Oh No! Not Again!
Yikes! Will it ever end? Looks like we are in the "cone of death" yet again. Yes, we know it's the middle of hurricane season, but enough is enough! We are sick of watching the weather channel. We hunkered down for Fay and Gustav, but Hanna, Ike, and Josephine are on the way, and if we have to hunker any more, we may just go somewhere else to do it. Tonight, though, is beautiful. We are going to ride down to sunset park to catch the view. Don't worry, you don't need the weather channel. As long as we are here, we'll keep you posted on the weather. And, the bobcat was here today, no more weeds on the beach. I'm not sure where they went, but I think they buried them.

GUSTAV

What a Difference a Weekend Makes!
Originally uploaded by sache47

One day the ocean just beckons you to come on in and enjoy the calm.
The next day things can turn pretty ugly in almost no time.
It's Labor Day. In Michigan that would mean a family picnic, or a
trip up "North" for the weekend, then maybe a union meeting to find
out if there would be a teachers' raise, or a strike. The kids would
have all their supplies for school; there might be tomatoes to can,
and definitely fresh corn for dinner. Everyone mentally prepares
themselves for the fact that the season will be changing very soon.
Down here we don't have the change of seasons. On or around Labor Day
we join the "Four H Club here", that's high winds, heavy rain, heat
and humidity, but so far, no hurricanes! Gustav has been gentle here,
we have nothing to complain about. We had some rain, the wind blew
the seaweed from Fay back onto our beach, but it also brought a lot of
sand back to our beach. There's some cleanup to do. It's really a
mess next door at Oceanfront Condos where the wind blew lots of weeds
up onto their dock and into their pool, major clean up there, minor
cleanup here. After Fay, the city made the decision not to haul away
seaweed, don't ask me why, they recieved $95,000. for disaster
recovery. What they spent it on I don't know, but now as you can see,
we have all that seaweed still with us. But I know we definitely have
nothing to complain about, it could be so much worse. It's just one
minor delay in getting on with life in paradise.

Only in The Keys...


Candidate jailed
Andy Williams was arrested on Friday for violating probation that he was serving for a felony charge of cocaine possession from earlier this year. The warrant for the arrest was signed on Wednesday -- the day after Williams defeated Pat Unferth in the Republican primary for the District 1 Mosquito Control Board seat.

Posted - Friday, August 29, 2008 06:43 PM EDT

Gosh, I don't think this story in the Keynoter is going to help his campaign much.

Oh no!!! It looks like we are in a two way squeeze here. This is wind probability, and the darker areas are worse, but still, it does make one a bit nervous. I just hope Gustav and Hannah will leave us alone and go somewhere else. In the meantime, it's sunny and beautiful on the beach today, a nice breeze and warm water. Hmmm...that may not be a good thing.

Beach Discovery After the Storm

Beach Discovery After the Storm
Originally uploaded by sache47

I found this on the beach the morning after the storm, and wondered
about it for quite a while. Could it be from a shark or some other
large fish? Finally I got out a book that my sister Sue gave me, "
Florida's Living Beaches A Guide for the Curious Beachcomber", and boy
is that me, a 'curious beachcomber'. Right away I was able to find and
identify it, and then, of course, do a little more research for
confirmation on the internet. I can't help it, once a science teacher,
always a curious learner. The post below shows what animal it belongs
to.

It's the hyoplastron bone from the lower shell of a sea turtle, probably a loggerhead, but that's just a guess. I'd have to find some more of the bones of this turtle to be sure of the species. By the size, it's probably not full grown, as this would only be about one quarter of the skeleton size, they have 4 bones like this on the bottom. You just wonder how this sea turtle died, and how old the bone really is. I don't think it's legal to collect sea turtle bones, and it smells terrible! I better put it back where I found it, so someone else can find and wonder about it's previous life.

A Day After Fay

A Day After Fay
Originally uploaded by sache47

T. S. Fay blew through the night and we woke up to sunshine, but still
lots of wind. We were fooled when we heard that the storm had passed
over Key West at about 4 PM yestserday...it blew harder after in the
bands that arrived after the storm. We had our doorwall shutters
opened a bit in the evening, but pulled them closed again at 2 AM when
the winds picked up. There's not as much seaweed on the beach as in
past hurricanes, but we did lose a lot of sand. Our cable went out
last night, no internet, it came back on this morning at 9 AM, but I
think it has gone out again! Oh drat! This post will probably be
delayed!

The crew begins

The crew begins
Originally uploaded by sache47

Steve had Oscar and the crew here early with the bobcat to start
cleaning up the beach.

Guess what blew in?

Guess what blew in?
Originally uploaded by sache47

Do you recognize what this is that blew off and onto our beach? Hint:
The winds came in from the southeast.

Manuel

Manuel
Originally uploaded by sache47

Manuel was wielding the machette early this morning.

"I'm OK"

"I'm OK"
Originally uploaded by sache47

Even the smallest of critters survived.

Island damage

Island damage
Originally uploaded by sache47

The rest of Key Colony Beach was mostly a matter of downed palm fronds
and various branches to clean up.

No comment needed.

No comment needed.
Originally uploaded by sache47

Our Beach at 12 noon

Our Beach at 12 noon
Originally uploaded by sache47

The waves are really rolling in now. We had high tide at about 10:50,
and it's really raining at the moment... large cats and large dogs.
Yes, everything has been moved in off the beach and off of the deck.

Sunday Night Sunset

Sunday Night Sunset
Originally uploaded by sache47

The dark clouds that chased us off the beach this afternoon must have
been just a squal. A few hours later the sun was out, and we have had
no rain. This evening we motored down to Sunset Beach to see if there
would be one, sunset, that is. The sky was pretty, but the sun was
not visible. On our way down to the pool, the sky turned a beautiful
shade of pink, not only in the west, but also in the south, and east.
"Red at night, sailor's delight; Red in the morn, sailors take warn."

Tropical Storm Fay, and we're in the 3 day cone!

Tropical Storm Fay, and we're in the 3 day cone!
Originally uploaded by sache47

But last night from the water, we observed a beautiful sunset over Key
Colony Beach.

The ibis

The ibis
Originally uploaded by sache47

are said to be the last to leave the island when a hurricane
approaches. They, as us were just watching to the east as the sun
rose as usual this morning. The sounds of preparation were in the air,
however; boats being taken out of the water, shutters going up, and
the cars on US1 heading north.

Shutters

Shutters
Originally uploaded by sache47

were up at Sunset beach by about 2:00 today, and that was no small
feat. They have the old fashioned kind that you have to put up by hand
one by one. Here at The Cay, most of the shutters are up, but we still
have some visitors and some year-rounders, like us who are staying for
now. All of the beach and deck furniture has been removed from the
beach, except for what we are sitting on for the moment.

To the north

To the north
Originally uploaded by sache47

at The Cay, there were people still enjoying a nice warm day in the pool.

To the south

To the south
Originally uploaded by sache47

At 3:15 the clouds started to build up to the south, and we decided it
was time for us to come off of the beach.

Lazy Days of August We took the kayak out tonight at about 7:30, and just parked ourselves out at the sandbar for a while to enjoy the evening. The water was so calm, and there were almost no boats out, except for the Marathon Lady off in the distance for the night fishing trip. We took our time on the way back to admire the beautiful white clouds off to the west with the sunset lighting up the sky behind them. From where we were, we couldn't actually see the sun drop below the horizon, but it was still a gorgeous sight behind the skyline of the white condos of Key Colony Beach. I still am not too sure about taking my camera out in the boat because we do take on water, so I'm posting a photo I took at Sunset Beach a few weeks ago.

Baby Loggerheads return to sea at Sea Isle

Baby Loggerheads return to sea at Sea Isle
Originally uploaded by sache47

Last Thursday, with a little help, baby loggerheads made their way
back to the ocean in search of a nice patch of sargasso weed to feed
on, and right now, there is tons of it out there! A nest was
discovered back in June on the beach at Sea Isle, here on Key Colony
Beach. The eggs were taken to The Turtle Hospital for safe keeping
until it was time to hatch. Then they were returned to the Sea Isle
beach, and a trench was dug to help them find their way to the ocean.
Some lucky locals, including the mayor, got to watch the march of the
babies. Unfortunately, we were still on vacation at the time and
missed the performance...maybe next year! Hopefully some of them will
find their way back to one of our beaches in the future to make a new
next.

Boomers' July Road Trip

Boomers' July Road Trip
Originally uploaded by sache47

It's not a simple thing getting ready to leave for a trip when you
live in the Keys, especially if it is hurricane season, which it is
right now. We have the porch furniture and barbeque pulled into the
living room, took all the plants down to be watered by Manuel,and
stored away our beach toys and bikes in the downstairs storage room.
Tomorrow morning Bill will pull all the hurricane shutters. We would
have pulled them tonight, but then it would be so dark in here in the
morning we probably never would get up. Then turn off the water, pack
up a cooler with lots of healthy breakfast and lunch food, and we're
off! I guess it's not that much work after all.
As you can see from the header, we tossed a coin on which car to take,
and gas mileage won and my back lost. Bucket seats! Yuck! So today I
went to Walgreens and bought all kinds of back comfort paraphernalia
which probably cost more than we will save on the gas!

Lobster Season!
Mini Lobster Season will be July 30 and 31 this year and we won't be here for it! I will miss the excitement, but not the traffic and craziness at Publix. Regular lobster season starts on August 6th everywhere in the Keys except for Key Colony where it begins on August 16th. We will be back for that.
We got the lobsters in the photo here two years ago, in the rocks out front, and that is the last time we have ever spotted any lobsters. We hope to find some this year.
Last weekend we checked out the docks behind the Post Office, and saw some of the biggest lobsters hanging out that I have ever seen. There were lots of them too. We also saw some pretty big spotted eagle rays swimming around in the same place. The water in that canal is just disgusting, but I guess the lobsters love it. You would never catch me getting into that canal even for a lobster, but you could use a bully net to get them from the dock. If there were 15 or 20 in that one little corner, I wonder how many there are in all the canals of Key Colony Beach? I don't know who will get those beauties I saw, but they better stock up on the butter, 'cause they are in for one lobster feast! If we can't grab two out front by the rocks, we can always go up to Lobster Monster and buy two for dinner. Mmmm, so good!

Orchid Surprise

Orchid Surprise
Originally uploaded by sache47

I went out to the orchid house to check on "Phil" the philodendron
that the Chinchars left behind and had asked me to watch over and
give a haircut now and then during the summer. What a surprise when I
saw this beautiful orchid growing out of the conch shell that was
hanging from the planter! I had totally forgotten about Phil until
now, but I'm giving him a haircut right after this photo. His new
roots had him practically stuck down to the bench in the orchid house.
Poor Phil!

Arriving Early for the Fireworks

Arriving Early for the Fireworks
Originally uploaded by sache47

It was a beautiful night to sit on Sombrero Beach in Marathon and
watch the fireworks display. We took our neighbor Marie and her nephew
who is visiting from France. It was the first time he had seen the
fireworks in America, and the first time we had been to the fireworks
in Marathon. It was a wonderful display, and a very friendly group of
local people, many of whom had been there all day for the parade, the
picnics and barbeques, and partying on the beach. It was a great way
to celebrate the 4th.

Waiting For the Show

Waiting For the Show
Originally uploaded by sache47

As the sun set, everyone settled in for the show to start.

Grand Finale

Grand Finale
Originally uploaded by sache47

People watched from the shore, from their boats, or while floating in
the water.

Marathon Tropical Fruit Festival

Marathon Tropical Fruit Festival
Originally uploaded by sache47

There was every kind of fruit and nut imaginable this morning on
display at the Garden Club, and lots of trees for sale outside. I had
no idea that there were so many varieties of mangos. We had hoped to
bring over some of our Celeste Figs to enter into the competition but
we missed the 9:30 deadline for entries. Wouldn't you know, there were
no figs on display either.

Mamay

Mamay
Originally uploaded by sache47

Sometimes the seed inside was even more beautiful that the fruit on the outside.

Our Purchase
Originally uploaded by sache47

We couldn't resist buying a Guava tree. The Cay lost 3 guava trees
after Wilma and there is nothing more fragrant that fresh guava. We
hope this one will be planted up front were the others were.

FRUITS OF THE SEASON
There are just not enough people down here right now to enjoy all of the bananas on the trees, but there are many more still developing a ripening for the future. We reluctantly harvested our pineapple that we have been caring for on our porch for the last several months. We had hoped to wait until company came so we could share it with them, but when the color turned to golden, and you could smell that sweet pineapple aroma everytime you opened the door wall, we figured it had to be harvested. Now we will look for a special recipe for this baby. It took about 17 months for this one to appear and grow to maturity. We'll put the plant downstairs, keep it watered, and hope for more fruit to come. The mango wasn't exactly a home grown fruit. The mango tree down on 15th Circle is just about empty of those beautiful dark purple fruits that we so admired for the past few months. Shaw's Landscaping took all the ones that were within reach, now there are only a few left way up top. How do we know, maybe they are the landscapers and have a deal going, "We work for mangos". But now, the winds have been blowing out of the east, and last night on my bike ride, I picked up this beauty off the ground under the tree. It's huge, and ripe! This morning, there was another on the ground, not quite ready to eat, but close. Up in Michigan, I think we call this tree fall. Whatever, it's free fruit to us because it is on the outside of the fence. Anyone for a Mango Daiquiri?

'Cuda Caught on Our Beach!

'Cuda Caught on Our Beach!
Originally uploaded by sache47

It was a lazy afternoon as we read our books on the beach and Jack's
grandson (at least we think it was Jack's grandson) went out
snorkeling. All of a sudden he came out of the water very quickly, and
told us a five foot barricuda swam under him. He did appear to be a
little shook up, who wouldn't? The next thing we knew, a man fishing
off of Sunset Beach pier was struggling with a pretty big fish, and
sure enough, it was the barricuda. He and his daughter fought it and
followed it all the way down the breakwater to our beach where they
landed it and posed for this photo. In my opinion, it would be
foolish to try to land a barricuda, but the sportsman in the family
tells me that's what it's all about, landing a big fish. I will say
that they both seemed to really know what they were doing, and caught
it without using a steel leader. Now that's something!

The Landing

The Landing
Originally uploaded by sache47

The father very carefully got him ashore and lifted him out with a
towel to pose for the photo. Let me tell you, it had a full set of
very large teeth!

Then he let him go...

Then he let him go...
Originally uploaded by sache47

and let's hope he swam far, far away from our beach.

Fishing on the Lobster Boat

Fishing on the Lobster Boat
Originally uploaded by sache47

We had a great time fishing on the Lobster Boat with Jan and Roger
Sables. Dan and his son, Kevin, took us right out to several spots
and we caught lots of dolphin and a huge barricuda. Yes, it was hot,
but lots of nice shade on the boat when we weren't catching fish.

Roger and Jan on the way back to Coco Plum.

Roger and Jan on the way back to Coco Plum.
Originally uploaded by sache47

Bill and Sally take a break from fishing.

Bill and Sally take a break from fishing.
Originally uploaded by sache47

Obstacle Course

Obstacle Course
Originally uploaded by sache47

We did have to maneuver around a few lobster traps. The season doesn't
start until August 6th.

Dolphin

Dolphin
Originally uploaded by sache47

The fish were cleaned and we were home before 1:00!

You have been sent 1 picture.

fish5.jpg

These pictures were sent with Picasa, from Google.
Try it out here: http://picasa.google.com/

Now we know where we live, and so does everyone else.

Sealcoating the East End of the Parking Lot at 10:30 AM

The black shine makes for an interesting effect on the palm tree shadows. We are parked over at Charlie Brown's for a few days. Say, we wonder if he needs live-in caretakers for the summer. It sure is nice over there.

Sealcoating the Parking Lot.

It must be cooler if you do it while smoking a cigar. Multi-tasking?

Seen Around Key Colony...the mayor's island vehicle.

The mayor's throne,

The mayor's throne,
Originally uploaded by sache47

outside of city hall. He's not in it too often. He's more often out
in his golf cart Cadillac cruising the island and keeping up with
what's going on, which is not much these days.

The mayor's lawn...

The mayor's lawn...
Originally uploaded by sache47

Yes, it's astro turf, short and very green all the time.