Spring and things

It's been quite a busy week for me as I try to enjoy spring. There were a few nice sunny days, including St Patrick's Day, that made going to the beach really nice. There were lots of people down here for Spring Break, the annual week long break from schools when college kids and young people flock to the beaches to swim, sun, and surf. It's basically a week long beach party. We didn't have Spring Break where I grew up (and it remains so to this day), but we did have beach parties, and I certainly learned to enjoy Spring Break from the first time I experienced it.

Sometimes, it can get crazy with the mix of alcohol and hormones. Everyone is out to have a good time. Most times, it's a fun event. But there are some trouble makers who like to show off and try to impress people with how cool they are by either doing stupid stunts--like diving off the pier (I actually know a person who broke his neck doing that and became a quadriplegic); starting fights--because they think they're so tough with their friends behind them; or just getting stupid drunk with no designated driver (and I've seen a lot of them get arrested or worse, crash into buildings and other vehicles, causing harm to others). I'd like to think that nothing surprises me now at Spring Break. But I was wrong.

I was shocked to be out on the beach with some friends near midnight, when we came across three 13 year old girls wandering the beaches! Their families were visiting the area for Spring Break, and the girls decided to go out late at night to mingle with the crowds. Bad idea! Really, where the hell were their parents? My female friends tried to gently tell the young teens to head back to their hotel, where it was probably safer. And we walked them to their hotel, which was about 2 miles from where we we met these kids! I have to say, I was appalled that their parents would even let them out this late! 13 year old girls have no business wandering strange beaches at night, where drunk college kids and trouble makers roam and party, doing some pretty adult things.

Okay, so I did sneak out of the house when I was 12 to hang out with my cousin and the older neighborhood kids. But my cousin was an older teen, and he looked out for me, making sure I wasn't going to get into trouble. Granted, we ended up doing some juvenile delinquent things with my cousin and his friends, but we never really went out to hurt anyone or ourselves. At least my cousin and the crew made sure I would get back home in one piece.

Some of my friends from out of town came down to hang out for Spring Break. So once again, I was playing host. That was fun going to the beach with them. I took my camera out there and took lots of pictures. Unfortunately, I found out Friday that my camera is now malfunctioning. I probably need a new one. So I'm going to have to research for a new one, hopefully find one that's waterproof and shatterproof. I fear all my adventuring may have been a little bit rough on my old camera. It's been to mountains and deserts, woods and hills, beaches and lakes, across continents and many other places. That camera is over 7 years old. But it was great while it lasted. Kind of the sunny days in spring.

It got really cold and rainy Saturday. So no beaches. And it got really chilly too at night. It's still very chilly right now. I'm trying to enjoy the cool weather, because in a month, the heat is going to start burning up my part of the world. It's going to get hotter and more humid as the months go along. And come June, it'll be hurricane season again til the end of September. But that's life--things happen, time moves on, and things change. We just keep on living and moving forward.