What a great way to start off the day! I'm sitting on the balcony of our hotel watching the surf role in and listening to the ocean sounds. The waves are crashing and the seagulls are screeching. Of course below me the construction workers are hammering as they make forms to pour concrete for the new patios they are building down there.

We arrived in Melbourne yesterday afternoon and checked not our hotel. We are staying at a Doubletree by Hilton and are on the fourth floor right on the beach. We spent a few hours yesterday up in St. Augustine doing some tourist stuff. We went to the famous St. Augustine Lighthouse which is the oldest lighthouse in America. I decided to forego the 237 steps up to the top. I've climbed other lighthouses in the past and the view is always great but these days I'm a couple inhalers and forty pounds past doing that.

After the lighthouse we went to the Castillo de San Marcos, the Spanish fort and walked all around that; and watched them do the firing of the canon demonstration. It was very interesting and we took a lot of pictures. From there we headed to Melbourne.

Our hotel is nice with a couple of quirks that drive us nuts. We have this constant --- and I mean constant whining sound that sounds like a gale is blowing out side of our door. That is because just over the railing in front of this tower is the air conditioning unit for the place. It runs always and creates that sound. But, it didn't keep me from sleeping well. Our only other complaint is that every other lamp seems to have a bulb out. Maybe they do that as an energy saving thing; --- I don't know. But the sun is shining and we need to get ready and go down for breakfast and maybe go for a walk on the beach. It is windy again but that is not going to stop until maybe tomorrow afternoon so, I'll throw on a sweatshirt to defuse that problem.

Back home it is 33 degrees this morning and I suspect by now all of the buffet has been cleaned out. That won't keep them away though. There is enough seed on the ground to feed them until I return and refill all of the feeders for them.

That is it for today. I hope your weekend is a glorious one and that. You are feeling fully blessed. My prayers of thanks go out this morning that no one got hurt in the tornado that touched down in Ft. Branch this week and while some of my former parishioners had some damage; they are all OK.

Stay in touch with The Lord, and have a peaceful day. Shalomn.