Food Weakness - In Search Of...

This post was originally written about a month ago - but slacker me is just now getting around to publishing it .. I guess I am not cut out to be a daily or even a weekly blogger...

I've been searching my whole adult life for it.. I think I have found it.. at least as close as I am ever going to relive the pleasure I had so many years ago as a child. It has the power to transport me back in time, to when I was young (6-10 yo) and with my maternal grandparents in Gulfport, Mississippi. I remember going crabbing with my grandmother, playing in wonder on my grandfather's shrimp boat, eating catheads and buttermilk for breakfast, drinking coffee with lots of milk, picking rockychaws (those little prickly stickers found around sand) out of my feat as I crossed over the highway to get to the beach. Have I piqued your interest? Do you have something that is your own little time machine? Think about it. What is it... Is it a smell? Is it a picture? Is it a piece of clothing? Okay - for me, it's My Grandmother's Gumbo. I search every restaurant's menu for the offering, trying it and being dissapointed. But I believe I have found it, in none other than my "back yard" so to speak. My dear friend Debra, who originally hails from Shreveport, and is a fabulous cook, makes THE best gumbo since my grandmother's. While visiting her last weekend we went to a Gumbo cook off so she could scout out the competition, as she was thinking about entering one of these competitions. They have Chili cook offs, Bar-b-q cookoffs and on the Gulf Coast, it's GUMBO... I was in heaven.. or at least I thought I was... some of the so called GUMBO's in that competition had no resemblance to what I grew up loving. Not only was it fun to try about 15 different Gumbos, many of the competitors decked themselves out in "Themes",, which I know Debra was eyeing because she love's herself a good dress up opportunity...The experience was fun, and the gals that won were low on style but big on taste and personality. They were similar in style to Debra's gumbo, but their rue tasted a bit chalky...I believe Debra will enter one soon and I plan on being there to help cheer her on... Maybe the secret ingredient in Gumbo is something I provide. Could it be love? The love I had for my grandmother and the love I have for a dear friend...Some pics of the contestants..

Everybody is 'shoppin'

To shop or not to shop... No It's not Carrie Bradshaw contemplating a purchase of a new pair of shoes.. To Shop is now one of the new verbs in our popular culture meaning To Photoshop. Just about every picture you see in the media, from the cover of magazines, to photo journalism and now down to lowly little ole me.., that picture has made it's way through Photoshop. It dawned on me in high school, that if my photography was ever going to look "different", I better learn dark room techniques and procedures. And I knew that wasn't going to happen, so I pretty much put down the camera. Then I purchased my first digital camera about 7 years ago, realized the darkroom had gone digital and the internet was chock full of help for photographers from lighting and composition to digital darkroom instruction. My interest was rekindled. I've not spent much time shooting pictures this last year. I have spent a lot of time viewing excellent (and mediocre) photographs and digital manipulation examples trying to learn and to figure out "my style". How I want my pictures to look.. my "different" desire. I still haven't figured it out. Maybe I just don't have any talent and the best I can hope for is to make my snaps look the best they can.


The above is pretty much a classic Photoshop retouch with a little secret ingredient thrown in.. I likey.. especially the subject...



The above photo is a Photoshop retouch, taking out the offending line, and increasing color saturations and blowing out the highlights - which seems to be favy amongst the wedding photographer crowd these days. I likey - but it really just enables a blah photo to be a "wow" photo... not sure I really want to see something like this blown up and looked at for years too come.. Don't look too close - I didn't spend much time taking out the line...

BTW - for those interested.. these were taken with my little P&S; a Canon SD800..
a sweet little thing that is fun for snaps.. I haven't become comfortable enough on the boat yet to bring out the DSLR, but I will soon and will enjoy using the 10-20 ultra wide in this challenging space of the GullyWhumperII.

Blue Skies

These last few days have been what I term, "Chamber of Commerce" weather. Lukewarm (mid 70's), abundant sunshine and mild breezes. Florida markets this stuff like it used to market a glass of Florida Orange Juice. We watch the weather like a hawk now, looking for just the right mix to go for a sail. And yesterday was it. It was perfect. I had to pinch myself a couple of times. A little work in the morning, a quick trip to the Chiropractor (a quack??), take the puppies out, and out the door at 12:30 and launch at 1:10. Hard to beat that, unless of course you had money coming out your ears and other openings.. and could afford that home on the beach and walk across the street to where you keep your boat on an inland canal... maybe my next life..But for right now this is pretty darn good.

Sailin Shoes..

Looking at this photo brings to mind the Little Feat song Sailin' Shoes..
"You've got to put on your sailin shoes
Put on your sailing shoes
Everyone will start to cheer
When you put on your sailin' shoes" - We're cheering.. fur sure.. So.. We have been out on dear GullyWhumperII several times now and it keeps getting better each time. We get more comfortable... make that I get more comfortable each time. Cap'n Steve is definitely the OLD salt. He's not known for his patience, and I have tried it on occasion, but we both have pretty big grins by the end of the sail. Wouldn't you know , November and December had perfect sailing weather, we buy a boat the beginning of January and old man winter comes to visit Florida..Who knew there could be too much wind?..Wait we have a home in Hurricane Country, let me explain. When you're a green horn like me, too much wind means 15-20mph... mix that with a little cool weather, and a few rainy days (not to mention I DO work a little bit - don't faint..) and poof, there blows the planned sail, as fast as the wind can take it. (I foresee many puns and metaphors with this sailing talk) I am getting more comfortable doing the basic tasks of raising and lowering the mainsail and jib and do okay with the trimming of sails. I can even sail a bit. (do you really have to walk before you sail?) Where I really seem to need help and the Cap'n loses his patience is pointing the boat straight into the wind and keeping it there. That is Sailing's equivalent to treading water. You want the boat to chill... just hang out .. trouble is the wind likes to push you around (imagine that?) and I invariably push back the wrong way and "we lose it"... AAAARGG - .. I better watch out or I might have to turn in 'my sailin' shoes'..

For My Son

Know that I am very proud of you and that every word in this clip shouts your name to me. Love,m.

From Shakedown to Maiden Voyage

Murphy's Law: Things will go wrong in any given situation if given a chance....

Well the weather has not cooperated. We did a shakedown sail of the boat two weeks ago. Everything went well, except the weather has gone downhill since then. Gone are our sunny 80 degree light wind days replaced with very windy weather. You would think wind would be our best friend but it has to be the "right" wind.

So Shakedown was sans camera. I forgot to bring it. Like me forgetting I had the P&S with me when my dad and I were in the DAL simulators.... Doug, the manager at the marina put her in the water for us, we loaded the kicker on her and off we went...It took us about 40 minutes (against the wind) to go about 2.5 miles through the channel out into the gulf. The kicker is by no means a powerhouse... but it is light and I should be able to mount it by myself. I do believe I had a smile on my face the entire sail. Cap'n Steve was a gentleman the entire trip, even as he was raising the jib and I screwed up and got us out of "irons" which meant he raised the jib while the wind was blowing it against him... not a fun exercise.. but hey - at least he didn't go for a swim... I worry about his center of gravity...anyway - raising the jib will most likely be my responsibility in the not too distant future if I don't tick off the Cap'n and he continues to allow me to sail with him..after all this is HIS boat.... So tomorrow looks good for the maiden voyage...We went to the marina today to check on GWII as we had a nasty storm here Saturday night and everything looks good.. so without further ado.. Here she is..
Yes, I have 'shopped her name on.. we are going to be "trying on" some fonts over the next few weeks to see what works best.. What do you think? Cap'n Steve is thinking maybe drop the Hudson, FL. - I don't know - it's like advertising RedneckVille, Fl...

The Odyssey Begins

We Finally Did It...

We got a sailboat! She's a day cruiser.. with some years on her (much like me) but she is in very good shape (here's where I must admit she's in better shape than I am, though I am working on it again Mom!). She's a shorty, 19' Com-Pac with tiller. Made here in Clearwater. A boat with a great rep. We're naming her the Gullywhumper II. I can't tell you how excited I am. For those who have known me awhile, you know that I have always wanted to sail.. Back in the early 80's I tried like crazy to get friends together to charter a boat with captain and crew down in the islands, with no luck. In the mid 90's I took some sailing classes (basic, celestial navigation etc..) in Atlanta/Lake Lanier with the idea I would take a year off and part of that year was to be spent crewing on one of those vacation yachts down in the islands. I met MDH and we went to Nepal instead...not a bad trade off... but still the desire remained..

MDH and I got ASA certified in Basic Keelboat/ Basic Coastal/Bareboat Chartering in 2002 on a wonderful Catalina 30. It was a great boat to get certified on and to let us know what may lie in store for the future, when we're down to 1 dog..

Anyway, back to Gullywhumper II... I will try and post our adventures in sailing here..Those who remember when I would want to strangle MDH in the raft (affectionately known as the Gullywhumper I) as we were getting our river legs on the Ocoee/Nantahala might note I anticipate "smoother sailing" (I couldn't resist!) with him here as he definitely has much more sailing experience than moi and I will very much take the student role until I get my sailing legs...but you never know, I can be quite the hard head..

She is located at the marina that is nearest to us here in Hudson and right next to our favorite place for beer, Hudson Beach. How convenient is that? We purchased her from the marina's owner who had her for over 10 years. He's got to be in his 70's and he took wonderful care of her. She has just had her bottom sanded and painted, if only I could do that with my bottom! We are getting slip space in the water for 125.00/month less than the going rate around the area here. Maybe a perk from the owner? MDH is off to West Marine. I am sure it will soon be a regular stop like Wal Mart. He will grab some sailboat wax and will wax her over the next couple of days and we should be sailing by next weekend..Door to Gulf should be 1 hour or so... not bad if I say so myself...She should be the ideal boat for my learning experience. Okay I must stop or else I will lose friends and family!!! If you are interested in the Odyssey, bookmark this page or subscribe to the rss feed and I hope I can provide a laugh or two...and maybe even some pictures!