Free Republic

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. - Teenager Jeffrey Aronson lucked into a thrilling opportunity at the U.S. Open: caddie for a practice round. Aronson, a 13-year-old junior golfer who just finished seventh grade back home in Los Angeles, was with his mother, Shelly, watching players on the putting green Sunday when amateur Russell Henley approached him to see if he would carry his bag for Monday's round at Pebble Beach. "It's a great way to kick off the summer," Aronson said. "I'll do whatever he needs, get range balls and carry his bags. It's perfect." That was a no-brainer for a kid...

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that Florida can undertake beach-widening projects without paying beachfront property owners who lose exclusive access to the water. The court, by an 8-0 vote, rejected a challenge by six homeowners in Florida's Panhandle who argued that a beach-widening project changed their oceanfront property into oceanview. Justice John Paul Stevens took no part in the case in which the court affirmed an earlier ruling. Private property advocates had hoped the court would rule for the first time that a court decision can amount to a taking of property. The court's four conservatives —...

Checking Florida beaches for signs of oil?

This video about a beach in Louisiana which was contaminated by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico from over a month, sadly kills a bird in the process. A legacy of President Barak Obama.

On April 28, Palm Beach County’s school board voted unanimously to amend their Equal Opportunity Policy and its Policy Prohibiting Discrimination and Harassment to include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity or expression.” Both policies are expected to be formally ratified at a public hearing within a few weeks. Palm Beach County Human Rights Council (PBCHRC) is a non-profit organization that seeks to end discrimination towards the LGBT community in the county, founded by Rand Hoch, a Civil Rights Attorney. Since 1991 PBCHRC has asked the county’s school board to prohibit discrimination against their gay employees. Hoch says in 1991 there...

A dead, fish-hooked, pregnant hammerhead shark washed ashore on Delray Beach, but its 35 pups could not be saved, despite efforts by researchers, police said. The 13-foot shark washed up around 3 p.m. Wednesday in the 200 block of North Ocean Boulevard and a large crowd gathered around it. A fish hook had to be removed from the shark's mouth. Police are not investigating because it is unclear where the hook came from and whether a crime was committed, police spokesman Jeff Messer said.

Siesta Beach and Village is a great place to spend Spring Break! Beautiful girls ride the Segway on the Siesta Beach, experts play volleyball on the whitest finest sands in the world and dancers wait for sunset and get ready to party into the night. OK, let's go!

ADELAIDE, Australia -- Two 8-year-old boys in a young lifeguards training program rescued a man who was struggling in the ocean off Australia's east coast. Jake Satherley told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio that he and friend Spencer Jeams saw a middle-aged man having trouble Sunday off Northcliffe beach, in Queensland state. "We saw him put his hand up and saying, 'help, help,' so we went over to him and pulled him on our board," Satherley said Monday. The boys are part of the under-14 lifeguard training program at Northcliffe Life Saving Club. Club president David Shields said he'd never seen...

Vilano Beach begins North of St. Augustine Inlet and runs to South Ponte Vedra. There are large deposits of Coquina clam shells, the main ingredient in Coquina rock, the material used for the Spanish forts here. On the white sand areas there are black streaks of Titanium ore. Ponte Vedra was once home to a Titanium mining operation. The "red shell" has been a traditional place to test beach buggies and 4WD vehicles, it is easy to bury your wheels up to the hubs if you get off the hard pack.

Here is a video report on a Rhode Island 17 year-old who was rescued from an 6-8 foot hole he dug on the beach that filled with sand and collapsed in on him, burying him. The boys father was able to get his mouth and nose clear of sand so he could breathe, but rescuers took two and a half hours to free him from the sand. He was airlifted to a hospital "conscious and alert." . . . . (Watch Video)

MEXICO CITY – Surprised tourists found their little piece of Cancun beach paradise ringed by crime-scene tape and gun-toting sailors on Thursday. Environmental enforcement officers backed by Mexican navy personnel closed off hundreds of feet (dozens of meters) of powder-white coastline in front of a hotel accused of illegally accumulating sand on its beach. Mexico spent $19 million to replace Cancun beaches washed away by Hurricane Wilma in 2005. But much of the sand pumped from the sea floor has since washed away, leading some property owners to build breakwaters in a bid to retain sand. The practice often merely...

I was by Paddys at Misquamicut Beach, Rhode Island, it USED to be NON-state beach, no lifeguards anyways, I was 50 to 60 yards offshore, bobbing in the water, I am 6'4" so I need deep water to float 30 yards inland, 10 to 15 yards from the waterline, there was a sandbar, the waves were breaking over the sandbar, kicking up sand, making the water brownish lifeguard came over, blew his whistle for 2 or 3 minutes, I didn't know it was for me, I ignored it Some guy swam out to me, called me, I went in to...

Alaska Wildlife Troopers ran a widespread bust targeting illegal clam diggers on Kenai Peninsula beaches over Memorial Day weekend, citing at least 22 people for misconduct with mollusks. Unusually low tides, the holiday weekend and the irresistible lure of fresh clams drew hundreds of mud-diggers to Kenai Peninsula beaches over the three-day weekend. Soldotna wildlife trooper Sgt. Paul McConnell said the law was out in full force to watch. Violations included taking undersized or too many clams and clamming without a fishing license. "It was good timing as far as a three-day weekend, people kind of head down there anyway...

OC Family Grateful Editor: Saturday, April 25, 2009 was a beautiful day, and it was made even more wonderful by the outpouring of affection expressed toward Captain Robert S. Craig at his Beach Memorial Service. The Craig children and family appreciate all that was done to honor our “Pop,” a man so many in Ocean City have known and loved for so many years. The Beach Memorial was truly memorable and more special than we could have possibly imagined. We have many people to thank for their efforts in making it happen. We learned very quickly that organizing such an...

(At right) Flanked by friends and family members, a wreath is carried down the beach to be released into the ocean in memory of Craig, "founding father" of the Beach Patrol. Carrying the wreath is the current head of the organization, Capt. Butch Arbin, who is flanked by Craig's son, Robert Craig, and grandson, Christopher Craig. (Above) Sean Williams pushes a surf board, carrying the wreath and the ashes of Capt. Craig, toward a Coast Guard boat, which released the wreath farther from the shore.

News Release: April 8, 2009 Memorial Service planned to honor Captain Robert S. Craig Ocean City, MD – A memorial service for Captain Robert (Bob) S. Craig will be held 3 p.m. Saturday, April 25 on the beach at North Division Street. Captain Craig passed away on Saturday, March 28 at the age of 90. Captain Craig joined the Ocean City Beach Patrol in 1935 and served as its captain from 1946 until retiring in 1987. Captain Craig is credited with building the Ocean City Beach Patrol into the professional organization it is known as today. When Captain Craig turned...

(April 3, 2009) The man who not only epitomized the Ocean City Beach Patrol, but also built it into a serious and professional organization, passed away Saturday. When Capt. Robert (Bob) S. Craig turned 90 last July, a competition, dinner and slide show honored him for his 52 years as a town employee and member of the Beach Patrol. Thousands knew Craig from his years guiding the Beach Patrol and taking it from a small, relatively unskilled group of young men to a large group of highly skilled young men and women. Capt. Butch Arbin, the current head of the...

OCEAN CITY – Ocean City lost a treasured icon this week when Captain Robert S. Craig, who shepherded the Beach Patrol through decades of change and inspired his young charges for half a century passed away at the age of 90. Captain Craig, as he was known for decades not only by the thousands of lifeguards who worked with him and for him but also by the countless millions of local residents and visitors to the resort area, passed away last Saturday at the Coastal Hospice in Salisbury at the age of 90. A former schoolteacher and coach, Captain Craig...

This happened because I was looking at a picture of Australia from space and I said to myself, "What is that island off the coast from Adelaide?" Here's a map: So this island is Kangaroo Island, and it has a rock formation called Remarkable Rocks. I recommend a Google image search for them: if you include the name of the national park (Flinders Chase), you'll find quite a few. Below is one example This is probably the most photographed one:

I'm keeping things low key this weekend, my new meds make me groggy so I take pics between naps.