Southron Sunday - quotes from the WoNA

'From this time forth I consecrate

the labor of my life to the dissolution of the Union,

and I care not whether the bolt that rends it

shall come from heaven or from hell.'

- Frederick Douglas

Best laid plans

By the time we hit the road today, it was just too hot to drive slowly down a dirt road with the windows open. Translation: DS wimped out on Mandalay. Instead, we drove down to St. Marks - the town - where we saw mostly tourists, bikers and boaters.

The canals were filled with Southern cattails, which reminded me I hadn't seen that variety in quite a while. It's really easy to tell the difference between these and the Commons.



We decided to get a bite to eat, then zip through the refuge again, as long as we were so close. Unfortunately, the only source of comestibles is a convenience store and they only had one hours-old slice of breakfast pizza. UGH! On to 'Plan C'. Hmmm.. what's 'Plan C'? All the restaurants were crowded, so we went through the Chester's Chicken drive-thru. Not impressed, but it'll hold us till we get home and cook those pork chops. As long as we're all the way over here, let's drive down Natural Bridge Road, which has recently been paved. One quick detour to take pics of one of Florida's beautiful springs. Hey, that fence wasn't there last time. *sigh* Another subdivision going in and the spring is on their property. And they've built a boardwalk around the back. >8\


Well, let's move on down to the state park. This is where things got disturbing.

Personally, I'd gladly pay an extra tax penny for the state to buy this property. I'm almost afraid to find out how much they're asking.

Natural Bridge Road took us into Jefferson County. Talk about taking the long way home! Oops! we almost forgot that our Ace coupon expires today. They close in about an hour. And we just drove past the place twice. Our brains must have taken the weekend off. I let DS use the coupon for plants while I sat in the truck and watched a pair of mockingbirds feed some brand new babies. If only I could figure a way to climb up that big propane tank and shimmy up onto the roof there, I could get some really great pics! Somehow, I don't think the helpful hardware man would understand.

When we finally dragged in, I was ready for a nice nap before supper. The minute I walked in the door, I knew Duller had been spraying Lysol. He had a little cleaning ft and had used household chemicals I'm not supposed to be inhaling. I will spare y'all the details of his faulty thinking re the timing of his compulsion. After sitting outside 15-20 minutes, I got bored and hungry and hit the road again. Yep, I ended up at the refuge, after all. It's been a while since we visited in the evening. It was well worth the extra trip.

I spotted one of the baby greenies perched on the other side of the canal. Then there were 2 purple gallinules roosting in the tree branches hanging over Headquarters Pond.

On the other side of the pond was a small herd of pigs. Baby gators were everywhere.

A young raccoon was looking for leftovers at Picnic Pond. And down by the lighthouse, another coon was sniffing the air.


The tabanids were hungry, so we didn't tarry. Heading back, near the eagles' now deserted nest, a pair of red-winged blackbirds were pounding a great horned owl up side the head.The owl appeared unaffected. When he moved to scratch his chin, one of the blackbirds jumped on his back. After a few minutes, the owl had had enough and moved toward his attackers. They jumped back, but were determined not to surrender. This went on a few more minutes before the owl got aggravated enough to look for another tree stand. He silently glided away with the blackbirds in hot pursuit. About 1/4 mile further up the road, another owl had found himself an excellent treetop lookout.

Just when I thought it couldn't get any better, I passed the self-pay station and glanced down the trail. DS scoffs, coz I saw deer down there once and always look... just in case. This time, there was definitely something down there. Whatever it was looked a bit small, so I whipped around and pulled in for a better look. It was a young doe with a brand-speckled new set of twins! She was very cautious as she made her way closer and closer. One fawn pretty much stayed close, while the other seemed to be asserting his independence. I kept the windows up so she wouldn't hear or smell me, just waiting for her to get close enough for pics. Rats! About halfway up the path, she and one baby turned and moved slowly into the woods. The feistier fawn finally followed, foiling my photo fantasy. Ah well, tomorrow's another day. 8-]

Olustee

With the annual Olustee battle re-enactment going on this weekend, it seems the perfect time to make mention of my great-great grandfather who fought there.

In October of 1861 - 3 different records, 3 different dates; this one seems to be the most likely - Thomas J Mitchell enlisted at Blounts Ferry in Company D, 9th Regiment of the state of Florida. He served in Finegan's Brigade under Captain John Bryant and later under Captain J. F. (?) Tucker. On or about the 20th day of February, 1864, he was 'wounded by a gun shot, on the top of my skull' at Olustee and was sent home on furlough. He later returned to his Company and was honourably discharged at Appomattox Court House at the end of the invasion.

As a result of his service, Thomas suffered chronic rheumatism in his right hip and chronic dysentery 'from exposure and having to eat unholdsome food during the war in Virginia.' The doctor who signed one of his pension applications wrote 'that he is suffering from Chronic Dysentery and from the effects of a gunshot wound of the head. Ball striking on top of head, at the union of the parietal & accipital Bones, Fracturing the skull, resulting in partial paralisis of right hip & leg, rendering him unable to Earn a livelihood by manual Labor.' I really admire this man, who returned to duty for another year, in spite of his 'partial paralysis'.

Another great great grandfather, who was born in Jackson County, FL, in 1837, enlisted on 17 March, 1862, at Marianna, FL, in Company D, 6th Regiment. He was discharged near Chesterfield, SC on 5 May 1865. In 1906, he was granted a pension of $96 per year. This was increased in 1909 to $120 per year.

Some of the old writing is hard to read. Very frustrating, as this is all totally fascinating for me. And I was never very good at sorting out all the Company, Regiment, Brigade stuff, so I may have gotten things out of order. Feel free to correct me if that's the case.

Hurricane Teen, stay warm out there this weekend... and keep your powder dry! 8-]