Life At The Beach (Sanibel Island)

7:39

7:40

Yesterday's Cloudy Morning, 9:00

It's 7:00, sitting alone in the living room, as it's starting to get light outside.  I can just see the sky though the porch door, and it's cloudy over the ocean, light back towards the mainland.  It's not Chautauqua but it's still nice to wake up to sky and water, just a little warmer I expect.

Beaching It

Yesterday was the kind of day we have been waiting for, lots of sun, sea, and warm weather, just what we expect from a visit to Florida.  We all got up around 7:30, relaxed over a coffee, before deciding to walk the beach before breakfast.  It was very foggy out, even cool, so we wore long sleeve shirts just in case it was breezy.  Lots of people on the beach at 9:00, despite the fog and cool weather, a good time of the day to walk actually because of the cool weather.  Sanibel, of course, has great beaches stretching for miles both ways, so you could walk for hours if you wanted.  We were out for about an hour I would say, watching, along with many others, cameras poised, the dolphins, glide through the water, about twenty feet off shore.  I would guess there were hundreds of people walking at this hour, up and down the beach, lots of young runners of course, healthy and tan, making us oldsters wish we were young again.  Evie took some great pictures of shore birds, though we were not sure what kind they were.  The pelicans are about it for our knowledge of Florida birds.

A White Ibis (down curved beak, orange/red face), Looking For Food

We got back around 10:00 and Rich made his speciality, an omelette with tomatoes and cooked bacon, a great way to start our day.  Around 11:00, we went off to the local supermarket, shopping area, about a ten minute drive, dodging the hundreds of bicyclers on the road, enjoying the exercise on a beautiful morning.  The store was great, prices a bit more than the mainland but still fine.  We picked up some necessities and two thick, juicy New York strips for dinner, Evie's favorite steak.  We browsed a bit in a couple of shops, but were anxious to get home to the beach.  We went down to the beach, like everyone else on Sanibel, with our chairs, and read, walked and even swam for a couple of hours. The water was cold but once you got in, it was great.  Few people seemed to want to swim, and would rather walk or just bake in the sun, getting that savage tan to show off when you return up north.  I don't love sitting in the sun much, but it did feel good.  I would rather walk or do something.  We went up around 1:30, for lunch, some leftover shrimp pasta and sandwiches.

"King and Queen of the Pelicans we;/No other Birds so grand we see!/None but we have feet like fins!/With Lovely leathery throats and fins!" - from  Edward Lear's THE PELICAN CHORUS

After lunch, Linda and I stayed up at the condo, watched some basketball and took a nap, while Evie and Rich hit the beach.  Around 3:15, Linda and  I went down, and the sun was just beginning to lose its heat, which I liked.  We read, took walks, what else, and cracked open a couple of beers around 4:30, the good life, a beer, sea, and sand.  We finally went up to the condo around 5:15, after a final salty swim, washed off the sand and we all took showers, to freshen up and get the salt off.  A great way to end the day at the beach, get you ready for a fun evening.

Getting Ready for Dinner

We relaxed for about an hour with wine and cocktails before Rich and I went downstairs, to grill the steaks out on the public grills, four of them for the condo residents.  They were close to two inches thick but Rick grilled them to perfection, and Evie remarked they were the best steaks she has had in a long time.  Evie sauteed some mushrooms with soy and butter, to compliment the steaks, and Linda made potatoes, and with a salad, we were content, what else, after a great day in Florida.  It was worth the drive of twenty two plus hours.