Back to the Beach

We attended our friend's memorial service which began with many special memories shared about her life and concluded with an uplifting rendition of "When the Saints Go Marching In" performed by a three-piece brass band.   She left us, just as she lived her life, "in style'!

With time remaining on our rental at Ft. Morgan we invited family members to take the keys to the house and head to the beach for the upcoming long holiday weekend.  Naturally, we had ulterior motives...we would join them on Sunday afternoon and play on the beach with one of the cutest little girls we know.   Quality beach time on Sunday and a beach photo shoot on Monday morning were opportunities to create special memories....probably more for us than for her.

On Tuesday evening, we attended our first Frank Brown Songwriter's Festival event at Rhythm and Ribs.  We heard 4 Norwegians singing American country and they were "ok".    On Wednesday evening, we listened to Christian and Durand, two Lisas that were as comical as they were talented.  On Thursday, we headed back to The Tin Top for some good food and more music.  On Friday night, we returned to The Frog Pond to once again hear Grayson Capps and Mary Gauthier. 

Saturday morning, we once again packed the car, the dog, and returned home.   A month on the gulf, minus 4 days.....not too shabby!

Frog Pond and Returning Home

This past Sunday afternoon, we had the pleasure of attending a local private concert at the Frog Pond at Blue Moon Farm.  The owner, Cathe, has a wonderful, eclectic farm and invites the very best songwriters from this area to entertain approximately 50 guests.  Everyone was encouraged to bring a dish for the community table.  She graciously opened her home to strangers and we enjoyed listening to Grayson Capps, Lisa Carver, John Joiner, and Chelley Tackett sing their original songs.  The venue is open to guests that Cathe Steele either knows or those, like us, that emailed her and asked if we could attend... and if you show up and your name is not on the guest list, you'll be turned away.  But, you can easily be included on the guest list by friending Frog Pond on Facebook or emailing Cathe.  We were surprised to find out that Muscle Shoals doesn't have the only talent in Alabama!

Three weeks on the gulf coast; what's not to love?  Daily walks on the beach, traveling with our dog and mother, beautiful fall days, and catching up on our reading.  We hate to leave, but upon hearing of the passing of a dear friend, we need to be home to attend her memorial service.   RIP Doodle!

Blue Angels 11/2/2012

This morning we drove about an hour from Ft. Morgan to NAS Pensacola for this year's last performance by the Blue Angels precision flight team.  We were joined by about 100,000 of our closest friends.  But, the area is so large that we didn't feel squashed.  The show included several other acrobatic flights and parachuting by all branches of the military.  There were dozens of vendors and many opportunities to enlist in the military.  After the show we visited the Naval Air Museum which is well worth a visit.

I couldn't help but wonder, with the current state of our economy, are these luxuries something that we need to rethink?   Can we actually justify this expensive recruiting tool?  Either way, we enjoyed the show!

We stopped by a local oyster bar near Perdido Bridge for an early dinner before returning to Ft. Morgan for the evening.

Orange Beach by Water 10/24/2012

We've been to the Gulf Shores area many times, but we've never had the opportunity to go sightseeing by water.  Our friends Dick and Barbara invited us to take a boat ride on the inland waters and to have lunch at a local watering hole, Pirates Cove.  We had a great tour and saw a different perspective of the Orange Beach area;  and the cheeseburger was great at Pirates Cove.  Many thanks to our friends and tour guides. It was a high point of our trip.