Friday & Saturday

How can 3.5 hours seem longer than 8.5?  When you're bursting at the seams to get to your destination! We left Friday morning around 11:30am by the time we got lunch and everything, and we drove to Mebane, North Carolina where we had reserved a hotel room for the night.  Craig and the girls went swimming in the nice outdoor pool while I walked on the treadmill (in my flip-flops) in the exercise room.  We spent a restless night before setting off again in the morning to finish our journey to the ocean.

We drove into Oak Island without glimpsing the ocean.  We drove to our condos, still without seeing the ocean.  There are large dunes between the condos and the sea.  Finally we decided to see if we could check in early.  Thankfully, we could!  So we set off for our condo.

As Craig pulled into the parking place under the condos, we all raced out of the car to see who could get upstairs first.  Like little children, we pushed past each other, all trying to be the first to see the ocean.  And it was awesome!

Hurricane Bill had flirted with the idea of coming ashore in the Carolinas and wreaking whatever damage he could, but, at the last minute, he veered off into the Atlantic, where he has stayed.  We missed the worst of him, by far, but we can still feel his effects here.  The surf is very high, with 10 foot waves crashing onto the beach.  There is a dangerous rip current, so we are pretty much staying out of the water.  But the sea is magnificent even in its unsettled moods.

Our balcony is right next to the top of the dunes, and we look through yaupon trees (a type of holly) to see the beach.  The boardwalk to the beach is just a short walk away, and right in front of our condo, on the beach, is a turtle's nest.  We are wondering if we might get to see them hatch while we're here!

The beach is lovely, mostly empty and clean.  This is what I wanted—peace and quiet, lovely views, wild ocean.

We got to the beach as quickly as possible yesterday afternoon.  Although it was hot and humid elsewhere, on the beach it felt wonderful.  The gulls soared around us; the pelicans seemed to glide right out of prehistoric times, looking for all the world like miniature pterodactyls.  We laughed at the little sandpiper that scooted across the sand on tiny legs that were a blur, darting in and out of the rough surf.

We dug for clams, spotting the burbling holes left behind after the waves went out.  Once we dug one up, we'd wait and watch to see him cautiously open his shell, stick out his foot, and begin burrowing down into the sand again.  He would be gone in an instant, his excurrent siphon spitting at us as he went.

Early in the evening, we went back down to the beach, using my booklight as our guide.  Right away we spotted a very large ghost crab who stared at us for a long time before zooming off sideways into the darkness.  One blink, and he was gone.  We found a giant cricket and checked on the turtle nests.  The light from the lighthouse flashed over us again and again, but we also saw flashes of lightning on the far-off horizon.  The wild waves crashed loudly in our ears, and we waded cautiously into the new pools created from the incoming tide.

Later, I went down to the beach alone to check the nests one more time and to see the stars.  That night, even with the windows and doors closed, the loud roar of the ocean was a wild thing outside, and it made me feel small and vulnerable.

Sunday

Sunday dawned grey and moody, after a night of lightning and heavy rain.  Soon though, the clouds burned away and the sun came out.  The surf was still rough but seemed less than yesterday.  I had thought about going to an outdoor service but decided to sleep in and rest.  I commune best with God through nature, so I expect He and I will be doing a lot of communing this week.

The day ended up hot, sunny, and humid.  We drove to a local bait shop and bought the stuff to go crabbing—chicken necks, twine, and crab net.  Then we drove to a small park on an inlet off the intracoastal waterway.  Standing on the pier in the brutal sunshine wasn't too fun, but pulling up crabs was!  It wasn't long before Sarah pulled up a huge blue crab.  Craig soon pulled up a tiny blue crab that slipped out of the net.  They didn't get too many more than that, and Katie and I dodged the laughing gulls that circled around us hoping for a piece of chicken neck or some bait from the people fishing next to us.  It was a family of gulls, with bold juveniles and a scolding adult.

We couldn't stand the heat for long, so we left sooner than Craig wanted.  We drove to the Oak Island Nature Center.  It was a nice park area, and I regretted not getting up for the church service.  (It was held there that morning.)  We had a pleasant time visiting the nature center where John the naturalist filled us in on the wildlife in the center.  Several of the animals were rehabilitated wildlife, including the boat-tailed grackle who had been found injured, Bob, the blue jay, who was plucked from his nest as a baby and had his eye pecked out by a crow, a  young purple martin, and a juvenile cardinal who was rescued, literally, from the jaws of death, i.e., a cat.

We saw the sugar gliders, the chinchilla, the rat, and the giant spider under the nature center who was just an added “bonus.”  John was weird in that typical naturalist who spends too much time alone kind of way, but, of course, I liked him.  (I could so be that person!  Or, er, maybe I already am...)  Anyway, I impressed John by answering one of his questions correctly.  Was it a question about nature?  About birds?  No.  He asked, “What's the world's most perfect food?”  (He asked this in relation to something he was about to feed to Miss Lucy, the rat.)  I jokingly said, “Blueberries.”  Why?  I have no idea, other than I know how much Mickey likes them!  But he about fell over; he was getting part of a blueberry muffin for the rat.  He was so impressed he let Sarah pick out a souvenir.

We left the nature center and headed to the Oak Island Ocean Education Center where John told us we'd find Debbie who could tell us about the turtle nests.  We found out the nest by our condo won't hatch till October.  Bummer!  We all watched a cheesy National Geographic movie about loggerhead sea turtles, but it was informative.  Sarah made a pet rock, and then Debbie started asking about school.  When we told her we homeschooled, she began gushing about how wonderful that was, what a great thing it was that we were doing, what great parents we were and what great kids we'd have, how some parents just try to drop their kids off at the center and leave.  Honestly, she went on and on, and then got tears in her eyes.  It was so surprising, but it was very encouraging!  I'm used to all kinds of reactions when people find out we homeschool, but this one caught me off guard.

All in all, it was a nice afternoon.  We came back to the condo, grabbed some snacks, and then went to the pool.  We didn't spend too long at the pool; I came back earlier than the others to start cooking dinner, which required some creative thinking.  I planned on baking the chicken, but there were no pans for baking.  So I had to cook them on the stovetop, but I didn't have a skillet!  Ugh!  I ended up cooking them on a griddle and in a large saucepan.  I cooked the green beans in a tiny skillet, and made the potatoes in a small saucepan.  Fun!  All turned out well in the end.

After dinner, we went down to the beach and played in the waves that were rough again.  It was so much fun!  It was that magical time of the evening when the light is just right—all golden and warm—from the sun that would be setting soon.

Monday

Monday was another laid-back day.  Craig and Sarah have been walking in the morning while Katie and I wake up.  We went to the pool for a while.  I read while they swam.  I'm reading a book by Henri Nouwen that is fantastic.  God is really speaking to me, just pouring out beauty on me that is healing my heart.

Anyway, we did a little touristy shopping that afternoon, getting some postcards and things for the beach.  We also got shaved ice and found the tiny post office.  We ate barbecue for dinner and then went down to the beach.

We played in the surf and built sandcastles.  It was a bit of a contest.  Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your viewpoint), I had a lot of experience building sandcastles in my sandbox as a child. I think mine was the most classically pleasing, but Craig's and Katie's were interesting.  It was more a contest to see whose would last the longest against the incoming tide.  Katie's was destroyed first.  Mine was second, and Craig's was last, although the part that survived on Craig's was the addition I put on.  Just saying.

After the beach, we all swam for a bit in the pool and then headed in for the night.  We played a card game before heading to bed.

Tuesday

Tuesday, we were all a little slow to get moving or motivated and were, possibly, a little grumpy.  Craig and the girls eventually went swimming in the pool for a while.  I spent my customary time sitting on the balcony, reflecting, reading, ocean-watching, bird-watching, etc.  Then I did some cleaning. 

In the afternoon, we drove to Southport to get some things at Wal-mart.  We ended up going into downtown Southport, visiting the Welcome Center, and then going on a walking tour.  We went to Waterfront Park, where we watched the river traffic entering the Cape Fear River.  There was a memorial to the crew of a ship that was torpedoed there by the Germans during WWII.  (Who knew?)  And we saw the Garrison House that was the leftover from Ft. Johnston built by the British in 1745.  I think it was important during the Civil War, too.  (So we hit WWII, the Revolutionary War, and the Civil War in one trip!  Nearby Ft. Caswell was involved in the Civil War, as well.  Evidently, it was taken captive before Ft. Sumter was, but the guy in charge ordered it given back.  If you can't tell, I'm not much of a war buff.) 

We also saw the Indian Trail Tree which is a very old (800 years!) live oak tree.  The story is that the Indians who lived in the area bent the tree as a sapling to serve as a trail marker.

We did a bit of shopping in Southport, as well, which is charming and reminds me of Waynesville, with all of its antique shops.  Sarah and I got two old milk bottles, and we got a small souvenir for my mom.  We finished our Southport visit with a great dinner at the Fishy Fishy Cafe; we ate outside on the dock, overlooking the waterway toward Caswell Beach.

To end the night, we spent some time on the beach, wading in the surf, digging up clams, looking for crabs, and collecting seashells.  It was a gorgeous sunset and a beautiful, warm night.

Wednesday

On Wednesday morning, Craig and Sarah went crabbing again.  They had a good time, with Sarah catching some very large crabs and even some shrimp.  After lunch, we went on a tour of the Caswell Beach Lighthouse.  Of course, I thought it was interesting; I'm not sure about the others.

Let's see...some facts about the lighthouse.  It has the second brightest light in the world; it was designed by an expert silo builder (and you can tell).  It was poured as one continuous cement pour, 4 feet at a time, to a height of 169 feet (or something like that).  The three colors—white, grey, and dark brown—were directly put into the cement.  (IOW, it's not painted on.)  The glass top of the lighthouse was flown into place by Marine helicopters in 1958.

Anyway, we climbed the first flight of steps inside the lighthouse.  There we could see the inner workings, including the network of ship's ladders that rose to the tip-top, where the lights and mirrors rotated around in a never-ending pattern of 4 flashes in 10 seconds.  (I learned that each lighthouse in a given area—a large given area, like from Florida to North Carolina—has a distinct light pattern.  It makes perfect sense, of course, but I had never thought about it before.)

From there, we took a tour of the Coast Guard station.  This was not something that thrilled Katie, but Sarah was a good sport about it.  (It was quite hot outside.)  Again, I thought it was interesting.  If I had gone into the Armed Forces, I would've picked the Coast Guard.  (You know, if I could swim or do any kind of physical exercise, really.  Or see more than 3 inches without corrective lenses.)

But, anyway, we stopped torturing the girls after the Coast Guard station, going back to the condo to let them swim in the pool.  I made dinner while they were gone and enjoyed some more quiet time.  It was back to our pattern of pool --> dinner --> beach.  On the beach that evening, we all worked together to build a fairly impressive sandcastle.  It was fun!

Then we went for ice cream, which was good and fun.  (I got a chocolate yogurt milkshake with hazelnut flavor.  I'm trying to behave with my food intake. Anyway, it was really good.)  We took our treats to the pier and walked out into the darkness, dizzingly high above the black ocean.  It was very cool!  The moonlight on the water was amazingly beautiful.  We took a short stroll on the beach next to the pier; we had seen a cat on the sand, but he ran as soon as we got close.  But we did get to see a large ghost crab who was munching on the remains of a large, gutted fish that had obviously been tossed over the pier.

Thursday

Thursday morning, Craig and Sarah went for a walk on the beach again.  We are all having a hard time deciding when to start our day and deciding what to do.  Finally, I suggested that we drive to Southport, catch the ferry to Fort Fisher on Pleasure Island (not making that up), and visit the Civil War fort.  So we finally got ourselves in gear and headed out.  I checked the ferry schedule.  The next ferry left at 1pm; it was 12:40, and we were still in Oak Island.  So it was a bit of a race to find where we needed to go and make the ferry.  We paid our toll and got into line at 12:55pm.

I've always loved ferry rides, probably because I associate them with going to Kelley's Island in Lake Erie.  I love the sound of the car on the ramp, and I like the feel of the boat under my feet.  I like to watch the water rushing by.  Katie was too young to remember the last time she took the ferry to Kelley's Island.  (She was a baby.)  And Sarah has never been on a ferry.  (The boat at Disney World does not count.)  This ferry ride came complete with laughing gulls and grackles who obviously knew the game—that is, people equal food.  It was a little scary, actually, to stand up on the top deck with all of the birds wheeling through the air above you.  I kept expecting to get splatted with gull poop at any moment.  Somehow, we avoided disaster.

It was an enjoyable ride through the Intracoastal Waterway/Cape Fear River.  Once we disembarked, we drove to Fort Fisher.  Whew.  It was really hot today!  We walked around the visitors' center, listened to the narrator talk about the major battle fought there during the Civil War while we watched the red, white, and blue lights flash on and off on the giant model of the fort and surrounding island and sea.  Later, we quickly walked the outdoor trail.  Despite the intense heat and humidity, it was an interesting walk.  Off in the distance, we could see two giant cranes for unloading ship cargo, the nuclear power plant, as well as some lovely natural features, including wetlands and a crowd of egrets and herons.  We also saw a bunch of tiny crabs in the dry mudflats beneath the fort walls.

I think we saw Katie have a small amount of fun when we climbed to the top of the fortress wall and climbed on top of the cannon.  Overall, it was interesting.  I'm not sure I'd say that it was fun.  I don't know.  I feel weird saying a place like that is “fun” when thousands of men died there (4000 to be more exact).  It was definitely interesting, though, especially for us Ohioans who don't really have these types of Civil War battlegrounds or sites to visit.  This was a war fought mostly in the South, and its history seems closer somehow to the Southerners.

We tossed around the idea of visiting the aquarium which is close by, but we opted to catch the 3pm ferry and head back to Southport.  After a short stop at a shop in Southport, we drove back to the condo, and I took the girls to the pool while Craig cooked dinner.  Again, after dinner, we went down to the beach.  I collected shells (and trash); we all waded.  Craig and Katie did some wave riding, and Sarah built sandcastles.  Later, we buried Craig in the sand.  I stayed behind on the beach while they went to the pool.

It was a great night on the beach.  The sky was a pearly grey that perfectly mirrored the ocean below.  Sky and sea and sand melded into one.  The pelicans were flying low over the waves, occasionally climbing to gain altitude and then turning to dive-bomb into the sea.  Terns flew by in a small group.  Gulls cried, juveniles chasing after adults.  The two sandpipers—one tiny and one large—that have been defying my attempts to positively identify them all week ventured quite close to me, as I was sitting very still.  (I think they are a semipalmated and pectoral sandpiper, respectively, but I can't be entirely sure.)

And that was a peaceful way to end a nice day.

Friday

Friday was our last day, really; we chose to spend it at the beach and the pool.  Unfortunately, Tropical Storm Danny sort of curtailed our beach and pool plans.  We did get a bit of surf time in, but then we could see the storms rolling in. 

The rain really wasn't that annoying, though.  I walked along the beach for quite a while, till I saw lightning in the distance.  I was saying goodbye to the ocean, knowing how much I would miss it and miss this time we had spent here.  But lightning tends to cut short sad goodbyes, and, about that time, Craig and the girls got out of the pool.  Time to go.

We finished up our souvenir shopping that rainy afternoon, and then drove back to Southport for dinner.  This time, we opted to try Loco Jo's, which lived up to its name!  I wanted to sit outside because the inside was freezing cold.  Well, at the table next to us, we had Southport's local crazy girl.  She proceeded to talk to us through most of dinner before wandering off.  Perhaps she was the Loco Jo?

Anyway, we went back to the condo for awhile to clean some more before running out for ice cream from Frosty's.  (The girls have declared it the best ice cream in Oak Island; this is ignoring the fact that  it's the only ice cream they had in Oak Island, excluding the Breyer's half gallons I picked up at Food Lion.)  Sarah watched the Wizards of Waverly Place movie while Craig and I cleaned.  I won't say that Katie watched the movie, because that might make her seem uncool.  But she did sit on the couch in front of the TV.

Part of the deal with the condo was that we had to clean it up before leaving.  Personally, I think we left it cleaner than we got it (which was pretty clean).  The only thing I couldn't get clean was the ceramic stovetop.  We had to supply the cleaning agents in addition to cleaning, but I'll be darned if I'm going to go buy some specialty cleaning thing for ceramic stoves that is expensive and I won't use anywhere else!  You know, if you have a specialty item in your condo, then I think you should supply the necessary cleaning agents.  Just saying.  But if we get dinked for it, then I'll regret it.  (And we didn't have internet access, so I couldn't get online to see if there was something else I could use.)

Anyway, we had the most spectacular,  fiercest lightning storm last night.  It was easily the craziest storm I've ever seen.  Lightning bolts were streaking down into the ocean.  Some were so close they turned the night pink (and the thunderclap so loud it was deafening).  The thunder rolled around us from all directions.  With so few structures to bounce off of, it seemed to come from every direction.  Some strikes were so bright, you could see the whole ocean lit up and the angry waves uncurling in a long line down the beach.  The rain came down in heavy sheets obscuring the large ship anchored on the horizon.  (We could normally see its lights—a steady beacon on the dark ocean.)

I could hear others in nearby condos exclaiming over the powerful lightning, too.  What a magnificent display of God's power!  Nothing makes you feel quite so puny and vulnerable as giant bolts of lightning piercing the black sea.  After a time, though, I could see a very unusual sight.  Even though it was still raining and storming from my vantage point, I could see the water gleaming off to the west.  The moon was shining on the ocean, although the sky was still black and angry from where I stood.  It was a powerful way to end the night.

And early to rise this morning with last minute packing and cleaning as we went.  We were on the road by 9:45 and are now about 2 hours from home, drafting a semi on a back highway in West Virginia.  A beautiful sunset waited for us as we crossed the Ohio River.  Almost home!