Up and Out

June 28, 2018

Up and Out

No matter how active you are here, you feel a bit the slacker. There's just so much day. Today, the sun rose at 5:09 a.m. and will not set until 10:12 p.m. And you can count on a good hour's brightness before and after these times. We had the great good opportunity to meet up with Joy and Hal Lambert for dinner on Tuesday night. It's their first visit to Ireland, although they have traveled most of Europe and the Middle East. Joy and I have worked together at IRSC for 20 years, but Hal is a recent acquaintance to me. The Lamberts have been very generous donors to SafeSpace, the domestic violence center that covers the three counties comprising Florida's Treasure Coast. Many of you know that I work part-time for SafeSpace, in public relations and fund development, so I am keenly aware of the impact of significant gifts, such as the Lamberts', on the lives of women who are victimized by men who are supposed to love and protect them. We had a great dinner together at The Tavern. Regular readers will remember this restaurant as the scene of many previous gluttonous forays by moi and a place we often dine with the Duffys. We had a great meal and some terrific conversation. Hal and Joy had flown into Cork, a southernmost point of Ireland, and spent their first week biking around some of the more famous and stunning landscapes in the country - the Ring of Kerry and the Dingle Peninsula. Their car ride from Galway up to us in Westport was another explosion of beauty that had Hal claiming sensory overload. They had a keen interest in the history and culture of Ireland and we did our best to share with them the bit of knowledge we've gleaned over the time of our several visits to this special land. They at least now certainly know of the reputation of the infamous grifters and con-men, members all, of the ancient and treacherous clan called Ó Dubhthaigh or Duffy... Keep your hand on your wallet, don't pay in advance, and count your rings after shaking their larcenous paws... We sent them safely on their way to Dublin, where they would have a few more nights in country before returning to Florida.

In an effort to not feel that we've missed so much of the day, we arose at 4:30 this morning and headed out to Silver Strand, a remote and pristine beach close to the confluence of Killary fjord and the Atlantic Ocean. We had the place to ourselves this morning, although we saw three vehicles nestled back in the dunes where people had set up camp for the night with tents, folding tables, and portable grills. But even the morning's brightness didn't rouse them from their slumber until at least an hour after we arrived. It was brisk and bright, but the sun's power soon broke through the morning chill and we were quite comfortable having our picnic breakfast on the edge of the water.