Fare thee well, Pot Nets

January 31, 2024

Tonight I am sleeping in my new condo for the first time (on a new mattress set, no less!). I have taken to repeatedly saying to people: “Have I told you I love my new condo?” You all are going to get sick of hearing it. (Pics coming soon…)

Even though I’m now sleeping at The Vineyards, I’m not quite quit of my temporary home at Tad and AJ’s place in Pot Nets. A few more boxes, a good clean-up, and then I can turn back the keys, so to speak. I’m leaving behind the living room curtains, a standing fan, a few specialty pans I didn’t think to keep out of storage and couldn’t get along without, and a whisper of affection for the old place.

I’ve consistently said that my favorite part about living in Pot Nets has been my ability to walk out the front door and be walking along the waterfront within 15 minutes. My almost-daily walk took me through the neighborhood, down the main road golf cart path, straight to the Indian River Bay. I would walk first all the way up to the Paradise Grille, turning around when I reached the boat filling station.

Then I’d walk back to the dock, where I could usually step down onto the beach. (Occasionally, the tide was too high there.) My meandering would then take me along the three (and a half) half-moon coves, which served as a meditation walk. I was often reluctant to return, even with the assurance that I could do it again the next day. I collected a whole bowl of beach stones to carry some of that peaceful feeling back to the house.

Come along with me on one of my last walks at Pot Nets during my stay. A low tide beach day, January 26, 2024. I reommend enlarging these for the full effect of that big winter sky.

The bay has a lot of moods. Sometimes dancing with sparkling sunshine, sometimes feisty with choppy waves, sometimes at rest with barely a ripple. From gorgeous September warmth to bracing January winds. I saw tides in far enough to lap the dune grasses, and tides out far enough to reveal a large stretch of water-bottom muck. Fireworks on the holidays. Flooding from the storms. Gulls and Geese and Heron. Sun and clouds and rainbows and sunsets. This beach-walking life is what I came down here for, and it has done my soul good.

I’m forever grateful that Tad and AJ let me stay here for much longer than anticipated. I’ll treat you all to dinner when you’re able to get down to enjoy the place again. As I move into The Next Chapter, I can’t wait to have visitors and continue to share and explore what I’ve learned of the nooks and crannies in these here parts.

This was my favorite sunset. I had sat at a picnic table on the beach to watch the sun go down, and left when it faded to pink. Just as I was about to enter the golf cart path, I turned and noticed that the sunset was not quite done – not by a long shot.