Does this qualify?

Are those penguins in  snowy western New York?   Brrrrr.        No, they're black skimmers resting on Longboat Key's sugary white beach.   Did I fool you?



Once again, after lunch, we pointed the jeep toward one of several beautiful beaches within a few miles of Beluga.    Today we tried one just off Broadway on Longboat Key.   This beach was home to a huge flock of mixed seabirds, all facing into the wind.    We decided to place our chairs near them, then take a long walk to look for seashells and enjoy the warm clear water.  

Dave watches an Osprey fly by

 We passed a few lazy hours just watching the arrival and departure of the flock in front of us.  They seemed nonplussed by people walking by, just stepping slightly out of the way, then moving back to their original spot.  When someone really got too close, they flew up, around and then came right back down.  

shhhhhh.   nap time

Since a "cold" front passed by overnight, the air is very dry and by 4 ish, it felt a bit cool ish, so we packed up our stuff and followed Broadway across Gulf of Mexico Drive and into the "historic" little community of Longbeach Village.   Most of the cottages or homes were built in the late 1880's and are set in unbelievably lush old Florida foliage beside Sarasota Bay.    Peacocks wander its streets.

Pine Street splits to avoid this lovely old guy

quite a mailbox eh?

So, you saw that we didn't do anything of consequence today, does it qualify for a BCA?

BCA

Nothing interesting to report, just another beautiful sunny warm day.  Here are some pictures I took as we did errands and explored our surroundings.

Sarasota as seen from City Island

the owners of this boat must be very merry - three Christmas trees!

mural on a wall of Mote Marine Laboratory

wood stork

Now for the gratuitous dog pictures....

Lewis sees no good reason for staring at the computer screen

Sasha Marie wants ALL the air this little fan is producing

Mowing day

"he's getting close to my juuuuunk!"

"Free at last - tra lee, tra laa"

"Uh, hello....do you see him?  He's digging......  He's going to be in big trouble"

"He's trying to cover me with dirt, he's trying to bury me, I just know it....

We combed, washed, dried, combed and mowed the poodle today.    As a special treat, Pam and Vic offered to make dinner for us, how could we resist?    She's such a wonderful cook and it was soooo nice to sit and relax with friends over a spectacular dinner of fresh caught grouper.  

Oh, and the great Hibiscus Heist has begun at site 10.    Each day I go outside to find a new blossom on the table next to my chair.   Awwww.

Saturday activities

Ho hum.....another warm sunny day

Saturday is downtown market day in Sarasota so we decided to move our "second cup" ritual to Lemon Street today.    I have to say that after experiencing farmer's markets in Oregon, most other ones pale by comparison.   We still enjoy the hunt, however, and strolling the streets in downtown Sarasota made for an enjoyable morning.   We bought coffee at a really neat red doubledecker bus rehabbed by Java Dog Coffee Roaster and  bought a few goodies.

Rambutan
I wonder what they taste like?

water sculpture near the Selby Library

Sometimes simply looking down gives one tiny surprises.   These little mosaic sidewalk inserts appear every block or so on Main Street.

We ate lunch at an old favorite breakfast/lunch restaurant, First Watch.   Dave was in the mood for a good egg breakfast and that's just what we had.   We sat in the window and watched the world go by.

On our walk back to the car, we turned down an unfamiliar street and came upon a beautifully carved and painted  fountain.    And a couple of interesting creatures....

does this guy remind you of anyone?   Hmmmmm?

After our city exploration, we drove home via Longboat Key.

New Pass seen from the bridge between Lido and Longboat Key

another day

Second cup outside - beach day - happy hour = our day

You're going to be really sick of seeing beach pictures by April......

being happy at happy hour via the Swordfish Grill

another day in paradise comes to a colorful end

Ah.....the beach

We had a little guest for second cup this morning....   He didn't drink much so we let him stay.

The following pictures were taken by someone enjoying a relaxing beach day with her most favorite person.