Green (Pea) With Junonia Envy

North Jetty Park in Nokomis,Florida or as the locals say "no shirt, no shoes, No komis" - hey it's a fishing village


Some things never change.  I have never been an early riser. I can do it but it is physically and mentally painful. I am definitely not a morning person. I'm not crabby just not really conscious.  I call it "climbing out of the cellar". As a kid my mom would have to drag me out of bed for school.  Now, if we were going somewhere good...... like Disney World.... I wouldn't even need an alarm clock. I'd be up, dressed, & sitting in the car ready to hit the road.


 My work schedule rotates my days off.  Every once in a while I have to work 9 days straight.  The good news is - you have the week end off! The bad news is - your schedules bump together and you won't have a day off for 9 days. So, as I left work last night at 10:30pm and squealed out of the parking lot, I had every intention of going home and getting some much needed rest. I can sleep in as late as I want tomorrow, Yay!


I tried. After staring at the ceiling for  an hour with sleep eluding me,  I reached over in the dark and grabbed my iPod touch. Laying in bed I checked my email- caught up on my favorite blogs - looked at Facebook - checked my tide chart app......whoa Nellie! hold on. Low tide @ 6am.  My favorite. The sun is not up yet so no one has really walked the beach and snagged all the goodies. 


 After seeing this green pea sheller on the i Love Shelling blog that found a Junonia at Blind Pass on Captiva, I was hankering for some shelling action.  We have a jetty in my neck of the woods similar to the jetty on Captiva except the North Jetty in Nokomis is a fishing jetty and much longer but it faces the same way. There is usually a big shell pile this time of the year at low tide. 


So I set my alarm for 6am. When it went off I jumped out of bed, got myself ready, and was out the door by 6:15am.  A large Dunkin Donuts Coffee and coffee cake muffin later I was at the jetty. 
Sunrise at the North Jetty in Nokomis, Florida


 I took a scouting walk first before I carried all my stuff out. I didn't want to load myself down like a pack mule if there was nothing going on.  As soon as I walked out and spotted that huge shell pile I turned on my heels and skedaddled back to my truck. I grabbed my big bucket, shell shovel, and my garden digging tool.
Big honkin shell pile


Another month and this pile will be loaded with goodies
The temperature was actually kind of cool on the beach. There were several  people fishing but the shell pile was all mine.  The combination of sunrise beauty, huge shell pile, sugar, & coffee actually had me quite euphoric. I was actually kind of dizzy as I starting digging through the pile. 


 No junonia for me today but in the light of the early morning sun I was actually sending Green Pea good thoughts and wishing him yet another great day of shelling on Sanibel.
The tide was rushing in quick about 9am
Going, going, almost gone till the next low tide
Nice orange scallops for GeeGee's crafts
Calico Clams were the shell du jour
The tulips are broken but a sign of what is yet to come in winter
Nice pieces of coral
Just need the perfect jar


Comments

  1. Whoa, Karen--that was illuminating! What a haul, just blocks from where I was this morning in downtown Venice! I have a lot to learn!

    You're an ambitious one...just what do you do with all these beautiful shells?

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  2. Now Becky, You would've been cold & wet :) I was actually on the Nokomis side of the jetty. I hope you had a fun time on the Avenue. There are quite a few new shops. I use my shells for this & that. The best ones I display. The others are for crafts & gifts. I fill jars with them. I stack them in corners. I pay good money to store them in a storage locker because I have no room in my apartment. I put them in my garden. heehee....Hope you're having a good time.

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  3. Oh my! Euphoric is a great word...that is how I would feel. Can't believe you got out of bed at 6:00 am on your first day off in so long....I love your haul. Can't wait to go shelling with you!! I would want to sift thru that pile for hours and hours...!!

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  4. That is a beautiful shell pile! I went down to Blind Pass this afternoon for low tide and.....nothing. Tons of sand- no shell pile like yours. I feel for you about the big J...one day we'll get ours.

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  5. That is wonderful you live so close to all those treasures to bring home!
    Blessings, Jan

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  6. O. MY. GOD. I would, seriously, go crazy bananas if I evah came upon a shell pile like that!!!!! You florida gals are killing me....killing me, I tell ya! But even more beautiful than your shells? The complete relaxation I felt while reading your post..the early morning air, the sereneness, the sounds of the ocean....ahhhhhhhhh~~nothin' like beach time!! Thanks, I think my blood pressure went down a notch this morning!

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  7. Connected to your blog via i love shelling. Very enjoyable!!! I loved your description of being a "morning person" when it serves a purpose -- I can soooo relate!!! I've only been to Sanivel a couple times and can hardly wait to return! I could go shelling 24/7!!! Thanks for sharing your experience with me!!

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  8. Hi!
    My name is Jane and I'm with Dwellable.
    I was looking for blog posts about Nokomis to share on our site and I came across your post...If you're open to it, shoot me an email at jane(at)dwellable(dot)com.
    Hope to hear from you :)
    Jane

    ReplyDelete

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