White Egrets are common where I live in central Florida. They can be about four feet tall and every inch of grace. Sure they prefer the water but they also forage on land. Yesterday morning as I was about to pull into the driveway I noticed a White Egret standing there looking for something in the bushes, probably a lizard. I didn’t want to scare him off so I waited in the street for about five minutes until he finished. As he sauntered onto the grass he looked back at me as I pulled into the driveway and got out of the car. He kept a little distance without flying off and I just kind of marveled and such a beautiful bird. I think this is not so uncommon in Florida, although I wasn’t raised here so for me it’s a treat. And that’s my Great White Egret story for the day.
Trespassing
Near my home is an abandoned development that is fenced in on all sides with no trespassing signs. But my right brain has an ongoing argument with my left brain about this place and yesterday, righty won. Basically, lefty said you can’t go there, it’s against the rules but then righty says, ah man, gimme a break, I could get some nice photos. After not getting enough sleep lefty was caught off guard as I found myself hopping a fence to commit a misdemeanor. But the way I see it, this shot needed to be made before they restart construction and vista disappears. Wait, …was that a tacit approval from lefty?
Quick, purchase a print of this before lefty changes his mind.
Family Time
This four legged friend was eager to fetch the sticks as I stood back and captured this shot one evening at the end of Emerson Point. As I watched I felt a little guilty that I had my camera rather than my dogs, I’m sure they would have loved to have been here. Whenever I do bring them they are so happy for the freedom and exercise. Next time.
Mangrove Sandbar
This is a mangrove that’s taken over a sandbar just down the street from my home along the Manatee River in Palmetto. In the southern states along the Gulf Coast these mangroves are a natural defense against the erosion caused by hurricanes. As a result they are protected by the state and local governments. Basically you don’t mess with them, just leave them alone and let them do their job. Anyway, I thought the calm water created by the sandbar made for a nice reflection. Have a lovely day everyone.
Perfect Ending
The perfect end to the day. I took this at Emerson Point last night right after the sun went down. As it seems this lady is enjoying the last few minutes of the day, I’ll keep quite and not fill up this page with words.
Quiet Morning
This is another one of my favorite little spots at Emerson Point. Actually there are quite a few of these walkways through the mangroves and each one is my favorite. Sometimes I’ll be here on a quiet afternoon where the only sound is the splashing fish jumping for food in the otherwise undisturbed waters. On this morning it was pretty quite as well, kind of a nice way to start the day. Now that I look at this I realize I’m overdue for another walk through the trails. Maybe tomorrow. Have a great day everyone.
Riverhouse
The Riverhouse Reef and Grill is a local eatery in Palmetto Florida that sits right on the Manatee River. Every time I come here it’s crowded, but somehow we always get a table with a good view. It’s not uncommon to be sitting here and have our conversation broken by something passing us by along the river, be it dolphin, manatee or just a family on a sailboat. The restaurant is way out at the end of a pier and so they provide one of those golf cart shuttles if you don’t feel like walking the length. Regardless, I always walk back since I’m usually full and need to stretch my legs.
Shades of Blue
This is little pond at Emerson Point in Palmetto. Because it’s close to home I come by here to walk along the trails. The problem is that I want to take a picture every time. A little alarm bell goes in my head off and warns me that I may be repeating myself. However, on second thought, no two pictures of this pond are the same. The light constantly changes and this time there was an abundance of blue. When I win the lottery I’ll travel most of the year and take pictures of exotic places all over the world, but until then I’ll be happy to just find different ways to take pictures of the beauty in my back yard.
Shimmering Water
This is the Marina in the small town of Palmetto Florida where I live. The marina is along the Manatee River which as you can see is quite calm around dusk and dawn. Because the river opens into the Gulf of Mexico is common to see dolphins and manatee swimming by. If I didn’t know better I’d say this is a nice place to live. But I know better, it’s a great place to live. Not to say we don’t have the usual problems like everywhere else, but you have to take the good with the bad. In fact, I prefer to pay attention to the beauty around me. That way it seems stronger than the bad stuff. Just my way of looking at things.
Fogged In
When I manage to get up early to shoot photos around the water, I notice that’s when Pelicans are out and about. They seem to be flying somewhere just after dawn, as though in a morning commute. However when I took this it was just after dawn and extremely foggy. My guess is the pelicans were fogged in, in the same way aircraft get fogged in and the airport closes. They just seemed to be sitting here waiting for the heavy blanket to lift so they could be on their way. At least someone was smart and decided to sleep in.
