Tropical Bitch Debby

I was witness to my first tropical storm last month. Debby came in and pretty water-logged and blew everything around for the weekend. It claimed I think three lives and a lot of property damage. The most distressing I suppose is the devastation at the beaches. The surf took away the beach front sand and it will take some 20 million to replace. Considering the beaches are what draws many folk to the area, this is no small matter. Anyway, not content to stay home like everyone advised, we hopped in the truck and toured the beaches and Gulfport, a city right next door to us.

High winds and rain battered the beaches. But the surfers were out and having fun.

Standing on the boardwalk here, the rain was pelting down pretty hard.

I'm not sure how high the waves were at this point, perhaps 6 feet to 8 feet, but at some point in the storms the weather people claimed they were 20 feet high.

Usually this area is quite calm and placid.

I'm going to shut up now. Imagine 60 mile an hour winds, rain hitting your face and stinging just a bit, and the thunderous roar of the sea. Well, it was pretty incredible. Stay home? Hmph, that's for pussies and cowardly Floridians. Midwesterners are made of stronger stuff.

A nice shot of a high wave. Nice shot, Mike.

Surfers don't get this opportunity often down here. These just aren't the waves of the west coast, so when you have the window, take it.

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Flashback Friday

Class, Or Lack Thereof The Dwight Vice gravestone in Oquawka, Illinois. I bring this old chestnut out every so often just to remind me that class is classless. Dwight Vice was killed in his home near Oquawka in 2001. It was one of those things that can generate crime: two guys thought Dwight had a lot of money stashed at home because of his pot-selling sideline to supplement his fishing job. Not really one of those big drug deals gone-bad things. Marijuana was, according to the trial, about the only stuff Dwight sold. But these two guys barge into the house and killed Dwight and attempted to kill his 11 year old kid, Darryl, before they took off with what money they could find. His son, now 23, was stabbed in the back and left for dead. He survived and is wheelchair bound and has undergone several surgeries to repair his wounds. He will be paralyzed for life. None of this is pleasant. Reading the facts of the murder and attempted murder are most unpleasant

Summer Swim

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Florida Air Museum - Part 3

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Existing In BFE

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