From within or from behind, a light shines through us upon things, and makes us aware that we are nothing, but the light is all. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Florida went on Daylight Savings time with the rest of the Eastern  Standard Time on March 11.  It's a Florida coastal dweller's rite of springtime to get those extra few hours of daylight after the early evening dark nights of winter (I know - Florida right - what winter?)


Now smack dab in the middle of summer, the  sunset is at 8:45pm these days.  Leaving Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, & the supper dishes in the sink is not that hard of a decision for me. My beach buddies Wade-ster & Gee-man feel the same way.

These fellas can spend hours inspecting the ocean floor for sea critters.

Both boys love to fish, cast net, & snorkel but tonight the long-handled nets are the apparatus du jour.

Gee-man always gathers a crowd with his 5-gallon bucket containing his finds of the evening. 

It's raining somewhere out there but not on us.

Cotton candy clouds.


Even the clouds behind us are lit up from the glow of the setting sun.

One last look in case he missed something.

The sunset is the Manasota Key version of children running through the neighborhood when the streetlights come on.....Time to head home.

Comments

  1. Kim@Snug HarborJuly 19, 2012 at 10:25 PM

    Cotton candy clouds are my favorite!

    ReplyDelete
  2. JoyfulJuly 19, 2012 at 11:11 PM

    Stunning photos but I especially love the sky photos today!

    ReplyDelete
  3. MoiraJuly 19, 2012 at 11:17 PM

    Beautiful photos, Karen!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Roxanne ReinhartJuly 19, 2012 at 11:37 PM

    Gorgeous post Karen. Love the clouds and the waves and your beach buddies are so cute!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. beachcomberJuly 20, 2012 at 1:43 AM

    fabulous photos! the colours are amazing.
    x

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sand and ShellsJuly 20, 2012 at 2:12 AM

    Wonderful pics, Karen... The cotton candy clouds are just beautiful!!! Thanks for taking me to the beach ;-)

    Have a sunny weekend!!
    Jutta

    ReplyDelete
  7. rjerdeeJuly 20, 2012 at 10:17 AM

    such a sweet post, karen...gorgeous shots of cotton candy clouds...i so wish i were in florida...days and days of drought and 100 degrees. the cornfields of iowa are burning down...florida's crops will do well this year by comparison...i'm taking up kelp eating. whole foods opened here yesterday and they have all the kelp noodles and snax :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. ~Lavender Dreamer~July 20, 2012 at 12:30 PM

    This is such a beautiful post! I have such a longing to be at the ocean. I kept reading parts of this to my hubby...we always call the pretty evening clouds cotton candy when they look like these! Enjoy your weekend...wish I was there!

    ReplyDelete
  9. DellaJuly 20, 2012 at 6:55 PM

    I love it when the sun is behind the clouds and they turn that beautiful pink. Gorgeous photos!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Capt. Brian HolawayJuly 21, 2012 at 5:54 PM

    Great cloud photos!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Bonita RoseJuly 22, 2012 at 8:20 AM

    these are so beautiful.. thks for sharing your FL paradise with us.. we're moving to FL in Dec.. we can't wait! xo

    ReplyDelete
  12. gpcJuly 22, 2012 at 5:33 PM

    I agree with Kim - love cotton candy, in any form! My feet are twitching, trying to feel that wet sand. :-/

    ReplyDelete
  13. JaneJuly 23, 2012 at 6:53 PM

    Such beautiful photos! I love the FL summer skies! (the fall, winter and springs skies, too!)
    Flying in around those storms last night gave me a different perspective on cotton candy clouds. Those were MEAN thunderheads...columns of grays and blacks...scary!

    ReplyDelete
  14. PammyJuly 25, 2012 at 9:11 AM

    Oh the colors are amazing! What a blissful way to spend the evening! I sure do miss those gulf coast sunsets!! Thank You sooo much for keeping me a part of them through your gorgeous photos ! xox

    ReplyDelete
  15. RachelAugust 3, 2012 at 12:02 PM

    LOVE this!!! Those are some handsome boys!! The cotton candy clouds were amazing!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

40 Miles North of Shell Mountain

Image
Shell pile @ the North Jetty in Nokomis, Florida Has anyone been following  i Love Shelling blog?  Pam has been giving us the blow-by-blow of all the shells rolling in on Turner Beach a.k.a. Blind Pass.  For dedicated shell lovers the sight of that big honkin shell pile growing upward on Blind Pass makes you want to call in sick to work, grab your shell shovel, & head south or whatever  direction it may be for you to Sanibel.  For those of you that are a plane ride away in the cold & snow; looking at those shells has got to be painful & my heart does go out to you. I live 2 hours north of Sanibel via I-75 or about 40 miles as the crow flies.  I've sat at my computer for 3 days now looking, drooling,  enlarging the pictures, looking again at my work schedule.... ratz - I'm not off till Monday. Where I live in the Venice/Englewood area we have some spectacular beaches. Each has their own personality. Englewood's beaches are more...
Read more

May you always have a seashell in your pocket & sand between your toes

Image
Dr. Stephen Leatherman - His office is the beach (credit : www.solotravelgirl.com) When planning a destination that involves surf, sun, & sand thousands of  travelers  turn to the experts for advice. In this case "America's foremost beach expert" Dr. Beach.   Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman aka  Dr. Beach is a Professor and Director of the Laboratory for Coastal Research at Florida International University. He's a scientist.  Dr. Beach is a  really smart & really educated guy who has parlayed his passion for the outdoors into a super nice gig travelling the world & ranking the top beaches.  He announces his annual list of best beaches every Memorial Day weekend. This May 30 will be his 20th anniversary. Dr. Beach has developed a 50 point rating system that covers all aspects of a great beach from water clarity, sand softness, & the size of breaking waves to the smell, the amount of wildlife, & accessibility. Dr. Beach is as we s...
Read more

"I did not want to live out my life in the strenuous effort to hold a ghost world together. It was plain as the stars that time herself moved in grand tidal sweeps rather than the tick-tocks we suffocate within, and that I must reshape myself to fully inhabit the earth rather than dawdle in the sump of my foibles." — Jim Harrison (Julip)

Image
My poor shell bucket has been empty.  Shelling on the SWFL coast has been sort of flat the last few months. Good shelling requires a combination of things.  Tides, winds, moon phase all play a part. The biggest factor is location, location, location.  Sanibel is the shelling epicenter on the west coast of Florida with the best seismic shelling waves extending to Cayo Costa on the north and  south to Bonita Beach, Naples, & Marco Island. The really sweet shelling spots can only be reached by boat.  That's why I practically jumped for joy when shelling guide Capt. Brian Holaway of Captiva/Sanibel Island  invited me out for a shelling excursion next week.  Heading out in the month of May (his favorite month).  Capt. Brian likes the warmer temps & the clearer waters.He says "the water seems more alive with stingrays & tarpons cruising by, the sea grass is floating on the surface of the water, & the days are longer." (Credit: Capt. ...
Read more