Vacation Recap Continued

Tuesday, June 19th - Thursday, June 21st: For most of Tuesday and part of Wednesday it stormed. Which sucks when you're on an island where the only thing to do is swim and soak up sun. Hoop and I watched from the deck as the clouds blew in. Within seconds we were shivering from the cold. The drop in temperature was immediate. Moments before, we'd been sweating in our suits and wishing for a breeze. It was eerie. Then the wind picked up. Before we could blink, the heavy plastic table and chairs went flipping into the guardrail. Debris from the beach somersaulted down the road and people went running for cover. The force of that little storm made us realize how vulnerable the island inhabitants really were. When Katrina visited two years ago, they didn't have a chance in hell.

Before Katrina:


After:


Fortunately, this was just a little storm. By Wednesday afternoon it was bright and sunny again. Hoop and I took advantage of the reprieve and headed for the local bird sanctuary. I readied my camera, hoping for some photo ops of exotic birds. What we got were a bunch of crows and a surprised turtle. On the drive out, just as I was complaining about the state of the place, Hoop hit a bird. "Oh great!" He said. "That was probably the only rare bird they had!" We got out to inspect the damage, but the bird was gone. So we hauled ass back to the house before any of the locals noticed. Can you see the headlines? "Tourists killed by lynch mob after getting involved in a hit and run with Dauphin Island's favorite bird." I'm not fucking dying that way.

Later that day we made a trip to the Estuarium.

Hoop: So, what's in this place?
Worker: Fish.
Tink: Are there dolphins?
Worker: No.
Tink: No dolphins? How about turtles?
Worker: No.
Hoop: How much does it cost to get in?
Tink: Seven bucks each.
Hoop: Seven bucks!
Worker: *Rolls eyes*
Hoop: And all you have here is fish?
Tink: *Reads Sign* It looks like they just showcase the fish from this area.
Hoop: Screw that. Let's just go to the beach and look at them for FREE.

The rest of the vacation (Friday through Sunday) was spent celebrating Hoop's Mom's birthday, then my Grandmother's, and then painting another room in the house. If it weren't for Hoop's motivation to get the house completed before our next vacation in August, I think I'd procrastinate finishing it until we're ready to move again. I've realize something... I hate painting. I hate having to prime the baseboards twice. I hate spending five hours on three doorframes because the damn things have six sides apiece. Most of all, I detest having to take a Brillo sponge with me into the shower when I'm done. For some odd reason, no matter what I'm wearing, I will get paint on every limb of my body. Once I managed to cover a foot, an elbow, and part of my forehead... And I was just touching up.

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