Linear view vs. Masonry View

Shucked Shells

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Oysters are one of the seafood crops harvested in the nearby bays. In efforts to protect the long-term health of the oyster fishery, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has closed six of the minor bays along the coast and is actively rebuilding oyster reefs. That time-consuming and expensive process will get a boost from the recently enacted law that requires seafood distributors to either return oyster shells equal to 30% of the amount purchased or pay $1.36 per sack (a sack can weigh no more than 110 pounds). So far, many of the distributors are opting to pay the fee, since oyster shells command a good price for use in the vitamin supplement market.
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Just Beachy!

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A lonely palapa at Rockport Beach this morning. Two blocks from my cottage, the park is slowly rebuilding infrastructure damaged by Hurricane Harvey in late 2017. The birds didn’t seem to mind. Next time I’ll take my big camera. Without a lot of effort I spotted these cool species today: Black Skimmer, American and Brown Pelicans, Great Egret, Cattle Egret, Great Blue Heron, Ruddy Turnstone, Long-billed Curlew, Black Vulture, and even a few Bottlenose Dolphins. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon!
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Above Average Rainfall

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Rockport ended last year way ahead of average in rainfall and started the new one the same way. The driveway to my little cottage has transmogrified into a swamp which my little car was no match for. It was reminiscent of the car stuck in the mud scene from My Cousin Vinny. (Though I don’t do Marissa Tomei’s character’s accent nearly as well as she does. Funny movie by the way!)

Thankfully, my new neighbors were nice enough to push me out of the mud. After which I imagine they went home for a good laugh while drinking sweet tea to cool off. As my intuitive friend Jeff said, “It would figure that a desert girl would get stuck in the mud.”

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Hurricane Harvey Impact

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Hurricane Harvey wasn’t the most damaging tropical storm to blow through Rockport (the 1919 hurricane almost wiped the town off the map) but it certainly caused significant damage here. Residents have done a remarkable job rebuilding their community in the days since landfall (August 25, 2017), though about a quarter of the population hasn’t returned due to the housing shortage. Learning that fact, I feel especially fortunate to have found a cute little cottage to rent here.
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The Long Way Around

“Well, I never seem to do it like anybody else,

Maybe someday, someday I’m gonna settle down,

If you ever want to find me I can still be found,

Taking the long way,

Taking the long way around.”

This should be my theme song! While living a more traditional, stationary life certainly would’ve been easier, I wouldn’t have been happy. My life has been unusual but it certainly has not been boring!

Give it a listen – I think you’ll enjoy it. It even mentions traveling the country by RV with stars on the ceiling (and yes, I did put glow-in-the-dark stars above the bed in my first RV).

 
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