Spring break: the bitch is back!

8 a.m.

I got called a Bitch this weekend… and I could not be more satisfied.

The area where I live is a big tourist destination. Being that Spring Break has begun, tourist have been flocking to the beaches like seagulls looking for cold french fries.

I know that our area depends on tourist dollars. That was painfully evident when so many businesses suffered or closed during the BP oil spill in 2010. But… that doesn’t mean locals have to take all the shit that comes with the tourist dollars.

Back to the name calling…

I was out early on one of my photo walks. It was very foggy and I wanted to take advantage of that misty atmosphere. After an hour or so, I stopped to get gas at a local mega station that shares space with a fast food restaurant.

When I pulled up to the pump, four out-of-state college kids were coming out of the restaurant. After they all piled into their car, a back passenger door opened, and one of them put a drink cup on the ground beside the car then closed the door.

Understand… right in front of the car on the sidewalk, less than five steps away, was a trash can. They had to walk between their car and the can to get into the car.

They pulled out and drove around to the other side of the gas pump from me. When the driver opened his door to get out, I asked, “you all can’t throw away your own trash?” Seriously, that’s all I said, and in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

Deep within the car, I heard one of them clearly yell, “Bitch!”

It was all I could do to not laugh, “well, yeah?”

I don’t typically confront strangers, but I was feeling pissy about the total lack of respect some tourists have for my hometown. This was nothing. You can’t imagine the junk people leave on our beaches, or how tourists sometimes treat their service providers – hotel maids, wait staff at restaurants, retail cashiers. It’s disgusting.

While I was still filling my tank, one of the punks walked over to where they had been parked, picked up the cup and threw it away. Maybe I should have been the bigger person, the adult, and simply thanked them. Instead, as I drove out of the parking lot, I flipped them off.

People! I live here, thousands of people live here year ‘round. Not just a week here, or a month there, but all the time. This is not your personal garbage dump, and we locals aren’t your personal bitches.

Show some respect and pick up your own trash! If you want to be punks and assholes stay home.

On the dock of the Bay

Walkover

The the Bridge

Shadow flower

Trickle

(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)

For more photos, please visit my Flickr photostream or my 365 Project Page.

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Sneaking away: flu edition

The Boy had the flu all this week so it kept me close to home being all mommy-ish with my sick 18yo baby.  I can count on two things when he’s sick: 1) while awake, he carries on the worthy tradition of being totally incapacitated by a Man Cold and 2) when he does sleep, he’s out like a rock for several hours.

I snuck away to the beach and local marina for a little while when I left for the pharm to pick up his flu meds. I took some photos of boats and sand, before heading back to the sick ward – The Boy was still sleeping when I got home, and never knew I was gone.

He’s still cranky, but I think the worst of the ick is over. I threatened the Mister with bodily harm if he got sick too, since the doc had prescribed us both preventative doses of flu meds and guess who keeps ‘forgetting’ his.

Harbor walk

Harbor dune

Fans

Encroaching

Bleached

Charters

Purple skies

(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)

For more photos, please visit my Flickr photostream or my 365 Project Page.

I showed you mine, now show me yours

To see other city scenes from around the world, check out Unknown Mami’s Sundays in My City. Don’t forget to show the love to Mami and the other City contributors.

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A turn in the season

AccuWeather radar

Still a little wintry and grey around these parts, a nasty storm kept me inside on my normal Saturday photo hike day. Fortunately there was enough of a break in the cold and gloom earlier in the week for a short walk. Sunday morning was bright and shiny, a little chilly, but hopefully a turn in the seasons.

Moment of zen

Water neverwhere

Bay skyline

Silhouettes

Still wintry

(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)

For more photos, please visit my Flickr photostream and my 365 Project Page.

I showed you mine, now show me yours

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Best of the rest

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Hockey: the iPhone edition

This weekend the peeps got together with some friends and attended a local, minor league hockey game. While not on the same level of excitement as a pro team game, we all had a good time.

There was the zamboni – always a favorite – and the obligatory fights. Gloves and helmets flying, and a few sticks broken, but no bench clearing melee. The highlight of the evening was the wiener dog race. For which, several of my online friends severely chastised me for not getting a video. In my defense, when seeing a photo opp, my mind instantly thinks ‘camera,’ not video, so maybe next time…

Since cameras aren’t allowed inside the arena, all of this weekend’s shots were taken with my iPhone. Not the best quality, but still some fun memories of a great evening. An added bonus was our home team winning 4-1.

True story: Hubs and I attended several hockey games before either of our kids showed an interest in joining us. Our daughter was already in high school when she went to her first game. She was under the impression that zambonis were small, closer to the size of a riding lawn mover and not a Hummer on steroids. It was love at first sight. On that night, she decided her life’s ambition was to be a Wal-Mart greeter during the day, and a zamboni driver at night. Fortunately, that life goal has changed slightly.

During last’s night game, I texted her a photo of the zamboni. She was at a professional conference, delivering a presentation about a community tenant/landlord mediation program her college department is spearheading. It’s not as glamorous as being an ice rink maintenance expert, but it keeps her busy.

Driving into the Big City

Ramping up

Zamboni

Faceoff

Wiener dogs

FIGHT!

(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)

For more photos, please visit my Flickr photostream and my 365 Project Page.

I showed you mine, now show me yours

To see other city scenes from around the world, check out Unknown Mami’s Sundays in My City. Don’t forget to show the love to Mami and the other City contributors.

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Grey skies

Headed out to the beach on a gloomy, grey day. I like the lighting on days like that. It gives the beach an almost surreal effect.

I also found another old, abandoned building. I would love to know the stories surrounding these places. Maybe, I’ll just have to make up my own.

A whole in the world

Storm front

Dune copse

Mountain of sand

In line

Estate mansion

Cranked

(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)

For more photos, please visit my Flickr photostream and my 365 Project Page.

I showed you mine, now show me yours

To see other city scenes from around the world, check out Unknown Mami’s Sundays in My City. Don’t forget to show the love to Mami and the other City contributors.

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Colder than it looks

Hopped around some for my photo hike this weekend, stopping at several locations. Drove out to Navarre and walked the fishing pier again. It was a little cloudy when the day started out, and the sky was amazing.

Took the long way home through Milton and then hit a few spots nearer to home. It was a cold day, hovering in the low 50s, but you couldn’t tell from how blue and bright the skies were.

Azure sky

Colder than it looks

Bird's eye view

Fishing dock

Brown pelican

Sunnin'

(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)

For more photos, please visit my Flickr photo stream and my 365 Project page.

I showed you mine, now show me yours

To see other city scenes from around the world, check out Unknown Mami’s Sundays in My City. Don’t forget to show the love to Mami and the other City contributors.

Best of the rest

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Falling waters

Have you ever started out thinking you’re going to do one thing, and turns out you end up doing something else completely different? Yeah, that…

I started out on my photo hike this weekend thinking I would go to the historic downtown of a small city near me ~ well, really not so near. It took about an hour to drive there, and was sorely disappointed in the lack of photo opps available. Fortunately for me, just a few miles down the road was a state park I haven’t visited in a while… crisis averted.

And, of course there were a couple of broken down structures to be photographed on the way there and back.

Falling Waters State Park near Chipley, FL:

Falling waters

Fern gully

Sink hole

End cap

Green spaces

Wayside

Dilapidated

Caged light

(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)

For more photos, please visit my Flickr photostream or my 365 Project.

I showed you mine, now show me yours

To see other city scenes from around the world, check out Unknown Mami’s Sundays in My City. Don’t forget to show the love to Mami and the other City contributors.

Best of the rest

More Weekly Winners photo galleries can be found at I am Lotus. Please leave a little comment love for our lovely hostess and the other WW photogs.