We’re Off to See the Birdies

February 10, 2022February 10, 2022 ~ JodiLea

There was no “yellow brick road” at the SPI Birding and Nature Center. But, a sunbleached plank road crossed the marsh and took us to a lagoon. During the walk, we took advantage of the “bird blinds” – sheltered areas with photos and information posted on display boards that tell you about the birds you may observe in that area of the trail.

**View From the Birding Center’s Tower**

**Not the Yellow Brick Road, so we did not go to Oz.**

You can see the self-guided tour route from the birding center’s tower (left). The pathway veered off to the right at the shoreline and meandered its way through the sanctuary. It covers a lot of ground, 1500 feet, they said. It seemed like more because we walked against the winds some of the time. The Artic Winds from the North that somehow followed me here.

Because it was windy and cold, we decided to check out the Nature Center. It was right across the street from our Hotel. We had no clue there was marshland so close. From the road, you could not see the trail or a bunch of birds flying around. Or any alligators.

**These are the small and young alligators.**

You first pass the Alligator Sanctuary as you start out on the trail. A 50-year old Alligator named Big Padre is massive. We did see him, but he was mostly under foliage, so there were no photos of him. The guide told us that all the alligators, from babies to adults, have been rescued from other places, like backyards, roadsides, and homes. So now, these HUGE reptiles can live a life of luxury in a protected, muddy swampland. I guess this was the Hilton of alligator habitats. I was sort of ashamed of all my complaining about the Hilton we were in. I do not take it back, however.

We learned all kinds of interesting facts (that I cannot recall now), and we had a good look at some really cool birds. For example, we saw a couple of Blue Heron’s that were a lot larger than I pictured. Also, there are a couple of pelicans in the air on patrol for fish, the others standing in the pond fishing.

**In Front of the Birding & Nature Museum.**
**Maggie (left) Jodi (right)**

**Dirty Al’s has lobster!**
**So our traditional “Lobster Night” continues**…

I’m sure that my kids and grandkids are thinking, “how lame!” But it wasn’t to us. Because, the basic truth is we have fun together, no matter where or what. So…, I am already scheming for this summer’s adventure. Somewhere very warm, with hotels without air conditioning.

Suggestions are welcome in the comments, BTW.

TTFN

The End of the Road

January 24, 2022 ~ JodiLea

Because the weather turned nasty (winds from the North and freezing temps), the cousins decided to explore the island. From the car. We are silly, not crazy.

We decided to go North first. Probably because the Northside of the island, had nothing marked on the map. We knew there was something, and we wanted to know what. There were sand dunes, not like I have seen before. They were HUGE. It seemed that thousands of trucks dumped sand by the road and left to get more. They were right up to the road. The further North that we went, the more we could see the ocean over the dunes. The island was getting more narrow up here.

We passed where the birding and nature center was. After that was a Convention Center. What!?! We saw nothing there but sand and a sign that said “Convention Center”. We would have explored that, but alas, there was tall wire fencing all around it.

There were dunes to the left of us and dunes to the right – for miles. Then, we came to a sign that said, “Road Ends – 1000 Feet”. Of course, we had to go at least 1,000 feet more.

If it had been a nice, calm, and warm day, we would have parked and walked around the roadblock and stood taking selfies from the other side. That day, there was no way we wanted to get out of the car and get sandblasted. [You can see the sand blowing over the road.]

Now it was time to flip a U and drive to the other side of the island. It was Deja vu until we passed our hotel and went all the way to the end of the South. No photo, but the end of the road South was an RV park. Yawn.

We tried a restaurant called “Parrot Eyes”. We had the yummiest fish & fries lunch. It was a local fish called “Black Drum” it tasted like cod, only lighter. They were not batter-fried but had a cornmeal coating that was good tasting and less fattening. Not that we were counting calories, fats, or carbs. When you’re on vacation, nothing counts, right?

We stayed in for supper and had sandwiches and leftovers and watched silly movies on the TV. When we turned it on a movie was playing that was so bizarre, disjointed, and funny. We had no idea what it was called. It turned out to be ‘Horrible Bosses 2’. Not recommended by us. The second feature was ‘What a Man Wants’. Yep, it was like ‘What Women Want’, except for a chick hits her head and suddenly can hear men’s thoughts. Amusing and predictable. We rounded off the night with a South Park episode and crashed.

This wild and crazy adventure has been exhausting.

to be continued…

And Here’s Your Sign!

January 22, 2022 ~ JodiLea

Sorry, Bill Engvall, for borrowing your line. It’s just that it is so fitting for this post. Anytime you want to use a line(s) of mine, please feel free to.

In December of 2021, this statue was installed in front of the United Nations HQ in New York.

They said this statue was to depict a ‘guardian of peace and security’, and it was NOT an “End of Times”, message.

A few weeks later, the statue was dismantled and removed from UN property. “It was only supposed to be temporary anyway,” a UN spokesman told the press.

1 Thessalonians, 5:1-3

TTFN