Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Spring Break

Spring Break is in full speed here in Panama City Beach. This is really the third week. Week one is mostly the Canadian College students. They are a quiet group and we hardly knew they were here. Last week there were a number of Mid-West students here. We had 8 Michigan State students two houses away for a week. They were a really nice group. When they went clubbing they left their cars in the driveway and took one of the many shuttle services that seem to materialize each year. Traffic is definitely an ordeal that must be dealt with. The scooter rental agencies are doing a booming business. The kids roam the beach roads in packs with the scooters buzzing an annoying hum as if it was a thousand bees swarming. So far we have had two balcony falls. One the railing broke free when one person leaned on it. The other was a man who tried to jump from a fifth floor parking garage to a fifth floor balcony. A distance of four feet. He misjudged and he bounced off both walls on the way down. Treated and released. God must love drunks and fools. The local police have been averaging about a hundred citations a day for underage drinking. They expect that number to increase as the police chief stated Auburn and Alabama will be here this week. My favorite so far is the young lady who fell asleep in the back seat of her Jeep. The car was towed and she woke up in the impound lot. She found a shed and took the bolt cutters and cut the lock and walked away. She readily admitted what she did when she came back for her car. The tow driver never looked in the back seat So far no one has died unlike last year. The last week of March is when the high schools in Florida and Georgia are out. I'm told a good number of parents also come with the kids. Next week should be the heaviest based on bookings. All in all, I enjoy this time of year. I like seeing young college folks who are still enjoying their youth before they graduate and have to enter the work force. The vast majority are respectful, full of fun and enjoying the sun and clubs. There will always be a few like the idiot from Tennessee that was in the back of a pick up truck when he flipped his empty beer can. I did manage to make them all nervous when I leaned on my horn and held up my cell phone as if I was dialing.

Thursday, March 04, 2010

St Andrews State Park - Wildlife

Carol and I visit St. Andrews State Park almost every day that it is not raining. We take our cameras hoping for a picture of an alligator. We will also walk the two mile loop for exercise. Following are various pictures that I have taken during our many visits.