sunset over gulf of mexico

panama city beach, florida

storm is coming

birdie on gulf coast beach

the other shore

Coming over to the Atlantic Ocean side of Florida means that the sand and the seashells and the water itself are different. The sand here is made up completely of broken shells, unlike the Gulf of Mexico shore that is fine, white sand. These shells are on their way to a life as shards, then slivers, then, eventually, specks, but not as fine as coffee or sand.

lizard eyes

In a Florida backyard, this little fellow kept climbing up on the lawnmower to look at me. And I looked at him (or her; how does one sex a lizard?!). Now you can look at him/her, too.

defense mechanism

Look how scary the back of this crab looks! Anyone know what this is? Leave a comment, if you do. I found this one on the Gulf of Mexico at Yankeetown, Florida.

water and wind

Listen.

heaven to hell in the blink of an eye

I've been traveling down the Gulf Coast of Florida today, through what is being called The Nature Coast. It's pretty much between Apalachicola and Crystal River, maybe a bit further south. I'm spending the next two nights at a very cool little cabin at The Pine Lodge in Inglis. I don't usually advertise businesses, but this place is wonderful. Quiet, clean, and it's where the film crew for Elvis Presley's movie Follow That Dream stayed. Don't bother going to the east coast of Florida. Go to the Gulf Coast and stay here.

These fiddler crabs were running away from me as I was photographing them. There were hundreds of them. Thousands! They are little, only about 1.5 to 2 inches long.

And then, looming over the beautiful wetlands and marshes is the Crystal River Nuclear Power Plant. A view like this is plenty to bring one back to reality.

one more pink thing

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Canaveral National Seashore, and the Kennedy Space Center share much of the same soggy, sandy landscape on the Atlantic Ocean shore. Many birds live here, too, dodging pesticides and rockets, including the roseate spoonbill, seen here hanging out between preening itself and fishing.

la florida. . .

. . .was named for its flowers. Camilia japonica bushes grow profusely (as do many other Camelias and flowers of all types) in Leu Gardens, where they were planted by Henry P. after he and his wife bought the property in 1936. Their goal was to show which plants grow in this USDA Zone 9b. They succeeded. In 1961, they deeded the house and gardens to the City of Orlando.

the atlantic

There are only a couple of things that I want to accomplish while I am down here. One of them is touching the Atlantic Ocean. Here it is, ready for me. Beautiful day, relaxing time; exactly the things that I need.

arrived in summer

And here it is: 81° and partly cloudy, 40% humidity and no breeze.
In my life, this is summer.

a funky little piece

This is a detail of a little piece that I did called "When I Die and Go to Heaven, It Will Not Look Like This." I must have heard some news about Florida and someone I knew was thinking of retiring there, and this image came to mind.



Here is the whole thing:


And this is another detail: