July Skies Shared on Facebook

 I visit FaceBook often and have shared interesting news on it before. Today it's all about weather!

 

Image Credit Matt Devitt, weatherman

 

 

Shared by Greg Dee

 I'm not out taking photos myself, as I made myself sick this last week taking care of business for 3 hours in the heat. I came home and then had to go out again for a problem. Returned and spent two days recuperating. 

 

 

Since our temperatures have required heat warnings for several weeks, today I'm sharing beautiful photos of skies shared by others in Florida. Credit for photography is given from original Facebook postings. 

 

 

Storm Chasers Image via FaceBook

 

 

July 24th Good morning from Land of Lakes, Photo by Dawn Sweum Easparro

 

 

Sunset photo on July 27th in Largo by Bill Woerner

 

 

Storm Photo on July 23rd by  Jacob Merrifield at Longboat Pass Bridge

 

 

Photo on July 23rd at Lemon Bay, photo by Bebe Barcus

 

 

On July 23rd, Nearly non-stop lightning over Sarasota Tiffany

 

 

Photo on July 23rd, by Dylan Henderson

 

 

On July 23rd Palmetto. Photo by Jeremy LeBarre

 

 I hope you all are having good weather where ever you are. This final image made me glad I was inside!

 

 

Image for Last Weekend in July by Matt Devitt

 

 

 

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Terri's Garden in Nashville, Tennessee

  

 I met Terri when she was 10 years old. Her mother, Margie, worked with me and invited me home for dinner.  I met Terri and her two younger brothers.  Several years later, a baby sister was added to the family.  Until I decided to move to Miami, Florida, I was a frequent visitor in the home. Through the decades I've kept in touch with Margie and her family.  Today Terri is a grandmother in a community just north of Nashville.  She grows beautiful flowers. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Family fun at New River Gorge National Park West Virginia

 

New River Gorge is famous for being home to one of the oldest rivers on Earth, featuring world-class whitewater rafting, and holding the status of America's newest national park (2020). Ancient River: Despite its confusing name, the New River is estimated by geologists to be tens of millions of years old, making it one of the oldest rivers on the continent.

 

 

 

 

 The last week in July, my nephew James, his wife, Heather, his daughter, Christina, her fiancé, Conner, and his son, Joe, went to have fun at the New River Gorge National Park in West Virginia. He and Heather have shared their photos. Many thanks to my family for sharing!!

 

 

 

 The family hiked, swam, and enjoyed the white water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 I'm not an adventurous person. In even my prime, which was decades ago, I would have said "Hell no" to bungee jumping!

 

 

 

 

 They had a great time, and Heather celebrated her birthday during this great family vacation!

 

 

 

 

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Easy Cold Cucumber Soup

 

Summer heat and humidity makes it hard to turn on the stove and heat up the house. Today’s recipe is perfect for hot August days, but is easy and tasty enough for any day. Cold cucumber soup is a quick-to-make, refreshing, and flavorful cold soup. and it helps use all those fresh cucumbers from the garden. Perfect to serve as an appetizer, side dish, or for a light, healthy main dish. I’m using Greek yogurt low fat but you can certainly use regular Greek yogurt too. Add lemon juice, minced shallots and fresh herbs and blend. Refrigerate at least 4 hours up to overnight for a wonderful mouthful of cold goodness.

 

 

Cold Cucumber Soup

Use organic when available. Makes 6 servings of 1/2 cup

 

Ingredients

• 2 large English or seedless cucumbers peeled, seeded, sliced
• 2 cups plain Greek yogurt
• 1 shallot minced
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 3 tsp chopped fresh dill
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
• 1 lemon juiced (or lime)

Instructions

• In a blender or food processor, add cucumbers, yogurt, shallot, garlic, fresh dill & parsley, lemon juice and ground cumin.
• Puree for 1 minute until smooth
• Taste and adjust seasoning, add salt and white pepper to taste
• Refrigerate for at least 4 hours until cold
• Optional garnish of sliced cucumbers, fresh herbs
• Serve well chilled

Enjoy!

 

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Rainy Season Plus Craziness in Florida

 

 

The other day I had an appointment first thing in the morning. Upon my return, tiny sprinkles were starting to blow in the wind against me. A heavy rainfall is expected later, but the moist air felt good on my face.  I captured a few photos of the cloudy sky to share today. Although we have blue skies the majority of the time in Florida, it's not always true in the rainy season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Summer in Florida is HOT AND HUMID!

 

 

 Now - Crazy Florida News!! 

 Y'all, there is no round of golf worth getting struck by lightning. Remember what happened in Caddyshack? This photo was taken on July 23rd in Venice, Florida. Eventually a course ranger had to bring them back to the clubhouse. Always be safe! Photo Credit: Kathy P McSteen

 

 Now I am reporting on the evil people do to make more money. Two men thought nesting birds drove customers away. The answer was to try to drive the birds away with toxic mothballs. It boggles the mind that they thought adding toxic chemicals to a sandy beach was acceptable. I hope they get jail time as well as hefty fines:

 

 

 The "Mothball Mystery" has led to two arrests.

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), Robert Czyszczon, owner of the Plaza Beach Hotel, and Christopher Monroe, owner of Chris' Beachside Bar, were arrested Wednesday following an investigation into hundreds of toxic mothballs that were scattered across St. Pete Beach earlier this year. Investigators allege the mothballs were placed on the beach to deter protected black skimmer birds from nesting there.

FWC says surveillance footage, Walmart purchase records, and other evidence—including text messages obtained during the investigation—helped connect the two men to the case.

They are facing charges that include felony commercial littering and attempting to take or harass a state-threatened species.

If these allegations are true, what a bunch of losers. Protected wildlife deserves better than this, and trying to solve a problem by spreading toxic chemicals on a public beach is unbelievably unbelievable.

First reported by Angie Angers

 

 

Black Skimmers:   Each summer, Black Skimmer colonies return to nest along Florida’s beaches, including St. Pete Beach. Though they come back every year, their nesting locations often shift dramatically from season to season. From May through September, these unique seabirds lay 3–5 eggs in shallow scrapes in the sand. The eggs hatch after 21–25 days, and both parents share the duties of incubating and feeding their chicks.

Photo via St Pete Beach.org

For information about How You Can Help, check out stpetebeach.org

 

 

 

                                  

   

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