A few years ago when we did not have enough water to take Okeechobee across Florida, we went through the Keys; finding a great gallery that had this photo. I was intrigued as I didn't recall seeing black and white underwater photos before. This photo greets me every morning as it hangs in our master stateroom, reminding us that we need to take care of our friends in the sea and be stewards to our environment. The plaque that was placed underwater in an area frequented by Manatees reads: Life must become more than the wants and needs of humans, we are not on this planet alone. If the Manatee goes into extinction because the needs of humans became more important, then we will have taken another step backward toward our own demise. Extinction is forever and for all. Dr. Harvey Barnett. What makes this picture especially poignant is the fact that this very much alive Manatee is gazing down in sadness it seems at the spot where a bronze manatee was soldered onto this plaque at the top, but was pried off by....of course... a human.
This cloud of "fog" rolled into The Marina at Emerald Bay this morning. We were told later that the airport had closed due to the grit and dirt that came with it from Haiti. It kept us from leaving this morning, but also reminded us that we needed to open our checkbooks again to the Haiti relief fund, and thank God for our blessings.
Speaking of blessing....Look who came to dinner? Bob and I took the afternoon to really run the Yamaha on the tender to be sure it was running smoothly prior to heading out for a few days, we stopped at a reef that would normally be under breaking waves, but with a calm day we had fabulous clarity and calm seas over the reef to peek into those crevices only to be greeted by this guy, not only a beautiful sight but mighty tasty too! Homemade bread, homemade blue cheese dressing over a lettuce wedge and grilled pineapple accompanied him to our table. Yes, we give thanks!
A few years ago when we did not have enough water to take Okeechobee across Florida, we went through the Keys; finding a great gallery that had this photo. I was intrigued as I didn't recall seeing black and white underwater photos before. This photo greets me every morning as it hangs in our master stateroom, reminding us that we need to take care of our friends in the sea and be stewards to our environment. The plaque that was placed underwater in an area frequented by Manatees reads: Life must become more than the wants and needs of humans, we are not on this planet alone. If the Manatee goes into extinction because the needs of humans became more important, then we will have taken another step backward toward our own demise. Extinction is forever and for all. Dr. Harvey Barnett. What makes this picture especially poignant is the fact that this very much alive Manatee is gazing down in sadness it seems at the spot where a bronze manatee was soldered onto this plaque at the top, but was pried off by....of course... a human.
This cloud of "fog" rolled into The Marina at Emerald Bay this morning. We were told later that the airport had closed due to the grit and dirt that came with it from Haiti. It kept us from leaving this morning, but also reminded us that we needed to open our checkbooks again to the Haiti relief fund, and thank God for our blessings. 
Speaking of blessing....Look who came to dinner? Bob and I took the afternoon to really run the Yamaha on the tender to be sure it was running smoothly prior to heading out for a few days, we stopped at a reef that would normally be under breaking waves, but with a calm day we had fabulous clarity and calm seas over the reef to peek into those crevices only to be greeted by this guy, not only a beautiful sight but mighty tasty too! Homemade bread, homemade blue cheese dressing over a lettuce wedge and grilled pineapple accompanied him to our table. Yes, we give thanks!
