came for oil, left with a storm

friday morning the weather channel was on pensacola beach with reports of tar balls. by the afternoon, cnn was reporting tar patties the size of frisbees. at that point my heart was hurting so much that i just couldn't not go to the beach after work. so i grabbed the feller, my camera, and away we went. as soon as we got to the beach we could see a storm coming our way and rushed down the boardwalk to view the damage for ourselves. immediate reaction? not as bad as we thought at all. next reaction? we need to get back to the car! (see picture above, taken from the tide line).

this was by far the angriest looking storm i've ever witnessed. a shelf cloud, which i mistook as a wall cloud, was slowly making its way toward us, with low, quick, rolling clouds. i was sure a tornado was coming. i have a deep respect and reverence for tornados and have always wanted to see one in person. however, this proximity was not exactly what i had in mind. however, from our race back to the car, i managed to snap several really cool shots.

at this point we pretty much decided to head out...with the rest of pensacola beach. needless to say we did not beat the storm. taking refuge in a parking deck (because we drove the currently-in-restoration trans am with no windsheild wipers), we emerged 15 minutes later after the storm had passed. par for the course in florida.

then we returned to the beach and began our tar ball search. yes, they are everywhere--mixed in with seaweed and shells. most are about 2-3 inches in diameter. some are larger, and i suspect they will continue to grow larger. it really just makes me ill. my own personal paradise--God's creation--slowly being destroyed.

(heart-shaped tar ball. ironic i know)

the rest of our venture (after collecting a small bag of tar balls) consisted of what turned into a photo shoot. i mean hey, you're on a beach, with a camera--why not? check out some of my favorites of the evening.

after this we enjoyed some delicious seafood on the beach. so amidst the sadness of the oil and the scare of the monster storm, we made out pretty alright for the evening.