...but I didn't notice any activity on deck. Later, I saw this...
I hope the alligators didn't get the boaters. I assume I'd have heard something on the news, unless alligator attacks are daily occurrences.
Maggie struck a pose (looks like she's got her curtsy down pat).
Here she is, not worrying overmuch about alligators.
There was also this thing. It is oddly suggestive of a gallows, but I suspect that its purpose is to support a swing (although, if so, where the swing is, I don't know). There is a memorial plaque at the top that reads, "In loving memory - Bubba Tucker - In our hearts forever". I actually found an obit, and he seems to have been a genuine "good old boy", the sort of fellow I'd have taken a liking to. God bless your soul, Bubba.
I've built, or used, tonnes of those gibbet type things.
ReplyDeleteThey're used for unloading trucks. (Eg, if you carry a plough to another farm, a block & tackle swinging from one of those things is the only way to load/unload it.
There's fewer of them now, due to the rise in hydraulic lifting capability, and the improvement of roads to the point where the bottleneck in transport is no longer driver skill & machinery capability to make it somewhere, but the simple cash cost of paying for the journey.
Brings back memories.
That one is almost certainly a child's swing - due to the size if nothing else.
Though you'd expect a swing to have lateral bracing, so the whole contraption doesn't come down once you've got a good rocking motion going.
(When we were kids, our complete faith in the engineering capability of grown-ups was such that we'd near bring down a swing that hadn't been braced in every direction. I no longer have this faith in engineering, a Caterpillar D9 is not strong enough to pull me onto a fairground ride, and I'm most ginger in my use of playground equipment).
Great stuff Paco! Men named Bubba and gators. Apparently the NC Cheerwine is nectar of the gods.
ReplyDeleteLivin' the dream eh?
Ah, Cheerwine! A delicious cherry soda. When I was a kid, you could only get it in the western part of the state; one of many reasons I was always glad to visit my grandparents. Now it's available throughout North Carolina and several other southern states.
ReplyDelete"Born in the South. Raised in a glass."
I'm likin' it Bruce, I have to admit. I joined a local gun range last week which is worth a post all its own.
Steve: That thing does look a bit like an engine hoist. I forgot to mention that there was a similar wooden frame erected nearby, with a plaque honoring the interestingly-named and still very much alive Cynthia Tart, a local parks administrator.
Little Miss Maggie is adorable. Best not to let her get too near the water. Alligators are very slow. Except when they're not.
ReplyDeleteThat's true. I hear they can outrun people for short distances. Of course, the same rule applies to alligators as to bears: Maggie just has to be faster than I am (which she definitely is).
ReplyDeleteI once heard a guy say that if you want to see a man run 100 meters in 9 seconds, put him in front of a bear that can run 100 meters in 10 seconds.
ReplyDeleteMaggie may not be faster if you're properly motivated, Paco. Such as the motivation of a large alligator coming after you.
Nah, do the math. She's naturally faster than me, and I think she'd be, at least, equally motivated. So Paco = toast.
ReplyDeleteMaggie keeps getting cuter. How does she like the new digs? The attitude and poses may portend that she is headed for the stage. About those gators, would she scream and run from them, or put her glasses on it and ride?
ReplyDeleteWhich NC bbq do you like, Paco? Eastern or western? Does it pair well with Cheerwine?
"God bless your soul Bubba."
ReplyDeleteThank you for that instinct for history and Love.
God Bless you and your wonderful Family.
Ron from Australia.
Ron: thank you for the kind words, mate!
ReplyDeleteLovely scenery! Except for the 'gators, of course. They may be natural, but lovely they ain't.
ReplyDeleteMaggie is certainly growing up! I hope she had a good time with the grandparents!
The boats appear to be leisure boats, moored, awaiting their owners.
ReplyDeleteHere in Australia, the sharks and crocodiles don't attack the boat owners until the owners or their guests accidentally show a limb, hand, or foot, below the waterline; usually as they enter dinghies to row out to the leisure vessels.
Perhaps alligators are the same.