Fish Tales!

Fish tales.......Up very early, we unloaded the boat at twilight, turned on our lights and left the dock for our favorite spot.  We were soon casting our lines into the indigo water of the bay....before the sun even peeped above the horizon.  The water swirled as reds hit our gold spoons, puting up a good fight, before being landed and put in the ice chest.  Soon we had five nice reds  and it wasn't long before Dale landed #6, the legal limit for the day.  Hooray!!! Then Dale measured his catch....it was just barely legal......but legal and it was only 8:39 am!  WOW!  Dale looked at his catch and decided to pitch him back in hopes of catching a bigger fish.  OMG....boy did I give him a hard time!  So we fished and fished for about the next two hours.....unable to catch a legal size fish.  We tried a couple of different spots and finally moved back to the spot we started at and finally we landed the sixth red at 10:33 am.  We had lots of laughs and I gave him a really hard time....even telling him no lunch until we got our 6th red!  Lunch was at Cathy's in Port O'Connor....yummy fried shrimp.

Gray skies...Good Fishing!

Gray, cloudy, overcast skies made for an eerie ride this morning as we skimmed across the mirror like surface of the water on our way to our favorite fishing spot. Pelicans watched us, as they perched on abandoned duck blinds and waterfowl loudly announced our arrival. With five nice reds in the ice chest before noon, we headed in to clean the fish and enjoy a seafood lunch on our way home at Bubba's in Seadrift.

Cayman With Friends

After a generous invite from my friends Dennis and Tamara, I was off to Grand Cayman to get in one more dive trip for the year..landing I picked up my rental car and gathered up all my courage to drive out to the East End on the wrong side of the road.  Safely arriving I checked in, unloaded and unpacked my stuff...it  great to see all my old friends at Compass Point and Ocean Frontiers.
I walked over to the Dietzel's condo where Dennis was preparing to grill steaks for dinner for all of us.  I had brought a bottle of a good Texas Merlot to enjoy with our dinner...it was great to see my old diving buddies.
The next morning I checked in to my dive boat for the upcoming week, Eastern Skies where I would be diving with Dennis and Tamara.  The skies were clear, winds calm....making for great visibility underwater.  We got in two great dives before lunch.  After lunch Tamara rode with me to the grocery store so I could pick up some stuff for my condo.
Diving was good most of the week.....but I did have a rough ride my last day of divng with five foot seas.  I had signed up to do the Kittiwake Dive and was lucky enough to find some Texas folks to drive into Georgetown with to catch the dive boat after lunch.   I was a little disappointed in that not much growth had occured on the ship and not much marine life was living in the structure.   After our dive we had lunch at Guy Harvey's Restaurant.

I signed up to do a photography class with Elly Wray, a very talented young woman that is the photographer on staff at Ocean Frontiers.  I am always looking for ways to improve my underwater photography skills.  Elly had me take photos,  look at the screen and then adjust my settings to improve the photo.  On the end of our dive, another diver alerted us to a seahorse which is always a welcome find.  I took several photos , hoping to get a great shot.
Dennis and Tamara invited me over for a party they were having for the staff around the pool after they got off work.  It was fun sitting around the pool visiting with everyone and talking diving.
I invited Dennis and Tamara to join me for dinner at a local East End restaurant, Southern Coast Bar and Grill on their last night on the island.  It was a great way to end the week and express my appreciation for their generosity.
I got in 13 dives during the week.....seeing lobster, rays, sharks, anemones, seahorse and lots of creatures.  The water was nice and warm, and we had no current on almost all dive sites.  It was a great week of diving.....with good friends....old and new!!
On Friday night the resort had a BBQ for divers up on the pool deck around the training pool.  Ribs, Chicken, Curried Goat, Poatato Salad, Rice and Beans, Cornbread, and Cake were on the menu....plus we watched photos and film of the dives the past week.  I enjoyed dinner with my new Texas Friends...Linda, Tammy and BJ.
After my last two dives on Saturday I drove down to eat at Vivines, a local place just down the rode.  I enjoyed my fried fish and fritters, with a ginger beer while overlooking the turquoise water of the Caribbean.
Packed and ready to go, I headed back to the airport to turn in my rental car before catching my flight home.  I was lucky enough to have all 3 seats to myself and strected out to watch a movie on the flight home.  We landed a little early and soon I was in my car headed home to my husband.  Another good dive trip in the books!!!
Goodbye Cayman!

Junkin Fun!!

Fall signaled it was again time for the Warrenton/Round Top Antique Fair….so Karen and I made plans again to attend.  We arrived just as the booths on the square in Round Top were opening up.  Making our way to our favorite vendors, we tried on some clothes in a makeshift dressing room…. after Karen cleaned the mirror so we could see.  I wanted to take some photos and we had lots of laughs trying to get a good photo of the two of us.   

We stopped strangers trying to get a photo taken to document our trip.  Hungry we drove over to Carmine to have lunch at JW’S Steakhouse.  Since I had been out of town for Karen’s birthday….I told her this was her birthday lunch.  A cute birthday card and a funny gift……travel size hand cleaner for my germ phobic friend.  Lunch was yummy and her birthday cake was a piece of coconut cream pie…..which we split!

Back on the road to Warrenton, we stopped at a large group of vendors we usually don’t stop at…didn’t find a thing we needed or wanted.  We did see a mermaid statue covered completely in flattened bottle caps......only $9,800.  In Warrenton we parked and split up to cover more area.  I was on the hunt for a pearl necklace for my new blouse and Karen was looking for a shirt.  We even stopped to try on some 10 gallon cowboy hats…but couldn’t make a deal on two of them. Our goals accomplished we hit the road home……a fun day!  Miles and miles of stuff!  Good fun, food……with a good friend!

Beach Birthday Gift!

Collecting on a birthday gift, we booked a condo in Port Aransas for a few days.  After a short drive we arrived, unpacked, and Dale grabbed a short nap before joining me in the swimming pool for a swim.  We walked down to the beach before dinner and enjoyed a long walk on the uncrowded sand.  Dinner was yummy spaghetti dinner, salad, and garlic bread with a glass of wine.  

We decided to do some wade fishing the next morning, and had fun even if we didn't catch a keeper.  Lunch was at our favorite place....Beach Station Street Grill.....yummy seafood.  Back at the condo, we relaxed, took a dip in the pool. Before sunset we grabbed two chairs and a bottle of wine...making the short walk over the boardwalk to the beach.  It was nice sitting at the water's edge as the day ended.  Boiled shrimp with a pasta salad on the porch was a perfect end to the day.
It was a great gift....perfect for me!  Guess he knows how much I love the beach?