Sandy society

Yesterday I took my beach walk about five miles north of here. Different and interesting but for some reason the unfamiliar didn't satisfy. Today I was back to my regular patch beach and felt better being in the comfort of the familiar. I realized too that I have a little social network of people I connect with daily.

This familiar sight with my fisherman friend, whose name is the same as my Dad's, was refreshing in the anticipation of conversation about his latest catch, tides, winds, etc. Later I ran into another beach pal who had just gotten an e-reader at my suggestion and was happy with the little device.

So besides fresh air, beach wildlife, tides, sand and wind, for me there is also the comfort of a little human society. Interesting, who'd a thunk it.

Laughter is good medicine

It was cloudy at the beach today but there were cheerful laughing gulls everywhere. These gray and white gulls with black heads certainly know how to throw their heads back and laugh. Didn't take a genius to name them laughing gulls.

Hope you get a chuckle out of the video clip I put together, if not from the raucous sounds at least from the antics of these silly gulls.

If the video below doesn't work for you here's the link to YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiGPvCNSatM

Good for a laugh!

Final Discovery

Having lived in Florida for the past 13 years (today actually being the anniversary of my move here) I've been privileged to witness our space shuttle launches. Each one has given me chills and produced a lump in my throat if not a certain amount of moisture in my eyes.

Today was special because as the shuttle program is being phased out, this is the last launch of the shuttle Discovery. Discovery's first launch was in August 1984 since then it has made 39 successful missions. One of those missions was to carry the Hubble Telescope into space (and to take astronauts to the telescope for the two subsequent repair missions.)

Unfortunately there were clouds partially obscuring the view today but it didn't diminish the welling feelings in my chest for this spectacular demonstration of man's achievements. Clouds also did not diminish the thunder of the launch which rolled our way after Discovery was long out of sight. It is about 85 miles to Cape Canaveral so hearing the thunder of a launch, even delayed, is amazing. What a privilege indeed to be here!

Perfect, then some...

The wide open sky, expansive sand and rolling blue sea all combined for a perfect beach day. The temperature was in the upper 70s, a light breeze kept it comfortable and it was a perfect spring day.

I loved every single minute of it and as if I needed reminding... I had a big ol' grin on my face knowing how lucky I am to be right here.

Big bird

The weather for the past few days have been just lovely. My beach walks have been physically and mentally rejuvenating especially with the congregating shore birds providing a lot of visual interest. This flock of mixed gulls and terns was invaded by a big ol' pelican. He seemed so big and gangly and out of place.

It could just be me trying to make a human-like connection that doesn't exit, but the smaller birds seemed to think this big bird was odd man out... er, odd bird out. Finally he lumbered away, his slow take off making him look like some caped wonder out of a horror story. What a beautiful day and one just ripe for my weird imagination to run amuck.

Head in the clouds

Not just head in the clouds, it was so foggy my whole body, head to toe, was in the clouds today at the beach. It was actually sort of interesting and since visibility was limited I found I was much more attuned to sounds and smells. It was an unusual experience and made for some very limited picture taking... unless you like shades of gray.

On the other hand, today I found a webcam of a wild Bald Eagle's nest located in Norfolk, Virginia's Botanical Gardens. There are three eggs in the nest and I've been enthralled watching the parents share egg sitting duties which includes turning the eggs and giving each other time off to stretch their wings. You may enjoy it too. Check it out:

http://www.wvec.com/marketplace/microsite-content/eagle-cam.html

Happy Heart Day

No flowers, no candy, no love poems but this Valentine's Day just made my heart sing. It was one of the most beautiful days weather-wise that we've had in several weeks. There was not a cloud in the sky, it was pushing 70º and as the poet Robert Browning once said... "All's right with the world."

It got even better when I got to the beach and saw my favorite little birds, the black skimmers. (See my posts Birding Beach Style from Jan. 2011 or Celebrity Skimmers from June 2009.) These guys are very rare and I usually only see one or two at a time and then once or twice a year.

Today, however, in one large group of gulls and terns I counted 30 skimmers. I was astounded! I don't have a picture of that large group due to camera operator error. Oops. But I did manage to catch another group of seventeen of these amazing little guys, see above. Of course, they turned their backs to me so you couldn't see the lovely red banding around their bills. And I didn't manage to get a good video of their low-to-the water flight pattern which allows them to skim the waves for their meals.

(The above is not my photo but a good shot of the skimmer's

striking color and intriguing eating habit.)

What I got today was a thrill better than any long-stemmed red roses could ever deliver. Happy Valentine's Day to me.

Coral sands

See what I mean about cloudy and gray. The whole scene this morning was basically colorless except for that bright strip of coral sand that is so prevalent here.

It was actually exhilarating watching the stormy seas and just another interesting aspect of life by the sea.

Paintbox colors

Rain, clouds and cold again today so here's one more photo from the archives. This one was just spectacular with its fiery colors. Do you think that if I wish for a stunning sunrise hard enough it will happen?

I'm positive it will but not in the next day or two so I'm treating myself, and you, to this glorious piece of history from September 2008.

Wishful thinking

The past several days have been gray, cloudy, cold and without one peek at the sun. Not good subject matter for the camera so I decided to dig into the archives and see what I could find.

Here is a warm sunny day, birds and people alike enjoying the beach. I enjoyed going back through my photos and this one warmed me up immediately.

So, if warm and sunny isn't possible one can at least pretend, and with a dash of wishful thinking thrown in for good measure, it should help make you feel toasty. It worked for me!

More than the ocean

Fortunately, I believe I live in one of the loveliest places on earth. I've been to many wonderful places around the globe but home is definitely where my heart is. I have the ocean on one side and the river and a lovely river basin on the other.

Here then are a couple of photos of the peace and tranquility found in our river basin even on a cloudy day.

These almost look like landscape paintings. The only thing missing are the occasional fish breaking the surface, scurrying crabs, various wildlife and of course birds of all kinds.

When the tide is too high or the winds too brisk for an enjoyable beach walk, this peaceful respite is definitely the place for me.

Just had to laugh

My ability as a videographer is definitely lacking, however the antics of the gull below just had me mesmerized.

I've never seen this behavior before and the dancing prowess of this little gull was amazing. Watch his feet carefully. Hopefully you'll find a grin, just as I did.

If for some reason you can't view the Riverdancing gull try this link to YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHTOQ_IYNoU

Riverdance... gull style