sunshine state love

I love being a Florida girl.

I'm really not missing Alabama at all right now.

Well, except for the fact that one of my fav bands - American Aquarium is playing at a private party in Tuscaloosa... at GALLETES (yes, my old stompin' grounds) and the lead singer, BJ, sent me a special invite to come...

And then Gallete's owner Oliver "liked" my status that said I was almost in tears that I was missing this awesome show!

(I've been begging AA to go to Tuscaloosa since I saw them the first time in South Carolina)  But of course they go when I'm not there.  So maybe I'm missing Alabama for that reason only... but LOVE is what I've got for my Sunshine State!

 

Here's some gnarley inspiration... enjoy :)

DARK SIDE OF THE LENS from Astray Films on Vimeo.

peace and love

bai

p.s. do you think it's weird we drive on the beach???

well, in volusia county we do.

(new smyrna beach and daytona beach)

sunshine, vintage shopping, and fried seafood. perfect day.

Today I went to Daytona Beach with my Mom to help her with a favor/errand for my Nana & Papaw (in Asheville, NC).  It's a quick 40 minute drive, so it's not a big deal to "go coastal" for the day.  Obviously, living in Orlando, I can make a day trip out of both the Atlantic Coast and the Gulf of Mexico.  Pretty awesome and something I shouldn't take for granted, ya know?!?

Today was a pretty day - the sun was out beaming, but it was cold and breezy over on the coast.  It was a fun day, though, and I'm glad we got to spend that time together! 

We vintage shopped at these two ecclectic little shops on the river...

... and that's where my mom found THESE!!!

Vintage, Authentic 1980's RAY-BAN WAYFARER SUNGLASSES!!! If you know me, then imagine my squeal when Mom pointed out to me the proof of authenticity on these gnarley boys!

They were marked for $15 and I knew I'd never find a better deal for my growing Ray-Ban collection.  But, the plastic part of the ear piece is broken - yet, the earpiece/frame is actually Aviator-style gold metal that is wrapped in plastic.  I guess that's how they did it back then before they had this better plastic material of today - or whatever it is my newer ones are made out of.  Ha!

I collect 'em, not an expert on 'em. 

I talked her down to $10 since they were broken.  Now, I don't know about YOU but that is what I call a vintage/thrifting JACKPOT!

I also got this...

For sentimental reasons.  I was OBSESSED with Peter Pan as a kid.  I mean, crazy-talk obsessed!  So this was a little nostalgic for me, plus I hope to pass down my love for vinyl to my children one day... so why not start 'em out with something I loved as a child, something vintage, and something meaningful?

After our errand and the shopping, Mom and I were hungry so we went to "Aunt Catfish's" - a famous, local favorite in Port Orange, FL (a few minutes South of Daytona). 

It was a YUMMY, SOUTHERN meal. 

Not ALL of Florida is a big amusement park or Little Cuba.  It definitely still has it's Southern roots and in our neck of the woods it's very much still a culture!

I don't know what I would do

 without Southern food!!

I hate Ranch dressing,

what are you talking about?

Cheese grits & cornbread.

Fried Shrimp. Yum.

And I washed it down with a

Coca-Cola from a Mason jar.

HOPE YOUR DAY WAS SPENT

LOVING THE LIFE YOU HAVE!

Mine was. 

PEACE & LOVE

Baily

Dog Day

I realized today that I have never had a Christmas with Millie.  Last year when we went to North Carolina I had to leave her at the 'Doggie Motel' with Lola and Jackson.  It was her first Christmas (only 8 months old then) and I had to leave her... I hated it. 

So today when that occurred to me, I put on some athletic clothes and grabbed a couple of leashes and loaded Lola and Millie into my car.  We then set out for the dog park in Winter Springs.  When we pulled up it was closed and it left us bummed.  But, it reminded me that it'd be just as fun to play frisbee in the front yard and we can leave the dog park for another day.  It was still fun to get out on this GORGEOUS, SUNNY, WARM Christmas Eve day with my favorite girl-dogs! I love having Lola, Jackson, AND Millie!

Here are some pics from our play-date!

I love playing underneath the Florida palms again! And Millie has loved having playmates!

PEACE AND LOVE

b a i l y

Happy Monday!

Being back in Orlando meant that I got to visit the David Yurman store to replace some pieces of jewelry that were lost in the fire.  I lost this bracelet - except I had the pearl tipped one instead of amethyst.

Since I have had to replace A LOT of things, I find myself a little queazy at the thought of replacing things identical to what I had. 

Just because I find it difficult to buy the exact same thing again. 

I guess there are two ways of looking at it, but I find it easier to cope with it all if I can 'change it up' a little bit with each purchase.  For instance, I replaced cowboy boots but a different style.  I replaced bedding, but more 'me' than what I had bought 3 years ago.  I replaced clothes that are similar to what I had, but not the exact same.  It has just made it more fun and a whole lot easier.

I picked up Mr. Clay's present while I was at Mall at Millenia as well.  I think he's going to love it & we'll have so much fun with it!  It's right up his artsy and creative alley, if you ask me!

 I must say, he's pretty fun to shop for! :) 

While I was there I also stopped by Forever 21 to replace some of the funky jewelry that I miss dearly.

Again, I didn't replace the same exact things - but I picked up some costume necklaces (beads and turquoise of course) and some earrings and one really clunky and fabulous ring.  I've always loved my funky rings!!!

Today I get my haircut and highlighted.  Mom found a great place in Titusville, over on the Atlantic coast.  Even though it's cold outside, the famous Florida sunshine is still beaming, and I am excited about the pretty drive over there.  It is totally fun living close to water again!  Even though I am only 90 miles from the Gulf and 45 miles from the Atlantic, I am still jealous of Mr. Clay for having Myrtle Beach right across the street from his mailbox.  No wonder he has such fabulous beach wave hair!

Speaking of beach wave hair, I replaced my blow dryer with a Remington one that has a nifty little

feature that gives me some great beach wave hair. 

I'm totally rockin' them now that I'm back in the peninsula!

Hope everyone has a great Monday!

God Bless!

via

peace and love

bai



greengreengreengreengreen

So apparently, today, my favorite color has been green.  In class, I grabbed the green construction paper when told to pick one from the pile.  I've never been "cHoOsY" when we are told to do something like that - I'm 23 years old for cryin' out loud!  But today... Green. Green this, green that.  I even had a very "go green" lunch consisting of a turkey and portobella panini and a side of soup consisting of spinach, pinto beans, and chicken.  It was abso-freaking-lutely delicious, to say the least, but my point here is - I'm on this green kick and it's starting to freak me out.

I'm a mustard yellow girl... a bright yellow girl... burnt orange, perhaps.  And a Carolina blue girl... what is with me and green lately.  I'm wearing it, I'm trying to live the lifestyle so that I don't feel guilty about the horrible condition of the earth later on as it only continues to worsen, and dang it if I'm not repainting my turquoise art projects into a similar to this font-shade of gReeN... bogus if you ask me.

Anywho... I remember this green Gap sweater that I had and LOVED to wear during weather like this.  Mom - Dad ... you two HAVE GOT TO KNOW what sweater I'm talking about... as we did our tour de 'the South' this Christmas (when we were the Griswald's, remember?) I think I slept, roadtripped all day, slept again, wore out to dinner, and never washed this green sweater from like the second Mom drove me home from Christmas Exams until I pulled out of the driveway on January 10th a damn National Champion.  Anywho - this shade of green reminds me of that Gap sweater... as did the construction paper lesson in class today... as does my really hilarious personal recollection of all the fun we had as the Griswalds.... hahahahahahaha.

Still laughing.

Well, I am going to try to pick up on ALL that I have missed... but I am being a busy little bee today with lots of different projects - hmmm... wonder what that is... ADHD maybe???

But bare with me, I'm playing catch-up.... and I'm not even really sure where to begin... there's really nothing crazy I must inform you of since the last time I posted (which was just as randomly thrown together as this one I DO realize)...

But in case you didn't hear...

Alabama kicked Florida's you-know-what... 31-6.
And last time they came to Bryant-Denny it was TWO stadium expansions less than it was Saturday night, which would make the crowd some odd 83,000 in 2005, and the scoare was 31-3.
But this Saturday night I was sitting with my Gator-hater Momma in the second expansion at Bryant-Denny since 2005, and I was part of the some od 101,000 ecstatic and passionate Alabama fans....(some very hyper - aka the girl beside us who snuck a RedBull behind her brother's back before the game)!!!!  No wait, !!!!!*!***!*!*!!!!!!!!!!!!***!*!*!*!*!**!*!*!!!!!!!!! (that's more like homegirl)

62-9. (that's a lotta touchdowns to a small amount of field goals)

Roll Tide

Peace&Love

Baily

Travel Tuesday no. 2 _ Orlando/Oviedo, FL (MY HOMETOWN! YAY!)

This week I am so excited to have my best bud give us a little '411' on a place that is

sacred

cherished

charming

and

SO

dear

to me!!!!

He's my best friend from home and he moved back to the NE side of Orlando (Oviedo) when he was done doing the tomahawk and being a Seminole in Tallahassee!!! He's married to his high school sweetheart, who I am fortunate is another gem in my life as well.

I truly can't describe how special this place is to me or how treasured these newlywed friends are, but I think they have an idea of just how groovy I think they are.

So, meet Justin... and maybe sometime soon we can get a little one-on-one from the Mrs. (She's a doctor in training, though, so she keeps busy! Giving us a tour around Orlando/Oviedo was a little more convenient for the Realtor in the marriage!)

Name: Justin Core (and his wife, Megan Bevis Core)

Occupation: Realtor

Blog: CoreRealEstateGroup.blogspot.com (click to link)


Location: Oviedo, FL (Orlando)

Connect with me:

scan your SmartPhone here to be connected to the best Realtor on the block!!! To DOWNLOAD the app click here  -bjj

What major cities or landmarks are your city close to? Anytime I'm asked this question, Disney is the obvious answer and out-of-towners assume I venture there on a weekly basis. Truthfully, I could not recall the last time I made it to the "happiest place on earth" until we decided to go last weekend for my wife's birthday. After a morning full of the classic rides at the Magic Kingdom with surprisingly reasonable wait times, we hopped on the monorail for a quick trip over to Epcot to drink around the world. We began in the UK with a beer sampler, stopped in Germany for a Flight of Wines, and ended gracefully with Margaritas in Mexico. Disney is a good 45 minute drive from Oviedo and well worth the drive but expect it to be an all day adventure.

The University of Central Florida is also minutes from downtown Oviedo but somehow the 50,000 students who flock to the campus every fall and their brand new stadium do not spoil the quaint feel of small town Oviedo.

downtown Orlando from across the beautiful Lake Eola

How long have you lived there? I've lived in Oviedo since 1994, with the exception of my 4 year stint for college in Tallahassee (FSU).

If you moved here after living in a different city, where did you move from? I was born in Huntsville, Alabama and moved to Florida when my dad was transferred for work. All of our family is still in Huntsville so we have always visited regularly. Although Huntsville is not a small town, it has many small town tendencies and aspects. We found the same thing in Oviedo when we came here and it is really what has kept us here for so long. Although Oviedo doesn't have a lot to offer, in the way that a town like Orlando does, it does have a very quaint atmosphere.


For instance, Oviedo is known for chickens that roam freely throughout the downtown. There are bumper stickers all throughout Central Florida that say "I brake for Oviedo Chickens," and that's how our town is known. Growing up in a town like Oviedo, you do everything you can to find your way out. I did find my way out for four years and at some point during that time began to fall back in love with the town for all new reasons. I did move back and began to see it in an all new light. It has something for everybody because it is a small town that is so close to a major city and all of the tourist attractions that go along with that.

What's the climate like? Hot, humid, and muggy. Winter is cool and dry but short, and fall is nice but hurricanes are frequent. Spring is the time of year to come if you are going to the parks and summer is the time of year if you are coming for the beach.


Personally, I find cold weather miserable unless I'm in the Rockies skiing and to me. There are a few weeks in late January and February that are bitter cold, but it is not uncommon to venture over to the beach New Year's Day to enjoy the occasional warm sunshine. When it is cold however, I dream of the days of the scorching summer heat, but I seem to remember once again how HOT it can really get once summer rolls back around. Late summer, around July and August, we have temperatures over 100 degrees with 100% humidity. That's hot!

What are some of your favorite weekend things to do in your town? The best thing about this area is that there truly is something for everyone. For a relaxing Saturday morning, the Winter Park Farmers Market is a must. Just off Park Avenue there is a farmers market that draws vendors from all over Central Florida on a weekly basis. The streets get crowded so make sure to get there bright and early to beat the crowds and the heat.

Winter Park Farmer's Market

New Smyrna Beach is a local favorite and still remains a hidden treasure, unspoiled by the heavy tourist population that invades the Florida coastline every summer. New Smyrna's Flagler Avenue is just two short blocks from the beach and is truly a relaxed beach town. You can drive on the beach and stop on your way out of town to visit a long-time local favorite Frozen Gold for a sweet ice cream treat. You're guaranteed to enjoy yourself at the beach, the food, and the atmosphere.

For the sports fans (or those just looking for a good time), an Orlando Magic game (during season) is a must. The Magic have always had a great fan base, atmosphere, and venue, but all of that has increased as of late. The Magic have played in two straight Eastern Conference Championships and are putting their final touches on their new state-of-the-art Amway Center. The intensity is higher than it has ever been and the entire City of Orlando is ecstatic about the outlook of the team.

What is your town known for?

Free Roaming Chickens! And we love it.

What are some of your favorite restaurants in your city?

Oviedo:

Breakfast - Big John's Country Cookin' & Townhouse Restaurant (in a close second)


Lunch - Tijuana Flats


Dinner - Gino's Pizzeria, Froggers

Winter Park/Orlando:


Breakfast - Uncle Henry's Country Grill, First Watch


Lunch - Four Rivers Smokehouse


Dinner - Dexter's, Boston Fish House, & anything on Park Avenue in Winter Park

Tell us why you love your city? Oviedo is everything you could want from a small town within minutes of a larger city. It is close enough to the tourist attractions to venture often but not so close that it feels like one itself. Oviedo loves it's high school football team, sweet barbecue, quiet backroads, pick-your-own strawberries, and you'll never forget the smell of orange blossoms in bloom. On any given day you eat a $3 breakfast at Big John's and spend a bundle on dinner at one of the top tourist destinations in the world [Disney] or walk on the most famous beach in the planet [Daytona Beach]. Oviedo is a great place to live and vacation.

I would love the opportunity to answer any questions on Central Florida, and I want to thank my beautiful wife for her input and creativity on the post. Check out her blog as well describing her journey and tribulations as a third year medical student meganandjustinc.blogspot.com

Thanks Baily for the opportunity.

 --------------☮☮☮☮---------------

I have mad love for that guy and his wonderful wife.  It truly has been a wonderful journey together and the best part of about it is that it continues to bloom - I'm sure if you have been a reader this summer then you have witness me give my hats off and salute to them for being a true example of friendship, true love, and a well-balanced life. 

I hope they know how much they mean to me, and I am so glad that I got to feature him on my blog as part of TRAVEL TUESDAY!  The Core's are one of my favorite things about my quaint and charming little town in Oviedo and they are like me - they went away for school and found that pull of the ole heartstring that comes from the old stomping grounds.

I tease them that I am their friend that will be an "Old Maid" while they are the happy little newlywed couple.  They take care of me, though... and I know who to go to when I need to buy that hometown one-bedroom house ;)

THANKS JUSTIN!

And Megan, I hear you were "Editor In Chief" so thanks to you too!

Follow them both :)

peace and love

baily jordan jones

I love my hometown! :)

my trip with the boys

I've always had such a strong friendship with all my guy friends.

There has always been a 'catch 22' to it, though

because at some point we all realized we had

G R O W N  U P

They started falling in love with the girls...

I began these 384735897 seasons as 'The Bachelorette'.

But every once in a while, we all find ourselves  S I N G L E  again.

And lucky for me - the boys don't mind it if "Bear" is a part of man time.

A bunch of lazy boys with a hyper and excited kid-sister type to fetch beers?

Plus the beach! 

Don't mind if I do, they say!

I picked up Frank from his house in Oviedo and we hopped on I-4 West bound from Orlando to Tampa.  Frank and I always had a close friendship.  His main love was one of my best friends and he was best friends with my main love.  The four of us were best known as 'the Rat Pack' and that's just a whole other story in itself!  Those were some funny times!

Frank just relocated from Boston where he was in school and the starting center-fielder for Northeastern.  We were headed to Tampa Bay/Clearwater Beach area to visit Steven and Ryan.  We had plans to get up with Dana, who had just relocated to Tampa, but were unable to!  Word on the street is that she may be a little less single than us! ;)

Ryan and I grew up together and our families stayed close through soccer and community.  After we graduated he moved to Tampa to attend USF and now he's loving the big world from over on Florida's West coast - I don't blame him!

Steven also went to USF.  His dad was the Methodist minister in my hometown and Steven and I have known each other since middle school.  All of these boys and I have been a part of one another's life for quite some time.  Pastor Powers and Mrs. Powers relocated to Clearwater/Tampa area a couple of years ago.  So, now all of them are over there instead of at the homefront that we all knew for ourselves growing up!

We got to Steven's house and I changed into my bikini and we hit the beach.

There really is no way to describe how amazing it was to be sitting with those 3 boys on that beach.  Life has been hard for me lately, but I find a reason to smile and laugh everyday even if it takes all my strength to do so.  With this, though, I needed no other reason.

I looked up from my verrry relaxed state in my 'low-rider' beach chair and told Frank:

I'm genuinely HAPPY!

After lots of sun, and getting the wind knocked out of me in the water by the unusually powerful waves, we stopped for supplies to make vodka tonics back at Steven's house.

Then we played pool-basketball and I lost a record number of "H-O-R-S-E" games, and then the boys cooked Chilean Sea Bass and rice for dinner.  Apparently they were still hungry though because my fast-pace to get ready was still too long in man time!

We made it out the door and were off to see a jamband showcse in St. Pete Beach at this trendy little theater.  We were all pretty beat from the beach, Bud Lights, and sea bass!

We jammed out in the car ride back to Steven's to Widespread Panic and I was finally in a place where I was enjoying good friends, familiar faces, and good music all at once!

It's funny how much music connects you with people and then re-connects you with people.

I probably wouldn't have been on that trip if I hadn't started talking 'music' with Ryan when we got to spend a lot of time together at JC's wedding in June.  For the past several months, I had been spending all of my time with someone who didn't have a very passionate love for music.  It really has played a major role in defining a lot of my friendships.

Like Lauren.

And Kathleen.

And Travis.

and I like all of those people, a lot.  And I like that their playlist don't make me want to vom.

I had some pretty awesome chats with Frank, Steven, and Ryan all together and each separately.  It's funny, too, how much everything kinda stays the same once it's all done changing so drastically.  They kept me smiling and they made me realize that I'm loved unconditionally by them and they respect me for my individuality. 

Steven was one of the founders of the infamous "Bear" nickname. 

I absolutely DO NOT get called Baily by these boys, it's hilarious...

I think Ryan and Steven are glad that I am a little Grateful Dead dancing bear these days!

I hope they know how special they are to me.

Here's to you, boys! Y'all have always made me believe that my wings were made to fly :)

peace and love

-your "Bear"

a song called lochloosa and lochloosa sounds like my home.. for florida...

Lauren and Whitney bought me some suprises when they were in Seaside, Florida over the 4th of July Weekend. Supposedly there's this new record store there that I hear I would "just looove!" and they brought me a couple teases home. They bought me the Michael Jackson 'Thriller' album, Janis Joplin's *ORIGINAL PRESSED* 'I Got Them Ol' Kozmic Blues Again, Mama!' album, and the JJ Grey & Mofro 'The Choice Cuts' album.

The JJ Grey & Mofro album was one I had never heard before (the Michael Jackson and Janis Joplin albums came out obviously several decades ago so I've given my ears a listen a few times on each of those). But the 'The Choice Cuts' vinyl is already well-loved by me.

It got me through a pretty treturous week of studying for that killer Social Psychology exam. But I just got home from it, and I rocked it's gypsy soul. I really do like this lecture, and the material is enough basic theory that I can apply my previous knowledge to it, but it goes into depth in the social and cognitive domains of psychology and there's always a bold-fonted key term in the textbook that I don't know, so it's been pleasantly challenging. I stop there, and go no further, because the last thing I need is to say that and then completely _beep!_ myself when the next two exams are the pit-fall of ever being both pleasant and challenging and becomes HELL.

But I love this album because there is a lot of Florida heritage that are written in the lyrical component of this different style of music. It's swamp-folk and country-rock and a little bit of jazziness mixed with mountainy bluegrass strings. I can put it simpler, into two words: I DIG. (I have even facebook-statused some of the lyrics about my beloved swampy sunhine state!)

Here are some of the lyrics I just love and this new band of interest for me definitely gets a high five for singing some good tunes about the very misunderstood nature of my homestate...

FLORIDA!

Homesick but it's alright / Lochloosa is on my mind / She's on my mind /

I swear its 10,000 degrees in the shade / Lord have mercy knows - how much I love it /

Every mosquito every rattlesnake / Every cane break - everything //

Every alligator / Every black water swamp / Every freshwater spring - everything //

All we need is one more damn developer taking her heart out //

All we need is one more Mickey Mouse / Another golf course another country club /

 Another gated community // Lord I need her /

Lord I need her // And she's slipping away /

Homesick but it's alright / Lochloosa is on my mind /

She's on my mind / She's on my mind

-JJ Grey & Mofro 'Lochloosa'

guess what I DID recently that caused me to miss the good ol' days?? 

i t . i s . w h a t 

 m y . f r i e n d s . d i d

a l l . s u m m e r . l o n g 

w h i l e . g r o w i n g . up 

a couple weeks ago Chaceface and I went N a little ways up the interstate to Smith Lake and enjoyed a day of laying in the water on a raft. Not just any raft. The kind of raft that is considered some prime real-estate on Jones family vacations. A couple cold beers, my boyfran, and a weeks worth of stresses being deferred so that I could

.e n j o y.

.m y.

.S U N D A Y.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was really quite amazing and much, much, much needed!

I wigged.. and I mean WIGGED out when I jumped off that dock into dark and unknown waters and let me anxieties get the best of me as I splashed and cyclopzed around and up that ladder back onto the dock. Chace got quite the kick out of it and intead of saying,

"No, Baily... we're not in Florida - you can swim in lakes, no alligators!"

like a good and compassionate boyfriend would and instead said,

"I bet you someone bought a pet alligator like a dumbass and has let it go in this lake once it got too big and now it's breeding out of control and bringing alligators to my lake!"

Seriously? What.the.heck....???

Could he have not let the fact that I am the MOST-GULLABLE girl he's ever met in his entire life refrain him from saying anything, because by the time I could get me and my not-so-nineteen-year-old-body (complete w/my newest version of big-woman-curves) out of the water, I had already convinced myself that this lake-neighborhood is made up of a bunch of imbeciles with stray pet alligators, which are in a breeding frenzy right below me in

 my very unfamiliar and horribly uncomfortable area of unbeknownst dark lakewater.

I finally warmed up and we enjoyed our day hanging out on the

S H O R E L I N E

o f . a

f r e s h - w a t e r

L  A  K  E

a n d . n o t . h a v i n g

t o . w o r r y . a b o u t . a n y

A L L I G A T O R S

l i k e . w e . h a v e . t o

w o r r y . a b o u t . i n 

t H e . S u N s H i N e . s T a T e

Come see us in Alabama and Florida!

We've got pretty lakes, but it is our beaches that really need your everyone's help!!

The Gulf Oil Spill is staining our very beautiful and much-loved white sandy coastlines.

Our tourism is bruised.Our wildlife are in danger.

And the spirit of those perfect Southern summers still linger,

but it's hard to feel the free-spirited charm of 

O L D  - F L O R I D A  

because of the brutal reality that there is a spilled and spewing detrimental disaster sittingvery unwelcomed in her panhandle's harbors. Just above

the Land of Sunshine and in the Heart of Dixie is the

S T A T E   of   A L A B A M A

where all the well-mannered and good-souled folks are breaking their backs to help out their country, their state, and their fellow Southerner, despite the bitter reality of the unwanted spill of darkness that masks our waters and plagues our shorelines.

message me and tell me how you have contributed to the relief efforts in wake of the BP Oil Spill

i may (or may not) have a personalized

Expressive Journal: starter-kit that i put together to give-away

to ((someone)) who appreciates the things that I appreciate, like:

advocacy, peace, love,

unity & community-service

THIS IS DEFINITELY NOT A TYPICAL BLOGGER "GiVe AwAy" THAT YOU MAY SUSPECT

NOPE - NOT WHATSOEVER

BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE COOL TO HEAR OTHER'S STORIES OF

NATIONAL//or// STATE//or//COMMUNITY//  VOLUNTEER WORK!!!

*if no one wants to share their story by leaving me a comment, then I will use this time to be up on my soap-box  advocating service oriented and volunteer work  EVERYWHERE, especially with the Gulf Relief Efforts

BUT I THINK YOU WILL LIKE SOME OF MY  IDEAS FOR MY OWN LITTLE WAY TO (INEXPENSIVELY) GIVE BACK TO THE SOUTHERN-COASTAL ECOSYSTEM, THE LOVE AND COMFORT THAT THOSE SaLtY SHORES AND CrYsTaL cLeAr WATERS

 GAVE ME OVER THE YEARS ON THOSE CHERISHED FAMILY VACATIONS

AND ON ALL OF  THE PREPPY, COLLEGE, SPRING-BREAK WEEKS THAT  I SPENT IN

destin, florida . gulf shores, alabama . panama city beach, florida

and

 orange beach, alabama . pensacole, florida . marco island, florida

"at the Bama Breeze, you're one of our own down here, you never drink alone down here, good God I feel at home down here." -Jimmy Buffett's ode to The FloraBama

Oh ya, P.S. I think everyone should go see "GROWN UPS"

because it reminds me of how awesome those summer weeks were when my family

(along with any other family or families we were summer-vacay-ing with)

w o u l d . p u t . t h e . w o r d

F  U  N

☮

i  n t o . t h e . w o r d 

d  y  s  F  U  N  c  t  i  o  n  a  l

will write more on my next study-break!

it helps me vent... thank God!

☮Peace ☮

and

Love

 - bjj -