Waiting for the Comet

We had read just a little blurb in the newspaper that a comet "was coming," and that we could see it at dusk on two particular nights last week. Well, we went out the first night and were treated to a beautiful sunset, but there was such a thick cloud bank in the west that not even the sun could be seen even though the sky colors were vibrant. The next day was clear, and after supper, we went down to the lighthouse for a open western view.  A handfull of other folks had had the same idea and were out in the parking lot and continued to arrive. The bugs were bad! I stayed in the truck with the windows up and watched the bugs swarm out of the saltbushes.

Finally, the light was dim enough to see the crescent moon above the sun. 

As it got darker, the bugs seemed to settle down some.

The sky filled with stars and planets before anyone spotted the comet. It was beneath the moon and was not visible to B and me without the aid of a powerful telescope that was set  up in the parking lot. We are grateful to those men who generously offered us a look. The comet was streaking down toward the horizon, toward the sun. They informed us that the winds from the sun, that are blowing it apart, create the tail. 

Conjoined Oak

B noticed this conjoined oak as we were driving through the forest on a little wander.

Mailbox Monday: On Track

This mailbox was mounted on an old, iron train rail.

Cold Birds

The hawk and the owl

both perched in the trees.
Shivering and trying their best
not to freeze. 

The owl's feet were feathered 

The hawk's feet were bare.
The hawk looked with envy
And screamed, "It's not fair!"

BBQ, Bait and Tackle at Bing's Landing

BBQ, Bait and Tackle.
That is what the sign says at Captain's BBQ, south of Marineland. Well, that was not the whole story. There was also sunset viewing, on-the-spot-made cheesecake and live blues on the deck, all served up with a sense of humor.

This was proclaimed to be a golfing gar.

And look closely at the numbers on the fish ruler.

And by the way, the food was delicious, especially the BBQ and the cheesecake.
One word:  GO.

All Hail to the Red, White and Blue

Sunday before last, we went to the lighthouse after we saw the Nina and the Pinta.

This maple was bright against a very dark blue, stormy sky. Try as I might, I was not able to get my camera to see what I saw.  I could get the red winged seeds and the light wood but I could not get the dark sky: disappointing.

We drove less than a mile when it started to hail and then rain sideways. We pulled up under a not-big-enough tree for shelter. When it stopped, there was quite a collection of pea-sized (and a little larger) hailstones. I took this picture a good five minutes later.

That evening we learned that the plentiful hail near my school was the size of golfballs. 

It left marks on the sidewalks where it had hit.

The poor trees had piles of green leaves under their canopies where the hail had knocked them off.

Mailbox Monday: One Fish, Two Fish, Redfish...

In honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday on March 2.