Tuesday, February 17, 2009

I Forgot My Fishing Pole


Yesterday, I needed to get out to Cedar Key as a favor to Junior. It was a holiday for the schools, but not for kids who are dual-enrolled in college. So while most of his friends (and his Daddy) were off, he was sitting in his college classes.
The favor involved getting under the bridge out at Cedar Key and setting up a sample site for his science fair project.
This is one of several project ideas he has proposed that have ranged from setting up a huge maze in the yard and testing Bear's ability to learn, to a very dubious project involving the Wii game Rockband.


In the meantime, as these other ideas (I kinda liked the doggie maze one, but the logistics!) were simmering, I suggested a little study of epifauna colonization out at Cedar Key.
Yesterday was ideal for getting under the bridge, but since he was obligated elsewhere, I agreed to go out and clear a test site for this possible project.

So it was that I found myself scraping barnacles off a few test sites in the shade of the bridge. I took along a paint scraper and clearcut a few sampling sites at different depths.
That took all of 15 minutes so I was able to cruise around as an incoming tide pulsed life back into an empty ebbtide marsh.
I had planned to bring a rod and reel and fish a little, but absent mindedly left it hanging back at the house.
Note to self: write trip list note so you don't forget stuff.



It was a beautiful day, even though the breeze was a little brisk in the open water areas. The sun was pretty intense so you could be alternately warm or chilly depending on the wind. Most of my travel time was spent in sheltered creeks and flats with only a few inches of water. The incoming tide brought with it schools of mullet that swirled in the shallows as they fled from the scary kayak.


The pterodcactyls were out as usual. Most were hunkered down against the chilly breeze, bills tucked under wings, but not this guy.
Is that sky blue enough for ya? I did not enhance it on the 'puter.


I only spent a few hours poking around, but wowsers was it ever nice to get out there, after all the wedding work and a rainy weekend that prevented this kind of fun.
In fact, Sunday was so wet and grey that I actually cleaned out my bedroom closet.
I guess kayaking was my reward for taking on the closet badlands.
It was bad ... I found things I forgot I owned.
The few feet of floor space between the closet door and the clothing rack along the back wall had long ago vanished in a pile of ... stuff, which kept growing.
Instead of cleaning it when I should have, I adapted to it ...
I actually became pretty adept at grabbing the closet door trim, leaning in over the junk on the floor, and grabbing a shirt or pair of pants off the hanger rack along the back wall.
You can actually walk into it now ... who knew?




21 comments:

Dani said...

Cleaning out closets...my you're a brave one.

Anonymous said...

Don't ya hate it when bad weather forces you indoors to tackle way over due jobs. Still it sure feels good to get er done. Great pics.

Unknown said...

If only JonJ would clean out his closet! Grrrr...
Otherwise,I am pretty dang good at Wii GuitarHero.If the child[we call our kids by #'s ;-)] needs help-call me.
And we both love Cedar Key.It's right up there with Sanibel.

Deb said...

Wow...that is one blue sky! Glad the pterodactyl let you photograph it.

Rurality said...

Whoa, nice ptero, dude!

Don't tell my husband that you're supposed to be able to see the floor of the closet though.

Miz S said...

I always enjoy hearing that I am not the only one who is challenged by the whole "hang clothes up right away" concept.

Ericka said...

wow. defeating the closet monsters means you deserve a treat. bummer about forgetting the pole though.

Unknown said...

Funny about Florida how it can be warm or cool just around the corner from each other. Probably even more so on the water.

Jacqueline Donnelly said...

I love paddling the Florida waterways with you! I spent many winters there in the 1940s-50s, as a little kid. Indian Rocks. Passagrille. Before it was all built up. I'm an old lady paddler now, on the Hudson River near the Adirondacks. If you'd like a virtual visit to icy waterways and snowy forests, come visit my blog at www.saratogawoodswaters.blogspot.com

Thanks for the sunshine and Cracker cracks. I love it!

Freste said...

Closets have floors? The hell you say...

Sure looks like you had a pterrific ptime ptrecking about. Still pterribly rainy here still but this is great inspiration to call in an early spring for me!!!

Thunder said...

Pretty cool idea for a project!
It's snowing here now and we got a Siberian blast that started coming in a couple of days ago!

Anonymous said...

I bet Mrs FC is happy to see the closet project done. Confession...I have to do our closet before Thunder moves back home because I kinda took it over during his abscence and he can't even get to his side of it as of now.
Lightnin

Anonymous said...

Yep, those trip lists are proving handy.

My kids all did college work in high school. By the time my daughter entered college, she had 33 credit hours completed. (Still took her four years to finish, but I think there were boyfriend issues involved.)

Anonymous said...

Do you give lessons in closet cleaning? I have some males to sign up. Three to be exact.

Bill said...

Closets?!? Man my closet somehow ended up with my daughters dresser in it. Talk about acrobatics. At least it is good to stand on when I put the rat traps in the ceiling. Of course then I have to hunt down all the insulation pieces with the vacuum and sometimes I get socks. OK, that has nothing to do with the beautiful day you got to experience while the rest of us working stiffs were staring out the window and surfing the net. Thanks for the pictures and other fun stuff. I was glad to see that the wedding went off without a hitch.

Jenny said...

Nice photos. Good of you to help out with the kids project. :) We'll be out in CK next month for the Gatornationals up in Gainesville. We never have luck fishing over here on the east coast, but always in Cedar Key. Fishing poles are already on my 'to pack' list!

Doug Taron said...

My closet definitely looks like your description of the before version. I'm not all that big on closets.

amarkonmywall said...

A Bear maze for a science project. Let's see...Teacher? Kid?

I I can tell you're loving your kayak and it's a lovely addition to off road adventures in the JEEP for us as well. There's a little blue heron at Boyd Hills and now I know right where to find him every time so my tram tourists are quite impressed. :-) I just put up a photo of a VERY blue sky with birds.

R.Powers said...

Dani,
Gators, moccasins, closets ... I live for danger.

ArkPatti,
Yes it does!

ChrisandJon,
Oops, didn't mean to set the example! He is good at that one too. He had this idea about testing whether the game would increase real music skills.

Deb,
They are tricky beasts, but I eluded this one!

Rurality,
Thanks! I didn't even know there was carpet in there. I had forgotten what the floor looked like.

Miz S,
I thought it was mostly a guy thing.

Ericka,
Tell me about it. I can't believe I did that.

Robert,
All true.

Woodswalker,
Thanks! Welcome to Pure Florida!
I will visit!

Freste,
LOL! They actually do.

ThunderD,
Enjoy it, soon the heat will come.

Lightnin,
Typical closet colonization by a female.
:)

Pablo,
Wow! She really knocked out the credits!

Cathy S,
Don't forget that mine was in horrible condition for a long time!

Billy,
Well somebody has to do it!

Jenny,
Don't forget them! Enjoy your trip.

Doug,
I'm not that big on organization.


Vicki,
I'm glad you are enjoying my kayak! Your root canal story gave me painful flashbacks though.

tsiya said...

Did you catch any Sheephead with those barnacles?

R.Powers said...

Tsiya,
nah, remember, I forgot my pole.