Thursday, May 28, 2009

A taste of home.

I think the last time I went to North Carolina I said I was glad to come back to Santa Cruz, but this time was really hard. It was way too short a visit, and now that I'm back I wish I'd just stayed. (For lots of reasons.)

Southern cypress forests, for those of you who've never seen one, are spectacularly beautiful. Swamp cypress trees grow out of the water, and a small boat can glide between them. My brother passes through this one every time he heads to the sound to set his crab pots.

And there's a historic plantation home for sale in Edenton - lovely and decaying. We visit it when we're there and dream of winning the lottery - having enough money to restore it AND buy the properties across the street.

The plantation itself has been split apart, chunks of land on every side sold off and developed. The worst, of course, being the water side - rather than the original (magnificent) sound views, you just look out at three houses with (magnificent) sound views.

(We made it through one remodel, right? How hard could this one be?)

One day we drove out to Nags Head, where we spent a couple of weeks every summer when we were kids.

Even the seagulls are prettier here.

Grumble grumble. I'm typing this while shivering at my desk, June Gloom having arrived a few days early. The chill and fog cling to the windows, and I just wish I were back on the porch with my brothers, sharing a cold drink in the warm, humid afternoon.