I left the Cindy 2000 in Naples and rented a car to drive back to Spring Hill earlier than planned. These spots and flashes of sparkles buzzing around my head are getting annoying and I have an appointment to see the eye doctor and my physician, on Monday.
I don't know what is causing them, but on the drive back we had our first thunderstorm of the season and it was quite a show. Enormous bolts of lightening danced across the sky, followed by thundering booms. And then came the rain. A gulley-washer; a flood from the heavens run amok. It all seemed to be a larger version of the sparkles that are annoying me. At least I'm not hearing thnder in my head.
Thunderstorms don't last very long here on the Florida Gulf. They come and they go. This first one visited us twice within eight hours and left a beautiful Sunday filled with fresh air and warm breezes in its wake, with the temperature hovering at 75 degrees. A dashing sunset was followed by an extraordinary clear night filled with stars and a fingernail like crescent moon hanging in the west. Should be another nice day tomorrow before our next storm rushes in sometime on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, it's life as usual around the Briars as whatever is ailing me doesn't seem to be causing discomfort beyond being distracting. So, after enjoying Tiger Woods' remarkable return to the victory stand I'll do some blogging and watch a movie or two in hopes of turning my attention away from the sparks of light.
... and so it goes.
29 March 2009
28 March 2009
I've Looked at Clouds From Both Sides Now...
he clouds they come. The clouds they go. Like incongruous puffs of marshmallows and cotton balls; distorted, divergent, disconnected. Forever morphing into shapes that tickle our imagination; awaken dreams past, and give pause to speculation of things to come.
The clouds in Naples are that way. Showy, dashing, opulent; sometimes pompous and pretentious against a radiant blue sky. The ultimate in ever transforming illusions, beholding only to the whims of the wind.
Clouds are much like life.... forever changing, emotional; and sometimes quick to disappear. Just when you think you've figured them out, they fade into a whitewashed backdrop, void of character.
I've discovered that clouds really aren't all that mysterious. The mystery is in what they hide. The secrets concealed. Hidden away not by darkness but by covert guile; challenging our perception and giving whimsical fancy to our thoughts.
I think spending the day with clouds is often lost in a world too overburdened with survival to stop and enjoy the moment.
26 March 2009
Sea Breezes and Jazz
March 25, 2009
2030 HRS
I was 27 degrees, 23.8 minutes North; 82 degrees, 40.7 minutes West according to the Tom Tom. A mile or so off shore and just north of Long Boat Key, when the Coast Guard approached. I turned into the wind and heaved to and they came aboard for inspection. They were looking for drugs. None here... so they thanked me for my courtesy and moved on.
The wind is supposed to shift out of the north later this evening, gusting to 30 knots with nine foot swells. I'm not comfortable with that. So I've been tacking my way toward Lido Key for anchorage (N27 20.011 W82 35.226) and I'll call it a day. The anchorage is in the ICW just off Ken Thompson Park and City Island. I'll enter the waterway between Lido Key and Bay Isle and motor sail to anchorage.
I'm dieting to shrug off those ten winter pounds I gained so no need to paddle the dinghy to shore to find a restaurant. I'll just stay aboard and fix a nice salad and sip on grapefruit juice. I have some DVD movies and books, so keeping myself occupied won't be a problem. I'll get a good night's sleep.
2330 HOURS
With midnight approaching I am relishing in a beautiful Gulf night anchored off the coast of Florida, a short swim from City Island (near Sarasota). Soft jazz is riding the wind from somewhere on shore. Transparent lacey clouds streak across a blue-black sky breached by twinkling stars. An occasional splash, from out of the dark, confirms that otherwise still water is alive. I'm thinking the word romance is redefining itself. This could be heaven.
Life is good.
2030 HRS
I was 27 degrees, 23.8 minutes North; 82 degrees, 40.7 minutes West according to the Tom Tom. A mile or so off shore and just north of Long Boat Key, when the Coast Guard approached. I turned into the wind and heaved to and they came aboard for inspection. They were looking for drugs. None here... so they thanked me for my courtesy and moved on.
The wind is supposed to shift out of the north later this evening, gusting to 30 knots with nine foot swells. I'm not comfortable with that. So I've been tacking my way toward Lido Key for anchorage (N27 20.011 W82 35.226) and I'll call it a day. The anchorage is in the ICW just off Ken Thompson Park and City Island. I'll enter the waterway between Lido Key and Bay Isle and motor sail to anchorage.
I'm dieting to shrug off those ten winter pounds I gained so no need to paddle the dinghy to shore to find a restaurant. I'll just stay aboard and fix a nice salad and sip on grapefruit juice. I have some DVD movies and books, so keeping myself occupied won't be a problem. I'll get a good night's sleep.
2330 HOURS
With midnight approaching I am relishing in a beautiful Gulf night anchored off the coast of Florida, a short swim from City Island (near Sarasota). Soft jazz is riding the wind from somewhere on shore. Transparent lacey clouds streak across a blue-black sky breached by twinkling stars. An occasional splash, from out of the dark, confirms that otherwise still water is alive. I'm thinking the word romance is redefining itself. This could be heaven.
Life is good.
Destination Naples II
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
1230 HOURS
To my west is a great expanse of blue ocean. Off to my east is Clearwater Beach. As I recall, there have been a couple of bashes held there in past years. I lived a block away from Clearwater Beach when I first moved to Florida. I was single then, as it was before I met my late wife ..... and much, much younger. Back then there weren't near the crowds and traffic that congest the area today. In those days, the talk of the town was the expanding takeover of Clearwater by Scientologists buying up prime real estate. The beach looks to be filled with people and I see a couple of parasails floating up above. Floridians at play.
For the last couple of hours I've been sailing between a close and beam reach, between 60 to 90 degrees to the wind. I've quickly learned that it is the easiest of sailing points and it gives me confidence in handling.
The thing about sailing is, while the distance from point a to point b might be 10 miles, you can travel half again that distance to reach your destination. It takes time... and patience. Not yet being a master of the wind, for me it takes allot more time and allot more patience. But I wouldn't have it any other way. At this stage in life, I have no real schedules to keep, aside from taking classes, so in a sense, time is on my side.
My goal... eventually is cruising. Sailing to Aruba and then to Puerto Rico. Initially, I hoped to do that this year. But the more I sail and the more experience I get... the more I know I'm not ready. So I've reset that goal to sometime next year. Better safe than sorry. Instead, depending on this year's hurricane activity, I will circumnavigate Florida; rounding the keys and head up the east coast. I figure I can gain much needed confidence that way.
Oops. I need to come about... gotta go. See ya
1230 HOURS
To my west is a great expanse of blue ocean. Off to my east is Clearwater Beach. As I recall, there have been a couple of bashes held there in past years. I lived a block away from Clearwater Beach when I first moved to Florida. I was single then, as it was before I met my late wife ..... and much, much younger. Back then there weren't near the crowds and traffic that congest the area today. In those days, the talk of the town was the expanding takeover of Clearwater by Scientologists buying up prime real estate. The beach looks to be filled with people and I see a couple of parasails floating up above. Floridians at play.
For the last couple of hours I've been sailing between a close and beam reach, between 60 to 90 degrees to the wind. I've quickly learned that it is the easiest of sailing points and it gives me confidence in handling.
The thing about sailing is, while the distance from point a to point b might be 10 miles, you can travel half again that distance to reach your destination. It takes time... and patience. Not yet being a master of the wind, for me it takes allot more time and allot more patience. But I wouldn't have it any other way. At this stage in life, I have no real schedules to keep, aside from taking classes, so in a sense, time is on my side.
My goal... eventually is cruising. Sailing to Aruba and then to Puerto Rico. Initially, I hoped to do that this year. But the more I sail and the more experience I get... the more I know I'm not ready. So I've reset that goal to sometime next year. Better safe than sorry. Instead, depending on this year's hurricane activity, I will circumnavigate Florida; rounding the keys and head up the east coast. I figure I can gain much needed confidence that way.
Oops. I need to come about... gotta go. See ya
Destination Naples
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Bayport / Spring Hill to Naples
0700 HRS
I've got my provisions, suitcases, and bike stowed away and I'm ready to weigh anchor. Starting Lat 28 degrees, 32 minutes North; Long 82 degrees, 39 minutes West , which is just south of Bayport, I'll head out (to the west) about a mile off shore and then swing south southwest to bypass the inland waterway. According to my NOAA charts... 11405-11429 my target is 26 degrees, 8 minutes North; Long 81 degrees, 48 minutes West; about 237 nautical miles, with arc. Projected arrival time (with one stopover anchorage) around noon tomorrow. I've set my trusty Tom Tom and I'm off.
No...a Tom Tom is not an Indian drum, it's a GPS.
It's a bit of a chilly morning (51 deg) and absolutely no breeze, so I'm starting out under power. According to my NOAA data, this cold nip came to us from the coast of Texas; and it's a couple of days early. The winds should pick-up to around 20 knots as I edge into the Gulf. I'm already feeling the breeze.
Allot of fishing boats are putting out to favorite fishing haunts. Grouper and snapper are pretty good catches this time of year. This is also the time of year when bait fish make their run across the Gulf, so I'm not surprised at the boat traffic. Kingfish (mackerel) also make their spring migration north up the coast of Florida. Should be exciting for fishermen. I'm guessing many of them are out after Blackfin tuna, which also abound in bait fish rich Gulf waters.
0730 HOURS
The wind is out of the southeast at 20 knots... so I'm on a close haul, trimmed tight and angled southwest. Sailing across six to eight foot swells is not the challenge it used to be. I'm staying close to the wind... but not too close, lest I start pinching. Afterall, I'm still a bit of a novice and I'm not yet ready for bold challenges. All is well.
There's really not a whole lot to do right now, except enjoy the ride and the scenery. So I'm thinking about blogs to share. The question currently on my mind is... Do we really understand people?
I think... sometimes, many of us like to think so. I'm not so sure we succeed. Except to color them en mass with our own personal paint brush; revealing more about ourselves than them.
Mostly, I have stopped trying. For me, it's challenging enough to understand myself, and get a grip on the subtle changes in me that surface from time to time lately; altering the me I've known for so long, and giving me pause to wonder about my excessive spontaneity.
The challenge of understanding others is probably more successful if we learn to accept differences. I mean, we don't have to agree, but it's sure much easier to agree to disagree rather than get all swoll-up over our differences. Just a thought.
I'm also thinking...probably I should revisit my attitude about committed relationships. I mean, it would sure be much more fun to have a sailing partner to share life and voyages with. Oh well... that for another time. I tend to get weak in my resolve when I sail alone.
Bayport / Spring Hill to Naples
0700 HRS
I've got my provisions, suitcases, and bike stowed away and I'm ready to weigh anchor. Starting Lat 28 degrees, 32 minutes North; Long 82 degrees, 39 minutes West , which is just south of Bayport, I'll head out (to the west) about a mile off shore and then swing south southwest to bypass the inland waterway. According to my NOAA charts... 11405-11429 my target is 26 degrees, 8 minutes North; Long 81 degrees, 48 minutes West; about 237 nautical miles, with arc. Projected arrival time (with one stopover anchorage) around noon tomorrow. I've set my trusty Tom Tom and I'm off.
No...a Tom Tom is not an Indian drum, it's a GPS.
It's a bit of a chilly morning (51 deg) and absolutely no breeze, so I'm starting out under power. According to my NOAA data, this cold nip came to us from the coast of Texas; and it's a couple of days early. The winds should pick-up to around 20 knots as I edge into the Gulf. I'm already feeling the breeze.
Allot of fishing boats are putting out to favorite fishing haunts. Grouper and snapper are pretty good catches this time of year. This is also the time of year when bait fish make their run across the Gulf, so I'm not surprised at the boat traffic. Kingfish (mackerel) also make their spring migration north up the coast of Florida. Should be exciting for fishermen. I'm guessing many of them are out after Blackfin tuna, which also abound in bait fish rich Gulf waters.
0730 HOURS
The wind is out of the southeast at 20 knots... so I'm on a close haul, trimmed tight and angled southwest. Sailing across six to eight foot swells is not the challenge it used to be. I'm staying close to the wind... but not too close, lest I start pinching. Afterall, I'm still a bit of a novice and I'm not yet ready for bold challenges. All is well.
There's really not a whole lot to do right now, except enjoy the ride and the scenery. So I'm thinking about blogs to share. The question currently on my mind is... Do we really understand people?
I think... sometimes, many of us like to think so. I'm not so sure we succeed. Except to color them en mass with our own personal paint brush; revealing more about ourselves than them.
Mostly, I have stopped trying. For me, it's challenging enough to understand myself, and get a grip on the subtle changes in me that surface from time to time lately; altering the me I've known for so long, and giving me pause to wonder about my excessive spontaneity.
The challenge of understanding others is probably more successful if we learn to accept differences. I mean, we don't have to agree, but it's sure much easier to agree to disagree rather than get all swoll-up over our differences. Just a thought.
I'm also thinking...probably I should revisit my attitude about committed relationships. I mean, it would sure be much more fun to have a sailing partner to share life and voyages with. Oh well... that for another time. I tend to get weak in my resolve when I sail alone.
18 March 2009
Romance in the Rough
You have to be a golfer to really appreciate the title of this photo... and the nuances that such a romance offers when setting in thatched bermuda.
While Spring is officially still a few days away, it's already in full swing here in Florida. High temperatures in the mid to upper 80's and overnight lows in the low 70's bring the promise of lot's of romantic opportunities on the golf course.
Whether you partner up with your favorite gal or play golf for the love of it, 'tis the season for romance from tee to green. A bit of rough is par for the course in any romance. The key to success is ... "be nice."
"FORE!"
12 March 2009
While jogging up to the donut shop this morning, my thoughts wandered to the myriad colors of spring flowers, mingled with jelly rolls and cinnamon bars. How weird is that?
The sun was at my back as it broke through the dark edges of dawn, throwing a kaleidescope of colors on the landscape. Probably that's what made me think of spring flowers. The jelly rolls and cinnamon bars? Probably they were a result of the growling noises from within, screaming for sweet relief.
Back at The Briars, I washed down a couple of jam-filled donut holes with hot coffee and thought... Oh yeah, this is what I'm talkin' about! Sweet relief.
Outside, the fullness of the sun broke the horizon and this day was in full stride. There aren't a whole lot of flowers blooming yet, but lily buds and gladiolas are peeking through otherwise dark barren soil and the promise is clear. It will be a colorful spring. Time to get my mind right and my hands into the earth.
It's nigh on noon now, as I sit at the computer to blog. The sun is high in the sky, mixing with westerly breezes to keep the temperature at a comfortable 78 degrees. Sitting here at pool-side, I watch with amusement as squirrels prance around, hopping from tree to tree, doing whatever it is squirrels do this time of year. A possum started across the yard and stopped... frozen in time as it sensed my presence. The squirrels broke out in a chatter of discontent over the intruder. A large black garden snake slithered toward the possum which suddenly came alive and scurried off.And that's when it happened. Without warning. As if preordained and on cue. Back in the far corner of the yard, unfettered by shade ... a lone hibiscus burst into bloom. There's an omen there somewhere. That's not supposed to happen. Hibiscus usually don't bloom before mid to late spring.
Oh well... no sense in complaining about unexpected beauty.
... and so it goes.
The sun was at my back as it broke through the dark edges of dawn, throwing a kaleidescope of colors on the landscape. Probably that's what made me think of spring flowers. The jelly rolls and cinnamon bars? Probably they were a result of the growling noises from within, screaming for sweet relief.
Back at The Briars, I washed down a couple of jam-filled donut holes with hot coffee and thought... Oh yeah, this is what I'm talkin' about! Sweet relief.
Outside, the fullness of the sun broke the horizon and this day was in full stride. There aren't a whole lot of flowers blooming yet, but lily buds and gladiolas are peeking through otherwise dark barren soil and the promise is clear. It will be a colorful spring. Time to get my mind right and my hands into the earth.
It's nigh on noon now, as I sit at the computer to blog. The sun is high in the sky, mixing with westerly breezes to keep the temperature at a comfortable 78 degrees. Sitting here at pool-side, I watch with amusement as squirrels prance around, hopping from tree to tree, doing whatever it is squirrels do this time of year. A possum started across the yard and stopped... frozen in time as it sensed my presence. The squirrels broke out in a chatter of discontent over the intruder. A large black garden snake slithered toward the possum which suddenly came alive and scurried off.And that's when it happened. Without warning. As if preordained and on cue. Back in the far corner of the yard, unfettered by shade ... a lone hibiscus burst into bloom. There's an omen there somewhere. That's not supposed to happen. Hibiscus usually don't bloom before mid to late spring.
Oh well... no sense in complaining about unexpected beauty.
... and so it goes.
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