Salt Life

During our second year of marriage, Eric worked as an Admissions Representative for Berry College in Rome, Georgia, and each fall Eric traveled to the different college fairs in his assigned region, which was Florida.

After graduating college and before I had a "real" job, I was able to travel with Eric. For two weeks we traveled through just about every part of Florida. It was such an awesome time. We were still somewhat newly married, uncommitted to other obligations, and plain poor. Over the course of our travels, we both fell in love with Jacksonville. We loved the waterfront city and loved the beach town even more.

Since that trip we have gone back every year, making each trip better than the last one: locating our favorite hotel in nearby Ponte Vedra, finding the area's hidden gems, and becoming somewhat of out-of-town "locals". Things haven't changed too much since we started going. We still look as though we are newly married - on this trip we were asked if we were honeymooning - we are still poor, and although we are far from free-wheeling now, it sure is nice to feel as though we are for the four nights that we are there.

Our favorite way to spend the afternoon -
drinks at the hotel pool.

These little guys made a daily appearance to
say hello and have a swim.

Ponte Vedra Beach

Date night #3 in a row.

Special thanks to Grandma Molletta for keeping the baby!

So Long Nike Shirt . . .

If you know Eric, you know that he often wore a blue and white, faded and torn Nike dry-fit shirt, purchased in 2006. When he first got the shirt, it was bright and vibrant, but after years in the sun and enduring a mountain bike crash, it definitely became somewhat lackluster and worn.

The shirt didn't provide much protection in
this mountain bike crash (2008), but it
continued to be worn.

I really did not like this shirt. I hid it behind the dryer, begged and pleaded with him to throw it out, purchased him new Nike shirts for Christmases and Birthdays and still he continued to wear the shirt.

Well, we went tubing this past Forth of July weekend and when Eric's tube flipped his shirt fell in the river. Eric was too "disoriented" to save it, and I was not about to make any sort of effort to save the shirt. Eric's sister, Laurie, made an attempt to go after the shirt not realizing my joy in seeing it float away. I quickly gave her specific instructions to let the shirt go, and so Eric's favorite Nike shirt now sits at the bottom of the Chattahoochee River, unable to be worn again. I don't condone littering but this was a justifiable exception. It was a sad day for Eric, but I seemed to deal with the loss pretty well.

Eric still has two other almost identical Nike dry-fit shirts that he will most likely be wearing if you see him soon. But, don't worry, they are not faded and torn (yet).

So long Nike shirt, you were good to him but your time was way overdue. 

In the Bahamas in February of 2007 with his
relatively new shirt.

Last photo of his shirt - Kiawah Island, SC,  June 2011.