on the beach with Tonya on a windy day.  We explored sand movements, beach plants and a wide variety of shells.

Life size me was distracted by trying to take pictures of some very active pelicans.

Watching these guys ride the waves when the surf's up is great fun ... but doesn't make for much of a picture.

However got these photos ... not bad, if a bit fuzzy,

coming in to land

and taking off again

but was trying for this . . .

diving for food

   

Storm action shaping the beach shoreline

Back on our own beach, the storm and waves have taken the straight coastline and carved out some areas like little 'scoops' around the groins.  
With an arctic front moving in as I write this, these crescent shapes are being erased before mini me's very eyes and the coastline is now straightening out again.

Landscapes seem to suit my 10 year old point and shoot camera a bit better than marine life shots, so am signing off with these sunsets as the gulls squawk with the setting sun.

 PS.  We are done with renovations.  Yes, done. Passed final inspection last Wednesday and have signed off with the general contractor.  What a relief.  Still things to unpack and stuff to sort, but now it is our home!!!

Ok, a bit of wine makes me fuzzy, but happy

Weekend Bash!

Dateline:  9 November 2014

Are you wondering what mini me does on the weekends at the beach?  Well beach life is never dull but generally involves a party and food.  This weekend we started with the King of the Beach Fishing Tournament & Mad Food Festival. Mini me volunteered to sell tickets at the event on Friday night; as it was dark and chilly no pictures.

An aside (this is how beach life goes):  We've seen many 'No Parking' signs in our lifetime, but never before one encouraging you to park - on grass next to the bay no less. In case you are wondering the big leaf tree to the right
is the aptly named seagrape.

Please Park Here

First the boats gather

Saturday there was a charity bike ride down our road and on Boca Ciega Bay the Veterans Day Boat parade.

Then the drawbridge raises in salute
just as an impatient man runs under the barrier
was too shocked to get him in the picture

and the decorated boats in procession

this was the 18th year and honoured the army

while the traffic builds awaiting the closing
of the drawbridge

Sunday mini me was again selling tickets and filling her knitted belly this time at the Chowder Challenge.

Money, Money, Money

Yummy!

Although not finding it tasty, mini me has to mention the Lionfish Chowder made by Rumfish Restaurant as best in class for environmental chowder (Lionfish are an invasive species - see post of 28 Oct); note they won the 'Golden Ladle' so that tells you something about mini me's taste buds! Also worth a mention Middle Grounds Restaurant with their cheeseburger chowder as most innovative closely followed by Nori Thai for their thin, but lovely Asian Chowder.

To round off the week we were celebrating an early Thanksgiving with the women of Crossbridge Church.

New home anyone?

So having to pass on the following, which means more to look forward to next year:

• Blue Ocean Film Festival
• Fall Fly (kite flying choreographed to music)
• Taste of Indian Rocks Beach:  an evening of wine, music and food

Next weekend:  84th Annual Fish Broil complete with Firemen-led beach bonfire (beach fires not normally allowed).