Cobia boats

It may be slightly difficult to see on a small screen, but the Cobia boats are out in full force now. A Coast Guard helicopter is checking on the boats and the beach.

The Gulf water has warmed and there are schools of small fish here and there, also known to Cobia as 'lunch.' The water is incredible!



A small boat looking for Cobia. You can see a lookout standing on the flying bridge.

Coasting along

This guy just seems to be coasting along.

Sunning on the Sound

A beautiful day to relax and enjoy the colors of Santa Rosa Sound. Children love to build water-filled corrals for hermit crabs.

Missin' my view

I'm visiting my parents in Tennessee again, missin' the view from my condo. Although things are beautiful here in middle Tennessee, last week's tornadoes caused considerable damage in both Warren County (where my parents live) and in Sumner County (where I lived before moving to Florida).

I should be on the road to Florida very soon, meanwhile I look at this photo and sigh.

Afternoon walk

I think the birds are getting used to me!



Hmmm...maybe not. Buh-bye!

Wind beneath my wings

Ahhh...to be able to soar high above Santa Rosa Island for a bird's eye view.

Little Surfer Gull

I think this little seagull has been watching our local surfers a bit too long. Then again, it's alway good to dream BIG. [pun actually intended]

The Sand Canyon

The way the wind has carved a few tall dunes just past Portofino on Highway 399 remind me of the way the Colorado River etched through sandstone and limestone to create one of Mother Nature's masterpieces, the Grand Canyon.

Crab shacks

Pretty cool crab shack, huh? This little fellow slammed the door right in my face when I tried to get a shot of him.

Peep eye!

"Peep eye," said the hermit crab.

While the photo may appear blurry, it is because the tiny crab is underwater and his 'home' is covered with some type of algae which sways back and forth with the incoming tide.

It was a beautiful day to hike east to Range Point and I was fascinated with this little fellow.

Hazy days on Pensacola Beach

Now that I am a permanent resident, I have realized how many hazy days we have here on the island. On those occasions it is a matter of waiting for the haze to lift just enough for one photograph.

Pensacola JazzFest 2006 - Sunday

It was another beautiful day for the Pensacola JazzFest 2006. Slightly warmer today, but we still had a cool breeze.



It's Holly Shelton! What a great entertainer. Hey, I think she's singin' to me!



"Sweet spring, full of sweet days and roses,
A box where sweets compacted lie."

-- George Herbert




Wow, a punk hair-do, a pink collar, pink nail polish, a pink dress, and a recent body-wax. I'm speechless. I hope she remembered her SPF 30.



"In the spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love."

-- Alfred Lord Tennyson

Hmmm...looks more like he's catching a few zzzzzz's to me.



Now this is one laid-back guy.

Pensacola JazzFest 2006 - Saturday

It was a perfect Spring day for the Pensacola JazzFest -- lots of sunshine and a cool breeze off the bay.



My favorite vocalist is Kitt Lough. If you ever see her scheduled to perform locally, please take the opportunity to go.




Dave Shelander on the keyboard.



Pull up a chair!



The Swing Kids Dancers! If you think you can keep up with them, why not take a few Lindy Hop classes.




Happiness is a boy and his funnel cake



Or a little red-haired girl with chicken-on-a-stick. Ya know, I don't think strollers and skewers go together. But the way this little one is chowing down, I wouldn't want to be the one to take it away from her.

Simon says....Woof!

Meet Simon!

I occasionally run into Simon on afternoon walks along Santa Rosa Sound. He's so snorty and smooshed-faced that I think he's absolutely adorable (I'm gonna hear from one of my viewers on that comment!). And he thinks I'm a pain in the tush for interrupting his walk with a bunch of human fawning.

A couple of snorts and he's on his way, but he always makes me laugh.

Twilight at the pier

Another beautiful evening at the pier.

When day is done

"Love, good night. Must thou go,
when the day and the night need thee so?
All is well; speedeth all to their rest."

-- Taps

Due to a death in the family, I will be departing for Tennessee tomorrow morning and will be unable to post for a few days.

Calming sea

When high winds come out of the north, we laugh and say the Gulf of Mexico has turned into the Lake of Mexico.

It is a chilly, but beautiful morning.

Birds gotta fly?

"Lift your head high
Place no limits on the sky
You were meant to fly
So fly, we implore you"

-- lyrics from Robin and the Giant

Hmmmm.... whatever happened to "fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly"? This flock of seabirds seem to be grounded.

Blue diamonds

There is nothing more beautiful than the Gulf of Mexico when the sun turns the water into a sea of blue diamonds.

Barrancas National Cemetery

Barrancas National Cemetery, located within Naval Air Station, is a place of quiet dignity and reverence.

Southerly/northerly winds

Seventy-one degrees at 6:30 this morning and winds from the south...wait...from the northwest...now from the south! Ah well, it's a beautiful day.

Fairhope Arts & Crafts Festival

The 54th annual Fairhope Arts & Crafts Festival was held this weekend in the beautiful town of Fairhope, Alabama. Last year's event drew in 200,000 people.



Almost 250 exhibits....



Family-friendly...



Pampered puppies...



Flower-lined streets...



And upscale shops are everywhere. {{{pssst...Uptown carries Kate Spade!)




And unique stores like Terra Potta!

Azaleas

Today is the first day of Spring and all across the Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama, thousands of azaleas are now in full bloom.

Strawberries!

Yea! The strawberries at B.J. Farms are in! Sweet and juicy, picked ripe from the vine and washed clean.

B.J Farms is located on Highway 98, just east of Elberta, Alabama. Their beautiful fields are right next door and seem to go on and on forever. You may also pick your own.



Besides these beautiful strawberries, B.J. Farms is currently selling vine-ripen tomatoes from Homestead, Florida. Also available are firm, green tomatoes, which meant this barrier island girl had fried green tomatoes for dinner tonight! YUM!

(See! You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl!)

Moon over the Gulf

Peace and tranquility over the Gulf of Mexico. I wish you could see the way the light shimmers on the water.

Doxy Dog - Mighty Crab Hunter!

Spotted!


Pounce! Pounce! Pounce!

National Wildlife 35th Annual Photography Contest

Your Barrier Island Girl blog master (that's me) has been suffering from a rather acute ear infection for the past week. Since we typically have windy conditions at any given time on Pensacola Beach, it seems prudent to stay indoors -- and out of the wind -- until I improve.

This forced hiatus has given me time to work on 2005 taxes which has, understandably, thrown me into a deep depression. But, I assure you, I will begin posting again on a regular basis as soon as I stop crying and my ear stops hurting.

On a more cheerful note, I was delighted to discover a friend of mine from Tennessee forwarded the winning photos from this year's National Wildlife's 35th Annual Photography Contest this morning. Since I'm unable to get out and about to provide you with photos of my usual jaunts around the island, I hope you will take an opportunity to click on the link and browse these great photos. They certainly give me something to aspire to in my old age!

The first thing

"When you wake up in the morning, Pooh," said Piglet at last, "what's the first thing you say to yourself?"

"What's for breakfast?" said Pooh. "What do you say, Piglet?"

"I say, I wonder what's going to happen exciting today?" said Piglet.

Pooh nodded thoughtfully."It's the same thing," he said."

-- A.A. Milne

Rise and fly

"Time is swift, it races by; Opportunities are born and die... Still you wait and will not try - A bird with wings who dares not rise and fly."

-- A.A. Milne

The fly-by!

I'm certainly glad these fellows figured out I had a camera and not their lunch!