The Best of Florida

They had cheese grits in the cafeteria this morning, and it reminded me of sitting on the fishing docks at sunset in Florida eating fresh fried shrimp and cheese grits. Perfection. Another fond memory of Florida is sitting inside the Bridge Tender Inn, which is on an island near the bridge that crosses over to it. There was a hurricane passing by off the coast and the winds were whipping. The boats across the street at the marina were rocking fantastically. A crowd had gathered inside the Bridge Tender to eat and drink their way through the storm, myself and a friend included. There was an old man with a guitar and everyone was whooping and singing their hearts out to Jimmy Buffet and John Mellencamp. I remember we were all staring at the boats in the marina and this guy yelled out, “if the boats a’rockin – don’t come a’knockin!”. It was a night I knew I was experiencing the best of life....kinship, comedy, danger, diversity, suspense, singing, great food, dancing and an absence of worry. It was perfect.