a little break from packing…

gull cross paths
4.21.23 ~ Eastern Point Beach
view from a lifeguard chair
Long Island Sound
garnet sand
a brant feeding in the estuary
swimming away
keeping an eye on me

This was the closest I have ever gotten to a brant! He was all by himself. It felt good to get outside and get a fresh perspective along with some fresh air.

20 thoughts on “a little break from packing…”

    1. Thank you, Ally. Soothing was just what I needed. My brain is so weary from making endless decisions and dealing with mixed emotions…

  1. The seagull footprints gave me a smile, Barbara. And do you know why it is called “garnet” sand? I’m curious.

    It’s got to feel good to take breaks from packing. Even better to go to places like this!

    1. I will miss my gulls, although there are not as many around as there have been in the past. According to my geologist sister, those are little specks of garnet mineral in the sand. Every year the city buys a pile of fresh sand to layer on top of the beach because the winter storms wash much of it away. I don’t know where it comes from so I don’t know if the garnet occurs naturally in this area. But I love looking at it because garnet is my birthstone. I will miss garnet sand, too.

    1. We will be selling our place. The plan is to get our stuff packed, then get out of here about June 5, and turn the keys over to the real estate agent so she can deal with open houses and showings without us around. We can do the closing remotely — yay!

    1. It sure was, Peggy. It was icing on the cake to get such a close shot of the brant. I wasn’t expecting that wonderful moment!

    1. Thank you, Donna!! That was the first time I’ve encountered a brant all alone with no flock nearby. And to get that close was such a bonus, a great parting gift from the beach.

  2. Very cool to have actual garnet in the sand and your January birthday stone! So much will be missed staying focused on the goal.

  3. Did you climb up on that lifeguard chair to get that lovely view?? Those things always look pretty rickety to me, so I admire your courage. I’ve never seen an actual brant — he almost looks like a wooden duck since he’s so still!

    1. I did climb that lifeguard chair! It wasn’t as tall as some of them are but it was something I’ve always wanted to do and finally decided to go for it, before we leave. 🙂 Climbing up went well but I needed a little help from Tim, coming down backwards. Seeing that brant was the high point of the day for me, though.

  4. That Brant is beautiful. I have only seen them here in your blog. I like your view from up top in the lifeguard’s chair – what a view you had. You’re braver than me. The gulls’ footprints make an interesting photo! Enjoy each of your favorite haunts Barbara. What new expeditions will you be on next April?

    1. Thank you, Linda! I’m kind of excited about next April — I was exploring the local food co-op’s website (Weaver Street Market) and they have a Piedmont Farm Tour there on Earth Day weekend. 31 local farmers open their farms to visitors and we can learn about sustainable agriculture. They say it is the oldest and largest tour of its kind in the nation. 🙂

      1. That is something I would enjoy seeing too Barbara. I think it would be interesting to see up close how farms are run these days. I heard an older farmer on a computer show and he was telling how he had programmed his entire farm’s watering system on his laptop … in a split second he was able to turn on row after row of pipes to provide water to his crops, something which he had always had to do manually and took many hours, only to have to do it over again, especially in Summer when drought often occurred.

        1. It’s amazing how technology can be used to enhance farming needs, who could have imagined a computer would be such a useful agricultural tool!

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