My Life, my photography, my passions
This rock was handy for sitting and getting a little water on my feet. What was I thinking? I know better than this.
By the way, this will be the first and last time I will ever be in a bathing suit and posted on the internet. But heck, it was Block Island, anything is possible there.
A new tradition on Block Island. Stone stacking. I don’t know how this tradition started, or when, but it was a wonderful surprise when I saw my first stone tower. Some people called them stone cairns, a delicately balanced stack of stones used to mark “I was here”.
From what I can understand cairns were first used by settlers, pioneers, or Native Americans (Indians) to mark a cache of supplies, either to remind themselves where food was hidden under the rocks, or to leave supplies for fellow travelers.
Whatever they are called, I was enthralled by them. One person told me it was good luck to add a stone to the pile, so I did my part.
I wasn’t the only person captivated by The Cairns of Block Island, seems others are fascinated by the smooth stackable rocks on the beach. See how many you can count in this image below.
My favorite shots are those with the ocean and surf in the background. There is solitary about the image that draws you to the location.
I had never been crabbing before and these kids taught me how, with a few simple tools: a string, a weight and a hot dog. The crabs grab hold of the hot dog and you just pull them up. It’s so cool and so much fun!
Just tie the string around a piece of hot dog and drop it in the water, the crabs run to it, grab on and you pull them up. Summer fun for hours. I wonder if the same thing works for crawdads?
If you crabbed when you were a kid, or have taught your kids what is the best crabbing tip you’ve learned? Did you mainly catch and release (like in fishing) or were you catching for supper? I didn’t know there were crabbing tournaments on the shore. Being a land locked Nebraskan I don’t get the experience of all the festivals around the country.
One day, when we retire and traveling to the beach is on my list I’m going to check out crab festival. I’ve already done the Testicle Festival.
My apologies for being away so long. In the past three weeks I have sent my youngest son off to Marine boot camp, and took a trip to Connecticut to empty and clean my Mothers house so it could be sold. A side trip to recover from such an endeavor was to Block Island, RI.
So be prepared for several postings per day until I catch up.
I had ten days to completely empty and catalog the belongings of my Mothers house, she passed in January, and it would not have been possible without a small army of wonderful friends who gave their time and friendship during my stay. Looking back on the pictures it was a huge undertaking, but we had a wonderful time, laughed and strengthened friendships that will last for a lifetime.
After the house was empty I rewarded myself with a four day trip to Block Island, Rhode Island for a “girls weekend”, a trip that was twenty years in the making. Here is a sneak preview.
This is my idea of summer. Sand, water, sun and the time to relax and enjoy it. I’m a sun worshiper at heart. I gauge a successful summer by my tan line. Most summers I fail, but I do have some good weeks. I do not buy into the myth of sun exposure.
My heritage is Native American, I have a lot of melanin in my skin, I tan easily, rarely burn (with the exception of the first of the season) and I just feel better when I’ve had some natural vitamin D exposure. No, I do not do cloudy winters well at all, I’ll leave that to those with European heritage
I honestly believe (based on the New World, Old World monkey vitamin D research requirements) that certain people require more exposure to sun to stay healthy, and sane. New World Monkeys (Tamarins and marmosets) lived in the tree tops, with more exposure to the sun and need more vitamin D supplementation than the Old World Monkeys (macaques, and baboons), who live primarily on the forest floor.
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I believe the same thing happens in humans. People who are from areas of the world that receive more sun exposure have adapted to physiological nutritional needs according to their environment. The color of the skin is a prime example. People who tan easily normally have Mediterranean ancestry (Italians, Greeks, Middle Eastern) or Native People ancestry such as Native American, Eskimos, aboriginal descent and commonly have vitamin D deficiency and seasonal affective disorder.
This past winter my daughter was diagnosed with severe vitamin D deficiency, she is dark skinned like me and suffered through various health issues this past winter. She was also living on her own for the first time and I’m sure her diet and nutrition wasn’t the best.
Her vitamin D serum test result was 20 ng/ml which is extremely low. She is now taking Vitamin D supplements, but has increased her sun exposure.
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Here are a few signs and symptoms of vitamin D deficiency, check with you doctor before self diagnosis, but if you have dark skin, get depressed during the winter months and feel better during the summer it’s something to consider
This last symptom, stomach issues is actually quite interesting. Diseases such as Crohn’s, celiac and non-celiac gluten sensitivity, and inflammatory bowel disease “may” be in part to a Vitamin D deficiency.
Get some Vitamin D in your system, kick the kids outside to play, go for a walk in the sun and DON’T use sunscreen. Vitamin D boosts the immune system, helps ward off colds and infections, and is important in heart health.
The Northern Europeans had limited exposure to sunlight and did not need melanin as skin protection. Think about it,..yeah, makes sense.
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So with that I’m out to enjoy my Nebraska sun at the only beach within driving distance. Louisville Recreation area, where I can lay on the beach, listen to good music, and take a dip in the water when I get too hot. Perfect. If only it were an ocean beach, oh that’s right, I wish I could be sitting on Block Island right now!
So everyone enjoy your summer and if you enjoy the sun, and feel like you need it, then you probably do. If you’re pale and freckled, douse with sun screen and take precautions. But don’t hate on us sun worshipers, it’s in our genes.
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