Stand Up Paddling

Playing in the Wake of Hurricane Irene - Cocoa Beach, Florida

InSPIREd Sunday - St. Martin-St. Francis Episcopal Church

St. Martin-St. Francis Episcopal Church - Rockport, Washington

Brown Anoles

Spotted scampering around at the Ulumay Wildlife Sanctuary in Merritt Island, Florida.

Brown Anoles

Oooogly Building

No wonder this place is for sale. It is butt-ugly! I think they might have a tough time finding a buyer. I can see where the space industry in Cocoa Beach influenced the design.

Cocoa Beach Real Estate

Where the heck have I been?

Work, travel and illness has caused me to neglect my blog the past few weeks. It is time to get back in the saddle and start sharing again.

A few weeks ago, I did spend some time at the CDR. I awoke early that Sunday morning and looked out of my window to a wonderous sight! Two beautiful deer less than fifty feet from my house. I quietly crept into the kitchen to retrieve my camera and then had to shoot through the partially opened blinds. Since the window was open, I had to be very silent and not scare them off. They heard me (or at least the camera shutter) any way and moved on. But not before I managed to fire off a few frames.

Deer @ the CDR

Green Parakeets

The University of Texas-Brownsville campus is a known evening roosting place for green parakeets. While the numbers of birds may be smaller in the summer, there were still quite a few when I was there. I was entertained by this pair.

These are not your typical size parakeets that you might see in a pet store. They are much larger. For more information on them, click here.

Birds of Brownsville

Here are some more birds from my recent trip to Brownsville, Texas.

Spotted on the grounds of the University of Texas - Brownsville:

Golden-Fronted Woodpecker

 

Great Egret

 

Tropical Kingbird

From the Sabal Palm Sanctuary:

 

Juvenile Moorhens

Birding is fun in Texas!

Stations of the Cross

If you are in the Rio Grande Valley and are looking to take a nice stroll, visit the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan Del Valle National Shrine in San Juan, Texas. There you can leisurely wander the path around the beautifully landscaped grounds, passing the fourteen life-sized Stations of the Cross statues.

 Jesus Takes His Cross

 Jesus Falls for the First Time

Jesus Dies on the Cross

Green Anole

Often mistaken for chameleons, the green anole is a tree-dwelling lizard that is native to the southeastern United States and Caribbean islands. Green anoles are also found in warm climates throughout North and South America.

Often seen in parks and residential areas on walls, fences, trees, and low bushes, green anoles reach a maximum length of six to eight inches. Their bodies are slender, with a long, thin tail. Like true chameleons, green anoles have the ability to change color; this ability is limited in anoles, however--coloration is usually green, yellow, brown, gray, or a mixture. Most healthy, non-threatened anoles are bright green in appearance. The male anole has a large pink fan of skin on its neck, called a dewlap, which can be extended for courtship or territorial display.

Active and agile creatures, anoles have specially adapted pads on their feet which permit them to climb, cling, and run on virtually any surface. Another adaptation of the anole is its extremely fragile tail which drops off its body when grabbed, allowing the anole to escape from predators; in time, the anole will regrow a new (although generally shorter) tail. Anoles feed on small insects such as crickets, cockroaches, spiders, moths, and grubs.

I spotted this green anole at the Sabal Palm Sanctuary near Brownsville, Texas.

Green Anole

Information courtesy of Wild Texas.

Texas Taxi

I am not sure if he's waiting for a ride, or perhaps a rider. I didn't see a lot of traffic on this road which runs near the Texas / Mexico border. In fact, it may be one the southern-est roads in all of Texas! Guess that is why it is called Southmost Road.

Waiting for ???

University of Texas, Brownsville - Student Union

Clear Blue Skies Above the Dome on the UTB Student Union Building

The Best Fried Shrimp

Another favorite restaurant of mine in South Texas is Dirty Al's. Boy oh boy do they serve up some of the best Gulf fried shrimp ever! I have eaten at two of their locations - the one on South Padre Island and a couple of weeks ago Mom and I checked out their newest location at Pelican Station in Port Isabel. It is definitely worth the trip if you are ever in the area.

Lunch at Dirty Al's

Pelican Station

Mom and I ate at Dirty Al's at Pelican Station in Port Isabel, Texas recently. I think this in an aptly named place. The restaurant building is an old railroad station. We watched these guys while we had lunch.

Pelicans @ Pelican Station

Field & Fence

When my mom and I visited the Sabal Palm Sanctuary outside of Brownsville the other week, I was captivated by the fairly new border fence. While I've read stories about the border fence being built along the U.S. / Mexico border, I hadn't seen any pictures of it. Then I got up close and personal with it. You drive through an opening in the fence to reach the Sanctuary. Sabal Palm is in the strip of land between the fence and the Rio Grande River which of course is our southern border. Behind the fence is a dyke that the Border Patrol drives along. This fence is about eighteen feet high with openings every five hundred feet or so. I am not sure how I feel about this fence. I understand the reasoning behind it, but feel for the animals and people whose property is trapped on the "Mexican" side of the fence.

InSPIREd Sunday - Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle National Shrine

Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle National Shrine

San Juan, Texas

A Love of Sculpture

Seen in Brownsville, Texas, a warehouse building for the Hessen Group. Sure beats plain old warehouse and office buildings.

Rabb Plantation @ Sabal Palm Sanctuary

Just east of Brownsville, Texas is the Sabal Palm Sanctuary. It is a 527 acre tract of land at a bend in the Rio Grande River. It is one of the most uniquely biodiverse habitats in the United States, containing one of the last vestiges of original sabal palm forest. The Sanctuary provides breeding habitat for may endangered or high-priority birds and is a critical source of shelter and food for migrating and wintering species.

Upon entering the Sanctuary, you drive past a beautiful old plantation house that is undergoing restoration work.

In 1891 Frank Rabb, working with his mother-in-law Maria Vicenta Vidal Starck, began work on a large two-story Victorian house that would dominate the high ground overlooking the Rio Grande a few miles downriver from Brownsville. It was built at a total cost of $15,000.00. At the time, it must have been one of the grandest homes in the region, making a statement of wealth and prosperity for 25 year old Frank Rabb and his new wife--a couple anxious to make their mark on society and politics of the region.

A handwritten note recently found in the Newel Post in the front hall gave some detail to the house’s construction: “The contractor, Jason Meboy Mclery, guaranteed to have it finished before Christmas dinner 1892. Skilled carpenters who worked on the building were Charles Morrison, John Falls, Stafford Corkill, Josefoun Tonks; painters Gallahaut & Bensery; trim by Shaw, Spucha & Ed Lagats. The house was complete on April 8th 1892 . The note ended with: “In god we trust the rest pay cash. Six month with fleas & ticks; San Tomas Ranch; March 28th 1892”

Notable guests at the Rabb-Starck Plantation home included Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan during his regular visits to the region.

(Historical information courtesy of the Rabb Plantation Home Facebook page)

Ahoy, Matey!

Got a hankerin' to play pirate? Go for a sail aboard the Black Dragon berthed in Port Isabel, Texas.

Just be sure to brush up on your pirate lingo before casting off.


Bilge Rat
The lowest form of animal life; similar to today’s politicians and lawyers. 
Bilge-sucking
A guy with some real personal problems
Blimey!
“What the hell?”
Bloody
The very worst oath in pirate vernacular, as in...
“Yon bloody cannonball took off me leg!”     
Cat O’ Nine Tails
A flogging device with nine separate thongs, each of which contains a small lead ball at the tip. 
Rarely used in the US Navy today.
Davy Jones' Locker
The bottom of the sea, where the bones of seamen lie.
Hang 'im from the yardarm
"Truss ‘im up and let ‘im rot in the sun.”
Head
This is a modern term. Real pirate ships didn’t have toilets. That’s what they made gunnels for,   hence the term, "Hang it over, Rover.” 
Hornswaggle
To cheat, dissemble and lie. A prerequisite to becoming a full-fledged pirate.
Jolly Roger
Skull and crossbones flag. Black means “Surrender your ship.” Red means “No quarter”
Keelhaul
The practice of dragging miscreants naked across the thwarts and the barnacle embedded keel of a vessel. It really must have smarted! 
Landlubber
An awkward, overweight, out of shape human being with nothing much going for him. In other words, anyone who is not a seaman.
Powder Monkey
The youngest and dumbest crew member whose responsibility it is to handle volatile gunpowder in battle. 
Privateer
Another high-falutin name for a pirate. One who has social aspirations.
Run a shot across the bow
“Strike your colors or we’ll blow you to smithereens.”
Scallywag
A young pirate, analogous to a pollywog.
Scurvy
Contemptible and unclean. A word currently used most often to describe congressmen. 
Shark bait
On one’s way to Davy Jones' Locker.
Shipshape
Neat and orderly. A condition never seen on a true pirate vessel
Shiver me timbers!
Comparable to "Holy Crap!"
Sprogs
Kids or pirates-in-training
Walk the plank
Yer last opportunity to try a one and a half dive in a tuck position.

Heart Institute of Brownsville

Part of the reason for my trip to Texas was to see my mom. She was having some heart issues (that we believe have been resolved) and had to have some testing done at the Heart Institute of Brownsville. That is a heart-shaped window in the tower and there is one in each of the sides. Mom said she was treated very well during her time there.

Chinese Geese

Just another lazy hazy day on the golf course pond dodging errant balls.