A Week At The Beach

I spent a week of my time on Sanibel Island in southwest Florida.  We enjoyed a condo on the sea, the deep blue sea.  Here is a photo from our window.  The beauty of the sea is incredible and relaxing and stimulating and mesmerizing.  I could watch the waves roll in for hours much like watching a campfire.

There is so much life in the sea.  The water covers most of it but once in a wonderful while, the life shows itself in joyful ways.

Wading in the surf wearing my quick-dry skirt is a favorite activity of mine.  The sand and the shells pumice my tootsies like an expensive pedicure.

This is a photo of a manatee taken from a distance.  Since the sea is cooling down to 68 degrees and this is the lowest temperatures a manatee can tolerate, they migrate up an offshoot of the Calahousahatchee River where the discharge from the light and power plant warm the water a few degrees warmer.

Since Sanibel Island has an east west orientation, it collects the shells more than other islands.  There are so many shells that you can't possibly walk without stepping on them.  People get up early in the morning to collect the best shells.  The action of bending over and picking up shells is so frequent it has been named "The Sanibel Stoop."

Not only shells but sea pork washes up on shore.  Sea pork is a collection of organisms called tunicates.  Walking on the beach always brings surprises.  So when I go to the sea, I soak in all the experience and treasure it because I know I don't get there very often.