Quote of the Day 
— Walter Anderson, “Rowing His Boat” c. 1955
Sweet and TF took TB, CCW and BW Buzz out to Horn Island Saturday afternoon. It’s been six or seven years since I’ve been there, and I haven’t been to any of the Mississippi barrier islands since Katrina. Some things have changed. The trees are all stripped of limbs and many are dead. It looks different out there, but still distinct and recognizable since it also remains unchanged in so many ways. The alligator still inhabits the lagoon (pond?), the porpoises still show off for boaters in route, the flowers still bloom, the fish still jump and the sun still burns. All of these familiar presences were welcome, even the slight burn on TB’s blindingly white shoulders where the sunscreen wasn’t applied adequately. If Sweet and TB had carried fishing gear, I would’ve been unable to report on Saturday night’s festivities. Even sans fishing gear, it was hard to leave, and I wish we could’ve stayed until eight pm instead of five. To be at Horn Island as the sun sets is to be at one of the most peaceful places on the planet. Something to look forward to on my next trip.
On the way back I admired the way the sun reflects off the Gulf from the west. I looked over to the three shrimp boats tied together and again wished for that fishing gear and the opportunity for a good catch that the water around those boats represented. I wished I had been able to open myself a new beer each time I passed one to Sweet. I stared across toward Round Island and remarked at how it didn’t look so big without the canopy growing any more. Sweet reminded me that his Great-Grandfather used to row out to Round every day to man the old lighthouse, gone since Georges back in the late 1990’s. We agreed (a) the dude must have had some guns and (b) we couldn’t have done it even once.
It was good to reunite this weekend with so many old friends, and also to reunite with Horn. Here are a few snapshots:
Travellinbaen 
Ah, my friend, you refer to the Bewitching Hour (I believe Walter may have had another name for it) right at sunset. Too bad you had to miss it as did I out at Sand. I did get to witness it on 4th of July with only 3 other boats. Also saw the fireworks displays of Biloxi, Ocean Springs and Pascagoula simultaneously. There is nothing like good company and good wine during the 7pm hour on the island. Even better if there are steaks cooking. Once you experience the islands it is not nearly as hard to understand why we continue to live on the Coast after suffering so many hurricanes.
I loved your write up about the islands! I hate that ya’ll kept me up too late on Friday, and that I wasn’t able to enjoy the islands on Saturday! 🙂 However, on our next get together, we must all find a way to the islands and watch the sunset. I must say that I’ve never seen it, but you make it sound beautiful! Until then…..
Great to see you here Sue and thanks for participating. I referenced my good mood today and I’m pretty sure its carryover from our weekend. It is great to see old friends and its cliche, but true, we seemed to pick up right where we all left off.