11/1/2012 Cocoa Beach Revisited

(Cocoa Beach, FL)

This is not my first visit to Cocoa Beach.  No indeedy, back in 1978 I made several trips here.

I was in the National Guard then and our Air Guard flew down to Patrick Air Force Base quite often.  Once us young 20 somethings found out we could fly FREE to Cocoa Beach for the weekend, needless to say we took advantage of it. 

Our first weekend down as I recall, quite a few of us went.  We left right after work on Friday.  It was our first Air Guard flight so we really didn’t know how it all worked but we learned quickly.

First of all this is what we flew down on.  A cargo plane simply called a C-130.



There were no comfy seats as we all sat on web seating but it was FREE so we didn’t care, and besides, we were going to Florida for the weekend. That’s a half a me on the far left, look at those curls! I was even blond back then.

It also was not a direct flight.  Well, it was but we spent quite a while getting there.  As I remember it, I believe the pilots had to have so much flight time and so much of it had to be over water so we took the long way.  Instead of a two to two and a half hour flight it would take us four but again, we didn’t care.

Our first weekend down five of us rented a car in Cocoa Beach and drove to Orlando.  We had a late dinner and then rented a room for two and packed five of us into it.  At least that’s how I remember it.  On Saturday we got up early, had breakfast and then went to Mouse Town.  Back then Disney was just the Magic Kingdom and doable in a long day.  Oh what fun we had!

Here’s a picture of Debbie (kneeling) Terre in the different uniform, me with curly perm and Cassandra behind me.  The guys?  I don’t have a clue!  The one standing next to me…what he’s looking at?  I still don’t have a clue!  Our friend Annie is taking the picture.

I remember that weekend as being very fun!

The following weekend Annie and I went back.  Annie must have been a very bad influence on me.  Here is a picture of me on what I believe is the Saturday morning after a Friday night out…with Annie.  I look kind of hung over.  I’m not sure but I think that’s a Fleetwood Mac t-shirt I have on.  Wow, so many years ago.  I think those curls must have added 3 inches, at least, to my height!



Annie and I spent the day at the pool which was a big no-no.  You see, we were flying to Florida probably in March and it was quite warm there.  Since it was not this warm at home in Delaware, we had no base tan.  I sunburned.  Bad.  Really bad.  So bad that I couldn’t put my uniform on, which was required to fly on a military plane.  I was sunburned so bad that I couldn’t even get shoes on.

Well, they did let me on the plane, they certainly weren’t going to leave me there.



I’m in jeans that aren’t buttoned, no bra so somebody lent me a jacket, barefoot and for some reason in this picture my hair is red which it wasn’t.  (Gotta love those old Kodak 110 cameras)  For the life of me I can’t figure out what I’m carrying.

I do remember the guys having a good time kidding me that I would be court martialed because I got sunburned. After all I was in Uncle Sam’s Army and I was government property.

Bob and I have taken advantage of the flights also,  We flew down for the weekend to Cocoa Beach and also to St Croix for a four day weekend.
Those were the days!

Today I walked down to the little beach behind our site.  On of the effects of being on the fringes of Sandy was sand being washed up on shore.  Take notice how close the seat of this bench is to the ground.



Do you know what the white foam stuff is that sometimes washes up on shore?



This foam line is simply the remnants of waves after they have broken.   Who knew?
Sea foam is basically made of air bubbles separated by a film of liquid. Foam is produced when any gas, like air, is mixed into a liquid. Most of the foam that is washed up along beaches is produced by breaking waves. As a wave breaks, the crest (or top part) of the wave forces air into the sea. The air is not stable in ocean water, and it rushes out in the form of many tiny air bubbles.

During coastal storms, as strong wind blows over the ocean, the waves get larger and contain more power. Storm waves breaking along a shoreline usually have enough energy to force enough air into the water to produce the longer lasting piles of foam.

The above information is thanks to an article by the University of Delaware that I found on Google when I searched what are the white suds that wash up on shore?  I don’t know how I ever got along without Google!

I found this little horseshoe crab shell washed up on the shore.  They are lighter in color than the ones found by the Delaware shoreline.  Also, more brown in color whereas the Atlantic horseshoe crabs of the north are more green.

We had a very nice sunset this evening.

This little bird followed me wherever I went.  I wish I knew more about birds, I don’t have a clue what this is.



The birds were out in force this evening.  Now this one I know!  A blue heron.



And another day came to an end in the Manatee Cove FamCamp.




Another day in the life….