Thursday, 25 June 2009
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AT HOME, WORK, AND PLAY
A Picture from Home...
Flowering BromeliadA picture from work....
A most curious navigation aid. Actually, the smiley-face
marks the location of a sturdy cleat to which we can tie
off the tow while we wait weather, or if there is a long
delay at Industrial Locks. The bushes and a subsequently
laid rock revetment have hidden the cleat from view,
and an enterprising deckhand painted the ubiquitous
symbol years ago. Nowadays the face gets updated
by persons unknown whenever it starts to fade.And that leaves playtime pics
No Country For Trepid Men
Last Saturday, five of us dared the the tepid waters of Depot Creek, in search of Indian relics at a dig abandoned by the University of Florida. The average age of our intrepid crew was 56. The heat index was close to double that figure on the Farenheit scale.
Ken, one of our intrepid boatmen The soul of intrepidity
Ron, our other boatswain, who tends to the high end of the I-I (Intrepidity Index), was partnered with Ross, the least trepid of us all
Making landfall. Supposedly, there is an Indian mound several hundred yards inland.
We are here to ascertain, as intrepidly as possible, the veracity of said statement.
Ken bravely volunteered to stay behind to guard the boats and Lou's bottle of Rebel Yell.
Into the Heart of Darkitude we go.The mound itself was a silly place, not intrepid-worthy at all. It was 130 yards long by 50-60 feet wide, consisting of clam and mussel shells, maybe 5 feet higher than the surrounding swamp. Ross found the only Indian relic, a piece of pottery with intersecting horizontal and vertical lines etched into it prior to being fired. A foresting operation had been based on the mound in years past, and any archaeological value the site may have once had was gone.
At the de-briefing, it was agreed that
1) This dig was abandoned for good reasons,
2) It was still a fun trip and,
3) Rebel Yell is one fine Kentucky Bourbon; drunk straight from the bottle, it goes down smooth, is easy on the throat, with no afterburn.
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Comments (18)
I've never seen an Indian burial site that was the least bit interesting, and that's undoubtedly why the site was abandoned by U of F. But then the whole point of this trip wasn't the site itself but the camaraderie of the group...and that you achieved, didn't you? You're writing style makes me laugh...most entertaining.
That flower is beautiful.
I am going to have to look for that Rebel Yell.
@joiwinds - My right or yours?
@AprilsPlace - You nailed it. No one went home thinking it was less than a successful venture.
@godfatherofgreenbay - And the more you drink, the smoother it gets. Go figure
Sounds a lot like the Willie Nelson brand Old Whiskey River
interesting jaunt, glad you kept the camera dry, and handed it off to a boat-swain for one shot. joi is right.
Speaking of unfamiliar words, am I the only one who needs to keep his finger on the usage "Fear and Trepidation" to remember we're talking 'un-scared' here. Actually, I'm still not sure if it's an active or passive descriptor; might depend on blood-alcohol level.
I did some intensive research before writing this, so I can assure you that I was using the word 'intrepid' as a modifier meaning 'not even a little trepid'.
Or was that tensive research? Either way, I wish that I had thought to find a way to work 'trepidation' into the account. Wasn't very sipid of me, I must admit.
I took the self-portrait. One of the advantages to having long chimp-like arms, but with opposable thumbs.
I just found out today that we were on private land, and the owner is not shy about shooting at trespassers. Had he shown up, the intrepidity level might have needed re-calibrating downward a notch or two.
@MelFamy - There's more than just the long arm holding the lens at play though: I have maybe a hundred failed self-potrait attempts. They all show the same worried 'convict' trying to stare into the lens. I may recruit a chimp.
I went to UF for 7 years.
Only after reading this did I know the full story of the indian mound, and I was there! Lou found out from another of our intrepid crew that the posts and beams were from platforms for honey bee hives; my guess is tupelo honey. Nice photos. You would never know that the oldest of us is on Social Security. My hat blew off just after the picture was taken, only thing left as evidence of our presence.
@ItsWhatEyeKnow - You must have really liked it! I used to party at UF on a regular basis (non-credit). Gainesville is a really cool town, or was back in the day.
@lollypip - We simply must do it again, old chap. I'd like to go up the Choctawhatchee, look for Ivory-Billed Woodpeckers.
Sounds like a fun trip
@Lovegrove - I have lived in Florida for 40 years, and it still amazes me how much wilderness is left in the state.
The last photo has that " last known sighting of the exploration party ' look to it.
@earlybirdie_chewingworms - Sorry I did not reply sooner. I got a laugh when I read your comment. Hope all is going well where the cyclones rotate clockwise.
@MelFamy - everything okay here...