Last day on the beach

Starting to pack up and disengage from this beautiful spot. If this month on Saint Simons Island is in any way a foretelling of what is to come, we can't wait. It has been relaxing, refreshing and revealing. ( how's that for alliteration Katie, my English major daughter...)

The tide was dead low at Coast Guard Beach. You can walk a half mile out on the sand bars. It's feels like you are walking on the water and sandpipers take full advantage to feed on the stranded crustaceans. Some of the prehistoric horseshoe crabs are monstrous. The dogs romp and race around excitedly chasing birds.

I always bring along my little Panasonic transistor radio ("Panasonic is the best...") so we can groove on the beach. Connie dances on the sandbars like nobody is watching... and nobody is. The pumpkin seemed so out of place, but made for a nice photo op.

Joe and I shared his radio over the years. I took it to Snow Pond and it survived a dunking. I brought it back to him at the VA (where it was labeled). Now it's posing with a pumpkin. Joe believed in buying "the best". He was the best, not perfect, just the best.

His absence at Thanksgiving ( and Christmas, New Years, Super Bowl, etc.) will be poignant for my extended Murphy family this year. They are a great family and I'm proud to be among them. Tina's courage is an inspiration.

OK, time to pack the Thule. Tim, I am so thankful that you set me up with my "turtle". Looks wicked shaahp...

editors note from Sam and Lu: Here we go again! Hope we're as big a hit in Naples as we have been here. Life is good.

that'll do,
Sam n' Lu

It's the people...

Delightful evening with new friends Jay and Mimi. Shrimp parmigiana gumbo (wow...) at Jay's (awesome beach house) with Scott and Dianne. Sam and Lu enjoyed Shorty, a dachshund, hound mix.

We are getting ready to hit the road soon heading for our next destination ( Naples Florida) for Christmas. Katie's coming down to visit. So is Rosie. And we will be visiting Aunt Bev/Uncle Ray and Art/Carol who live nearby.

Ryan told us before we left Maine that his cross country travel experience became all about the people he met and visited along the way. So true.

Thanksgiving on St. Simons

65 degrees and mild winds on Thursday afternoon. East Beach was busy with activity. Families walking off the turkey and sweet "pahtaaytas", lots of dogs of every kind (even another Malteese... General Lee was his name. He was really attracted to Lulu. Sam was having none of that...), football games, elaborate kites.

As we walked the beach we talked about things for which we are thankful. Our children, our families and friends, our health, each other, our adventure, this beautiful country, our dogs...

After the sun set, we sat on a bluff at Jo's cottage and toasted the full moon. Life seemed seamless between this life and the next.

fishing...

by glen:

Yesterday on St. Simons Sound and back waters ( Hamilton River, Village Creek) fishing with next door neighbor, Steve. Fortunate to have hooked up with him as he knows just about all there is to know about fishing these parts. We got into the Sea Trout and caught 50 or 60 (only kept 30 all over 13", several 16-18"... great sport!) Such awesome beauty in the "low country". As the sun set, the marshes morphed into colors I have never seen. Alligators, dolphins, hawks, osprey, egrets, ducks, pelicans, cormorants. Wonderful...

Back at the Glynn County Marina, as we cleaned the fish, we were surrounded by hundreds of onlookers. Pelicans, gulls (small ones, not like back home), snowy egrets and wharf cats waited patiently until I tossed the fish parts into the water. Then things erupted. Pelicans grabbed each other by the neck, gulls swooped in to steal the scraps; the beating of wings and screeches...What a circus! At one point a pelican had a gull in his mouth until the gull gave up the scrap it had stolen. Fun to watch. We were also surrounded by millions of teeny, biting gnats. And I thought black flies were bad...

So, when I showed up back at home with a bucket full of Sea Trout fillets, I was a little disappointed that Connie refused to let me cook them in the house. (smart girl...). But there's more than one way to skin a cat (fish). I set up my small camping stove on the back deck, Connie cooked up some rice and we had a "Cajin fish fry" (Steve says the secret is in the coating and "Golden Dipt" is the best... he was right!) Wicked good!

There are still 10 pounds of trout fillets in the freezer for Dan and Brenda. Don't forget the Mexican Cholula Hot Sauce... and the Rolaids....

editors note by Sampson: I can't believe he didn't take me fishing. Sounds like he needed my protection with all those fish eaters... especially the cats!

A Message to Noah

Hi Noah! Thanks for singing to us on the phone! Here is a picture of us sitting on the back of our new friend, Dino the Dinosaur! Be a good boy! We'll talk again soon!
Love you, Sam n' Lu

so THAT'S a Low Country Boil!

"Fresh, steamed oysters... wild-caught shrimp and coastal fare from leading Golden Isles restaurants... a Low Country Boil". That's what the poster advertising the benefit event for the St. Simons Island Land Trust promised.

We were invited as guest of Jo (middle) as were Harry & Joyce (right). A cool evening and a gathering of over 800 Island people under the live oaks and Spanish moss at the historic Fort Frederica National Monument. Live bluegrass and Irish music under the stars. A wonderful evening.



I found myself standing at a long, dimly lit table with 8 other folks with a steaming mountain of oysters piled in the middle. Each person had a short knife (oyster knife) and we proceeded to physically overpower the mollusks. I am almost certain that the sticky red substance covering the table was cocktail sauce and not human blood, but it was dark and the oysters tasted so good that it really wouldn't have mattered. The other tables offered other delicacies including steamed shrimp, corn, sausage, pulled pork, fried fish. It was all just so finger licking good...

note from Sampson: We stayed home and guarded the house. It was a good thing we did because there are now 4 squirrels in the trees around the house. Me n' Lu think they are up to no good. Believe me, you've got to stay on your toes when it comes to squirrels...

That'll do,
Sam n' Lu

Early Saturday morning at Dressner's Restaurant

by Connie:

We discovered the local breakfast 'hole in the wall' on Mallary Street where the "locals" gather. Dressner's has wide plank floors, a 12 foot metal ceiling and the best (and only) oatmeal-pecan pancakes we ever had. We drank "Sweet Tea" instead of coffee (free refills!) just like the locals.

An elderly man with an Alaska sweatshirt approached Glen and extended his weathered hand. With a smile, he asked our names and welcomed us to the island. Said he and his wife Francis had lived here for 53 years. After a brief conversation, he placed his hand on Glen's back (in typical Joe Murphy fashion) and told us he hoped we would come back to SSI and settle down after our journey. As he departed he said, " Glen and Connie, it has been a pleasure...".( Daddy always said that.) What a gentleman.

I LIKE "Southern Hospitality".

images of a walk in the park...

things that go bump in the night...

by glen:
In the tradition of Norma Mae, I beach comb on our daily walks on the ocean. The "beauties" are not as abundant as I am used to in Maine, but the dunes are so interesting for a former biology major. We soon learned to keep Sam ands Lu out of the pucker brush. It seems that every plant has adapted a spiked, spiny, sticky seed pod. We spend hours grooming them out of their fur.

The beaches and the dunes are covered with tiny holes in the sand dug by industrious "little thingies" (Darwin's term...). Today at "Bloody Marsh" National Historical Monument we walked out into the marshes and the tiny crabs skittled before us by the hundreds. Connie jumped on my back and wouldn't get down.

I brought home a variety of shells which I washed and arranged on the counter. Pieces of rainbow colored oyster shells, delicate little clam shells, spiral conch shells. We remember so well those trips to Higgins Beach with mom and all the grand kids, everybody with their own bucket, gathering "beauties". I remember one cold December day when Eric, 2 years old, waded into a tide pool right up to his waist in his little down jacket to claim a starfish. (beach combing is a competitive sport in our family...). I remember Spring Point on June 30, 2001 when Kimmy and Nate argued about whether to keep or release another giant starfish... probably the same guy!

We began to hear unexplained noises a couple days ago. Just bumps in the night.... But yesterday while Connie was talking on the phone to Tina, the conch on the counter just mysteriously flipped off the counter and onto the floor. She skooched down to check that the counter was level, scratched her head and picked up the shell.

This morning, as Connie was telling me about the crooked counter top, the shell got up and walked toward us. She screamed and started doing her best South Brewer Turrets Syndrome on me. I couldn't stop laughing.

I get to laugh every day.

Shrimper just offshore... tasty little buggers

This picture is for Sarianna...the name of this boat is "Dora" (the explorer...?)


Luv, Lulu

Veterans Day 2007 in SSI Georgia

The parade was nice; So were the ceremonies and the speeches from the military personnel and VFW old timers. We walked away with a sense of gratitude for the men and women who served this country (who served us...) That's when we stumbled upon Cecil.

He is a self proclaimed "young 88" and had served in the Army Air Corp in WWII, like Joe Murphy. He flew 78 missions from India, over the Himalayas, to Burma, The experience, like for so many of his generation, defined his life. He lives it even today... every day.

The speaker, a brigadere general who had been at the Pentagon on 9/11, said. "War is cruel... And sometimes, despite our words and our diplomacy, war is unavoidable." He said, " America's warriors will always be vigilant to protect our country, our people."

Made us remember Joe. He served. He protected. It's easy to overlook his sacrifice, to take it for granted. Thank you seems like so little to say for so much.

Picture by Connie... she's got a good eye.

Happy Anniversary Anne & Jeff!

We're more than just "Babe Magnets"

Went with Glen to have the oil changed and made friends with a couple guys who just "luuuuved us all to pieces". They must have "luuuved" Glen too, but he was acting pretty uncomfortable. Especially when they invited him to come over to hot tub with them.

It's been almost 2 weeks since we hit the road. All in all, it's been super relaxing. It's very different to be "unscheduled". Takes a little getting used to, but every day gets easier and you can see the lines dissapear from their brows.

Lunch at Mullets Bay. Bloody Mary's and a bowl of boiled shrimp. Outstanding. Connie started dancing much to the delight of the wait staff.

Yesterday a nice lady stopped to pat us. Her husband had just passed away and she needed some cuddling (Lulu filled that bill...). She invited us all over to her oceanfront home to talk about hospice volunteers and to help her with her computer. You never know who is going to walk into your life. As Helen Keller wrote "Life is an adventure... or nothing at all."

OK, that'll do;

Sam n' Lu

"Terminal Technocity"

Thursday thoughts by Glen:

MINIMUM!! I find myself getting real hot under the collar at technology these days. Not just computers, but software, blogs, websites, ISP's, emails, gmails, Garmin's (Ed, we named her Winn Dixie, by the way), cell phones, ipods, digital cameras, TV remote controls, dvd's, blue-tooths, garage door openers and the vans backup collision avoidance system. It's more than just my age heightened cranky disposition. Something cosmic is going on.

Parachute jumpers have first hand experience with that planetary physical speed bump known as Terminal Velocity. No matter how much a person or object weighs, there is a maximum speed at which it will fall ( approximately 200 miles/hr or 89 m/s depending on density and atmospheric pressure for you engineers and Jeopardy TV show enthusiasts). Remember Galileo’s experiments dropping objects off the Leaning Tower of Pisa from junior high science class?

Terminal Velocity is Nature’s way of stopping us from incinerating ourselves by moving too quickly, not that this has been much of a threat up until this point in history. Now, in our generation, mankind has developed methods of exceeding these natural limits. And we have learned, through the loss of brave Space Shuttle astronauts, the dangers and challenges that must be considered when doing so.

Now much of mankind has it's nose pressed up against yet another (meta)physical brick wall. Technology is being introduced into our lives at an insanely fast rate of speed. For many, our technology saturation point has been reached/exceeded. We have reached our point of Terminal Technocity. Intellectual density and age are obvious (though not absolute) critical determinants in this highly individual limit. I leave it to my son and his engineer buddies to develop the mathmatical expression for this physical phenomenon. It will undoubtedly involve some form of linear regression. (There are only two types of people in this world; those who understand calculus... and the rest of us.)

The only real defense that I have found is to tune it out, turn it off, throw it away or take it back. I've tried reading the instructions. I've read the "...for dummies" books. I've watched the enclosed dvds that come neatly packaged with the products. (I have a hard time even getting into the cd cases). My best success is to have someone with superhuman patience sit down with me and show me how to operate the gadget. (Katie, remember sitting on your steps on Congress Street this summer teaching me how to use my cell phone? You are my hero...). On the other hand, when Ryan explains to me the latest hardware/software/circuit board layout he is designing at his job with DeLorme, smoke begins to pour out my ears. Sorry son. It's not your fault I am technologically challenged.

Someday soon, you will likely find a pile of ashes on the chair in front of my computer or in the front seat of my "high tech" van and you will know that I have self incinerated from exceeding my limits of Terminal Technocity.

editors comment by Lulu:

Huh??... Being a dog has its advantages...

That'll do,

Sam n' Lu

"Who has more fun than people..?"

entry by glen;
'Fast Eddie' Greenlaw always used to say that... never knew what it meant but find myself using it in lots of bizarre situations.

Bringing the dogs along was the right thing for us to do. They love to ride, love to sleep and take walks; and they do no harm. The bonus is that we get to talk to lots of interesting people who wouldn't look twice at a couple of Yankees with foolish grins on their faces. Kids are often the first to approach us and you know how good Connie is with them. It's not long before we're engaged in a full blown conversation about kitties and doggies and rainbows and butterflies.. Oh MY!

I walked out on the pier yesterday. There are usually 4 of 5 people fishing for crabs ( they tie some chicken in the bottom of a wire basket and line it to the bottom and after a while they pull it up and dump out the blue crabs. ) And then there is the peanut gallery of old timers sitting on the bench in the shade watching and talking in a dialect that I don't comprehend, but I guess the dogs do. They walk over the accept the ear scratching and "dawg whisperin". The old timers make no comment to me, don't even make eye contact. Must be the foolish grin...

And then there was the Toy Store lady who chased Connie back to the car while holding her little dog Ginger and talking nonstop for 20 minutes. Connie never got a word in and when I finally put the van in reverse and forced a retreat (...almost running her over in the process) Con turned to me and said " Is everyone down here on crack!"

That evening, as we walked the shoreline, we were stopped by two ladies who wanted to pet the dogs, one was elderly and spoke with a German accent. The other seemed like her caregiver and didn't say much. I spoke to the elderly woman in German, told her I didn't speak the language well and answered her questions about where I'd been in Germany. She was impressed when I pronounced Munich as the German's do (Munchen) and said " Oh, ya, ya... you know Adolf Hitler was from there? He was a good Fuhrer! He was just misunderstood... He just had poor advisers."... At that point, incredulous and stunned, we just shook our heads and, with a foolish grin, I replied " Who has more fun than people..." Good old Eddie.

editors note from Sampson: If you want to post a picture just email it to gdfoss@gmail.com.

Sunrise at East Beach

What are they thinking! They got us out of bed in the dark, made a thermos of coffe and took us to the beach. To watch the sun rise? We don't get it... But the pod of bottlenose dolfins that swam close to the beach fishing and the pelicans skimming the water were cool.

Actually, this is a very cool place. And we got some great news about Mary Jo. Thank the Lord. Hope she recovers well. Katie and Ryan called last night. They are busy and happy. Said Aunts and Uncles were calling to make sure they were ok after being abandoned by the 'rents'. Kate is planning a visit to Naples in Dec for a week in the sun. Can't wait.

The people are friendly and chatty. Of course the only reason they talk to Mumaluv and Gdog is because of us. Some people have personalities... Connie and Glen have dogs.

Oh yeah, Rosie called. We LOVE her (see picture).

Gotta go. They are going for haircuts. Glen wants a mohawk. Oh Lawd.......

That'll do.
Sam n' Lu

Guest editorial by Muma Luv

Sung to the tune of "Beverly Hillbillys' theme song;

"This is the story 'bout a man named Glen

An 'ole Maine boy who can't remember when

He had a house and a job and a waist...

So he loaded up the van and went to take a taste.

of life that is....

long walks...

sunny beaches

Georgia peaches"

Editors note: Jeezehova!

That'll do..

Sam & Lu

Guest editorial by Gdog

"Sitting in the Palm Coast Coffee Cafe on Ocean Blvd in downtown SSI sipping on the dark roast while noshing on an organic whole wheat, whole mixed berry oatmeal muffin hot from the oven. Connie is excited. She won't stop moaning. Jazz playing over the speakers. I'm not wearing socks... but I did shave. ( note to self: next shave day is Nov 5...)

Today we plan to go surf casting, bungee jumping, kayaking, whale watching, scuba diving, hang gliding and sign up for Tai Chi. Sieze the day"

Editor's comment (Sampson): They left us in the car for the WHOLE TIME. Clearly they are out of their minds... but happy.

We have been receiving some emails from our friends back home (Gus Johnson and Leda McLaughlin; see picture of "Queen Leda"). Oh, and we met a new friend in West Virginia named Dino (see picture).

That'll do...

Sam n' Lu