Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Walkabout - Back to the Bay

I took another morning off and went back to the beaches
To tired To Blog, see you all tomorrow.
Only the guy who isn't rowing has time to rock the boat. ean-Paul Sartre --French existentialist philosopher and writer, 1905-1980


My mom said she learned how to swim when someone took her out in the lake and threw her off the boat. I said, “Mom, they weren't trying to teach you how to swim."


-Paula Poundstone --American comedienne



Why do 'tug'boats push their barges?

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Walkabout - Back Alley

Gotcha! What were you thinking when you saw Back Alley?

Out of all the shops at Bridge Street, my most favorite is The Back Alley. I love the purple and aqua color and I really, really love the Sign by the front door. it is made with small tiles.

The cafe was closed at 7, but that did not stop the two adventurers. We just tramped our way down between the buildings and into that alley. Look, a Window!



Judy, Look at THIS window! I can't right now, Sandra, I am shooting the DOOR! Look at this, Wow! Wow!
(this is the noise we were making)


Oh! Oh! a deck in the back yard! Chairs and Tables and a place for music! (future post will show some of the THINGS we found And the Door)



The alley and the backyard is covered with crushed shell, every table and chair set is different. Eclectic means Back Alley


Paintings on the walls as big as a wall (oops more on that later)

Even the Sign is wonderful! click to enlarge to read what we could have had if it were open.


If you enlarge you will see the sign says
"Wild Treasures for Funky Souls" and
"Coffee Served in backyard"
How cool is this? I wish you had a soundtrack of our voices, I said things like, do you think they have security back here? Did that stop us? what do you think? (the sign said for funky souls)


I loved the little bay windows full of treasures, and

Every Friday night the Back Alley hosts local musicians to play in the back yard. You may even find someone painting and listening to the local music. (we know this because the signs said so, no music at 7 AM)

Monday, June 28, 2010

Walkabout - Bridge Street Pier

Look out my blogger friends, my friend Judy and I, went on a Walkabout on  historic Bridge Street, City of Bradenton Beach and I have a gazilion of photos. This means at least a week or more of post w/history lessons.
The time was 7 AM
Bridge Street Pier is the center of the Historic Old Town District. The original wooden bridge from the mainland connected to Bridge Street. This made the street the bustling little center of activity for the young town in 1893



A rejuvination project breathed new life into the area and the street is now beatifully landscaped and lined with charming and quaint buildings which house unique shops, restaurants, bars and accomodations




The first permanent settler on the island was George Emerson Bean, who built his 1893 homestead on the northern tip of the island in the area that now bears his name. (Bean Point).



Ancient artifacts unearthed on the island indicate that local Indian tribes had a presence on Anna Maria as long as 2000 years before the island was 'discovered' by Spanish explorers




In 1921 - 1922 the first bridge was constructed from the Village of Cortez to Bridge Street on the Island. Before this time visitors got to the island by boat. This made Bridge Street the center of the bustling island community. In 1926 a bridge to Longboat Key was erected.


At that time the community was known as Cortez Beach. In the late 20's the editor of the Bradenton Herald began calling the city Bradenton Beach and the name stuck.


 
Shops, Resturants, Condo's, and Lots of fantasy signs. This memaid on the front porch of the Bazzaar sports a cowboy hat and holds a pineapple. I guess that IS  pretty Bazaar.

 


 

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Creation, A Gift from God

The natural world that God has made must not be used at whim:
We serve as stewards of His earth, responsible to Him. D. De Haan


 To mistreat God's Creation, is to offend the Creator. we are to care for and guard God's creation as responsible stewards. Dennis Fisher


As Judy and I stood in awed wonder of the sun rising and painting everything in sight with this golden color, I felt peace and joy. As I looked through my photo's of the day, my heart started to ache.

My thoughts were of Alex the storm that is headed into our wonderful Gulf, and the oil waiting for the blender motion. And I knew in my heart that mankind has NOT been good stewards of God's Gift to us.

Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. and on the seventh day God ended his work which he had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Genesis 2:1-2

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Then the Lord God took the MAN and put him in the garden of Eden to TEND AND KEEP IT. GENESIS 2: 15

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Zebra Longwing Butterfly

Our backyard continues to amaze us with new visitors not sighted before. this beauty came at 3 PM Friday, with the temp showing at 100 degrees in the shade. the Flowers have gone balistic from the heat and humitity and the B-flies keep comin! I almost missed him, but research says he will return, so LOOK OUT
Zebra longwings (Heliconius charitonius) are one of four longwing and fritillary (remember the gulf Ihave been following?seems our passion plant is host plant for this one to) butterflies found in Florida. 
Zebras fly slowly and don't startle easily, making them easy to follow and observe. A zebra resting at dusk can be gently coaxed to climb on your finger and to return, unflustered, to its perch. Zebras roost in groups, returning to the same location each night

Zebra longwings feed on nectar and pollen. They are the only butterflies known to eat pollen which is probably why they have a long lifespan of about six months. If denied pollen, they live a more typical lifespan of about one month


In 1996, Governor Chiles designated the Zebra Longwing as Florida's official state butterfly. The zebra, easily identified by its long black wings striped with yellow, is found in all parts of the state year round.
OK, you do remember I had my fingers crossed on B-fly post!

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Coming Soon! Historic Bridge St Pier Walkabout. The header is a teaser....I went walkabout with Judy at our local beaches today, Next zillion posts will tell all about it.
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Friday, June 25, 2010

Look Up!

Live life,
Laugh often and love unconditionally
Look forward and up,
not down and back
Keep your head to the sky. anonymous
So I kept my head to the sky and look what flew in front of my camera. If I could have gotten his tag number I would report him/her, we are in a no fly over zone. What was he doing there?

My question is, you can see how BLUE the sky was, but behind the plane is no  blue or white, but gray, I wonder why

I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes.
e. e. Cummings

1.Genesis 1:8
God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Nuse In V-JDay Kiss photo dies

I just got in my news feeds that the nurse in the famous photo of the Sailor Kissing the nurse (see below from Internet), has died at age 91. click here for her story.


today's post is a Re-Direct to my archives, CLICK HERE........ to related post on our statue that resides by the side of the road here.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Just Call Me Ginny!


Are you straining your brain trying to decipher the post title? and also what IS this photo? and Why is it here?

Choice reading material for our Wildlife in Florida. Have you guessed yet what/where/when/why?


Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counsellors, and the most patient of teachers. Charles W. Eliot
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Books were my pass to personal freedom. I learned to read at age three, and soon discovered there was a whole world to conquer that went beyond our farm in Mississippi. Oprah Winfrey

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If you guessed mural on the side of a book mobile, you got it right.

Saturday AM I stepped out of my truck at the library and staring me in the face I found the book mobile. I took several shots of what I normally would have ignored before I fell under the influence of Ginny, author of Let Your Light Shine . Ginny has  been known to take photos of her TV screen, Whine Bottles and newspapers. Inspired by her out of the ordinary, here is my theft by google photos of historical book mobiles.

NO, I did NOT take these two photos, but my parents could have

The United States Bookmobile Today


While bookmobile services have slightly declined over the past two decades, the bookmobile remains an integral part of the American cultural landscape. With the exception of Maine, all U.S. states offer traveling branch library service, with Kentucky leading the pack at 98 bookmobiles! 
the above photo was taken in 1953 in Kentucky, I was in the same county with this one and living there at the time this was taken. Growing up my life was enriched by reading from these wonderful traveling library's and I was please to find they are still around even in these Modern Times of Technology.

If  you are into Information that is pure Trivia click here
and for Library History Buff click here

If you find this post just a little on the ODD side, just scroll back up and click on Ginny's blog and tell her I said it is all her fault.

PS.... have you noticed there are several of us bloggers who just can't seem to do a wordless or short post?

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Rain Drops


“May the raindrops fall lightly on your brow. May the soft winds freshen your spirit. May the sunshine brighten your heart. May the burdens of the day rest lightly upon you, and may God enfold you in the mantle of His love.” Old Irish Blessing






these photos are all of our Million Bells plant, with the help of the 5 minute shower that came for a quick visit, you might just SEE a Million of them soon.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Johnny or Jack?

My husband MIGHT be descended from Johnny Appleseed or Jack N the Beanstalk?. He LOVES growing things from seeds, if he has a seed he plants it (we have grapefruit & avacado trees from seeds), he can't stop growing things from seeds, we have ZERO places to plant in our jungle, but he still has to do it.

Above is one of his latest. 3 weeks ago I bought a Delish Watermelon. He threw a hand full of seeds in this pot and LOOK at this! if you enlarge you will see what looks like dirt on top. it is not, it is one of the seeds, as the plant grows, the seed it came from pushes up to the top of the plant until it falls off. Bet you did not know this! Or want to for that matter!


Both of these buckets contain tomato plants. You may have guessed where they camer from if you are paying attention. Yes, he did take the red slimy stuff that is full of little yellow slimy seeds and falls out on the plate when we slice it, and throw it in some dirt, NOT potting soil, just plain black sand from Florida and a few weeks later????? can you believe it?

I hope to have a pretty red tomato  post sometime in the future, so stay tuned.


Click here for Detour Proper Use of Pillows