After the cocktail party, Brennan hooked up his lights so we could watch them dance to the music.

Beer Can Races

At this weeks sailboat gathering, the first in years, there was a good turn out. The Snark Sunflower made it's first appearance in the past decade. Brad was able to get our Laser in the water after some extensive body work and Roger brought his Laser out. Brennan captained the DC and had up to three other people sailing.



A fun time was had by all and we hope to see more boats out next time.

In motion

The weather has been cool and rainy lately, with the essence of fall... even though it is merely August. As time slips away, my thesis is still hovering, like a strict grade-school teacher, never letting up. All the while I never have a moment to myself. It is great to be in an environment that welcomes activity and honors the simple interaction between people. Yet, I am starting to miss the quiet time with myself and feel myself wanting to pull back. there is a restlessness from still having unpacked boxes lying around and things constantly being moved, having not yet found their place. The more I move, the more I find ease and familiarity quickly in new environments, yet never quite feel at home. But then, what is home anyway?

"You know that point in your life when you realize that the house you grew up in isn’t really your home anymore…all of the sudden even though you have some place to put your shit, that idea of home is gone…or maybe it's like this rite of passage…you will never have that feeling again until you create a new idea of home for yourself..." ~ Zach Braff in Garden State

In migrating to North Carolina 3 years ago, I made a large effort in creating a new home for myself; however, it was lacking the family aspect and support of friends that are essential in the fulfillment of my life. Nearing the year stint in Greenville, I was fortunate enough to walk leave having made a few friends, which I will cherish, and start anew.

The translocation and new career beginnings have brought much of the unexpected. I have connected with a few people forming strong relationships that are unfolding beautifully. However, the transitional feeling and homelessness still lingers, roots are still laying on top of the earth, and floating on the water, adrift, is the feeling that surrounds, spurring the question, "Will I ever have a home?"

Over time, perhaps this will become my home and when asked, "Where are you from?", I will no longer instinctively reply, "Florida." Perhaps the day will come when that question is followed by a pause or a different answer, but until then, I am floating, adrift, trying to catch my bearings, taking in the passing scenery, trying not to focus too much on the past, but what is up ahead.

Porch-sittin' and Hootenannys

Cinema By The Sea: Bourne Ultimatum Crew

First time tubing off Carrot Island

Straw Hat Sistas

Note: All pix courtesy of Sarah Freidl

Quote of the Week

The more you try to be interested in other people, the more you find out about yourself.

~Thea Astley

The past few months have been filled with newness. Moving to a new place, starting a new job, meeting new people, loosing a family member, and reconnecting with others. Emotionally, it has been trying, but exhilarating at the same time. Expecting to endure a few years of solitude while desperately trying to reach out, I have been pleasantly surprised with the openness of the community here. It somehow confirms all the things I already knew I needed, but was unable to access.

The importance of friendship.
How good communication is a requirement for effective work.
The merriment that is created from inclusiveness.

Simple little things that are common sense and apart of most people's lives, yet have been amiss the last few places I've lived. What is even more wonderful is that the majority of people here want to be here and that makes a huge difference. It reminds me of St. Augustine in a lot of ways... and I love it. I still miss my hometown frequently, but it is nice to feel welcomed and apart of a community.

Morehead City Life

Holiday Weekend Festivities

Embarking on a new chapter.

In a whirlwind week, new beginnings and endings passed, like a rain shower moving along the coast.

While trying to finish up my thesis, I've accepted a position doing shoreline change and additional research in the New River Estuary area, near Jacksonville, NC. Shortly after accepting the position and securing an apartment (which was a much harder activity than expected due to the rental property owners lack of pet policies) I headed south to relax for a few days on a surprise trip (surprise for everyone else but, planned over a month in advance). During four days filled with friends and family, the importance of those relationships weighted heavily upon me making the last hours slightly upsetting. With a heavy heart, I boarded the north bound train and sat filled with gratitude for the special people in my life and excited about the new ventures that lie ahead.

As the clouds trail behind the rain showers and the sun begins to dry the moistened earth, I am reminded of what is important and hold it close to my heart as I begin a new chapter in life.

Another lollipop

Life is full of the unexpected... and most of the time I try to focus on the positive. Yes, it sucks to have your heart broken, but be grateful that you allowed yourself to be vulnerable enough to love another. Yes, having the one person closest to you betray your trust is tough to swallow and even more to let them go, but you wish them well and move on in your life, cherishing the good time you had together. But at the moment, I'm a bit p*ssed off at life and am having trouble seeing the positive. Actually, no, I see it, it's right there, but.... it's a little like this:

Image a young child who has worked so hard, diligently performing all his tasks, everything that has been asked of him, even more than what was asked of him, all the be rewarded with a lollipop. A scrumptious crystallized mouth watering sweet filled lollipop.... and just as he has been handed this lollipop and his little lips, moist with salivation, wrap around the hard sweetness of the lollipop.... a bird sh*ts in his head.

Perhaps some would have no trouble ignoring the foul smell and liquid running down the side of their face as they indulge in their lollipop, but I, for one, cannot.

... and that is how I feel at this moment, in addition to other unresolved emotions that I do not quite know what to do with nor do I know where to begin the write about them.

The present of being present

The ancient Masters were profound and subtle.
Thier wisdom was unfathomable.
There is no way to describe it;
all we can describe is their appearance.

They were careful
as someone crossing an iced-over stream.
Alert as a warrior in enemy territory.
Courteous as a guest.
Fluid as melting ice.
Shapable as a block of wood.
Receptive as a valley.
Clear as a glass of water.

Do you have the patience to wait
till you mud settles and the water is clear?
Can you remain unmoving
till the right action arises by itself?

The Master doesn't seek fulfillment.
Not seeking, not expecting,
she is present, and can welcome all things.

Focusing on the little h

Through my time here in North Carolina, I feel the majority of it has been spent trying to dig myself out of the familiar depressional hole, which I was ever so comfortably curled up in last night, but I have decided that just because most of what I want in my life is not available where I am, I am not going to allow my remaining time here to be miserable.

Although I do not have much nrg and have been thoroughly broken multiple times, I am going to smile in the face of the sh*t laden path that lies before me and focusing on the flowers lining the edge. For in the long run, my unhappiness only impacts myself...

The big H

If happiness is not for me,
so then, what do I see?

Flames of red,
burning bright.
And oceans of blue
dark as the night.

A heavy heart,
full of holes.
Each absence made,
from loves untold.

A scared little girl,
all alone.
Wishing for someone,
to bring her home.

Quote of the week

Life is a train of moods like a string of beads; and as we pass through them they prove to be many colored lenses, which paint the world their own hue, and each shows us only what lies in its own focus.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Quote of the week

We do not have to visit a madhouse to find disordered minds; our planet is the mental institution of the universe.

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Flying high...

With travel funds in need of use, those involved in the sea-level rise project took turns getting an aerial view of the Neuse River Estuary, NC study areas. Having been my first time in a small aircraft, I was a bit nervous, but we had great weather and a fabulously accommodating pilot. We flew out of New Bern, which is located in the western part of the study area, where the Neuse River feeds into the estuary. From there, we headed east out toward Pamlico Sound and took a quick detour to circle around Portsmouth Island and then headed back along the north side of the Neuse River Estuary. It was great to see the areas that I have been analyzing on the computer screen for the past few years in person from the same perspective, but at a smaller scale.

Someone asks, how is __?

Why do my thoughts go to you? Now, as before I think of you. Someone asks about you and I don't know how to respond. It is like speaking of you takes my breadth away... and with it part of me. Will I ever stop thinking of you? I hope so, but part of me cringes thinking that day will come.

Good morning sun

Ecstatic at the chance to get away for the a few days, I gladly accepted the invitation to accompany one of the biology professors on his bi-annual visit to an ongoing project in the Virginia Coast Reserve (VCR). The participants of this venture included a few biology professors (two ECU and one from University of Virginia), two located in Oyster Bay. We left late Thursday night, which was a nice change as opposed to leaving really early in the morning, arriving @ VCR sometime before midnight. It was the farthest north I ridden along the east coast. We crossed over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, which for those of you who do not know, is this long @ss bridge with a tunnel that goes underground so that ships can pass overhead through Chesapeake Bay uninterrupted. Although engineering wise, it's a great idea, the concept still boggles me... I just kept thinking, what if there is a crack in the foundation... would be engulfed by water? How does the tunnel not collapse with the pressure from the massive amount of water pushing down? As the tired, knowledgeable professors fielded my questions, I was informed that the tunnel was made through the bedrock, which simply spurred a different wave of questions.... Would the bedrock surrounding the tunnel collapse? I quickly curtailed my questions so as not to frustrate my traveling companions and soon we were out on the other side of the tunnel.

The next morning, I rose early to greet the sun as it's rays reflected off the water, warming the crisp Virginia air and after a relaxing breakfast, we headed out into the field, which consists of a large spartina and juncus filled marsh transitioning into an upland of pine. During the day and a half field work I assisted Dr. Brinson in collecting SET (surface elevation table) data. After have heard about the SETs for the past few years, it was really nice to actually see how it worked. For those interested, the SET consists of a pipe that has been driven into the ground (generally to the bedrock) and the measuring device is an arm that is placed into the pipe which has pins that extend down to the surface. Being that all the heights are known, the change in surface elevation is determined based on how far down the pins drop to reach the surface of the marsh.


Having not worked with this group much, I was not quite what to expect, but found that I had a good time and learned a lot. One thing I really like about Dr. Brinson is how eager he is to teach and I really enjoyed learning about the area. We discussed the transitioning of marsh to upland (a hot topic in relation to the SLR project we are involved with) and it felt so good to be learning something new and relevant (the fact that it is an event to learn something new and relevant saddens me, considering that is what I always considered grad school was about, but what can you do?).



In summary, it was a pleasant get away. The weather was perfect for working in the marsh... a slight breeze to keep the bugs at bay and the bright full sun igniting the silenced wetland.

Quote of the Week

You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.

~Eleanor Roosevelt

Can amyone say manic?

So a few days ago, I could care less if I took another breath. And although I still feel the same way, for some reason I feel like I just took a happy pill. It's great... I feel utterly euphoric and slap happy. I have not idea what brought it on, but I hope it stays around. I could do with this every day!