Endings And Beginnings

 
First and foremost, Happy 4th of July! Long live America!

For the past year I've been writing a column for the Fort Myers Beach Island Sand Paper, a local beach newspaper written for and about the locals and tourist that live and visit there. My column was called Footprints In The Sand. Yes, note the word "was." All good things must come to an end. The Covid-19 virus shut the paper down along with hundreds, if not thousands of other small businesses. In my last column for the Sand Paper I noted that I will once again go back to blogging and working more feverishly on my book(s). As a matter of fact I knocked out almost 1,800 words yesterday and I'm hopping to finish the manuscript by early Fall.

I loved writing for the Sand Paper. It was a way of sharing my knowledge about the area and the many hobbies I've been a part of for most of my life.

I was once complemented by a former fishing charter customer. He said I reminded him of 'renaissance man' Thomas Jefferson. He pointed out that Jefferson's life was a constant motion of one achievement after another that was driven by hobbies. Hmm. Here's the interesting part. I've been a long time fan of Thomas Jefferson since visiting his Virginia home, Monticello, in my youth. I was amazed at all the things he'd invented that are on display there. Needless to say, my customer's compliment was well taken.

Officially I'm no longer writing for publications, although if one comes along that fits my style I'll be sure to consider the options. In the meantime I'll get back to blogging about my hobbies, my travels and my beloved Florida, a state that has approximately 1,350 miles of  coastline, over 4,500 islands and the only coral barrier reef in the continental United States. That's a lot of ground to cover and I'm pretty sure I've only touched the tip of the iceberg.

Thanks again for reading Reflections On The Water.