Gulf Day #1
“Yeah now the sun goes slidin’ ‘cross the water. Sailboats they go searchin’ for the breeze. Salty air ain’t thin, it’ll stick right to your skin and makes you feel fine.” -Tin Cup Chalice, Jimmy Buffett.
Today (Monday), I drove forever across the great state of Georgia. Of the six hours I was in the car, 5 were spent on two-lane highways. If I had a case of Coors in the trunk, it would have been a scene right out of Smokey and the Bandit. I was west bound and down, loaded up and trucking. I even drove over Big Alligator Creek, which looked like a great place to dump a body and I sure never wanted to find myself there.
During this time, I made a few discoveries:
1) There are only a few city names, and Americans just reuse them.. There’s Hoboken, GA, Greenville, GA, and Greensboro, FL just to name a few. I just love creativity.
2) My GPS, (recently named Carmen), is smarter than I am. Not only did she direct me down the most obscure roads I have ever traveled, but she knew of the time difference. After departing from Savannah, my ETA was 17:00. I thought to myself, hey, 5 hours, that’s not too bad. At roughly 15:30 I realized there was no way I was going to make it and that’s when it hit me, she was saying 17:00 Central time. Technology always amazes me. They just don’t dance like Carmen no more.
When I arrived, I had time to kill, so I headed straight to the Gulf. That’s when I discovered something, I have a nautical soul. There’s a certain connection I have with the sea, always have. I happened to arrive at sunset, and you’ve seen the pictures already. I locked eyes with Mother, Mother Ocean and felt right at home. Later in the day, I received an email from my Grandmother who told me that my Great-grandmother was born in Tampa. I already knew my Grandmother had lived in Beaufort, SC growing up, so the SEA is in my DNA. It explains a lot.
