Birthday at the Beach

I can't think of a better way to spend a birthday - especially when it is mine!  The whole family migrated to our favorite spot in South Carolina this past weekend in honor of the occasion.  When it comes to the beach, however, any old occasion will do - birthdays, anniversaries, National Postage Stamp Day - "gosh, guess we'll have to go to the beach and celebrate..."  We can't help ourselves.  The big fish is in Murrells Inlet, SC on Restaurant Row - home of  SERIOUSLY GOOD SEAFOOD.  The other pic shows a small portion of the boardwalk behind the restaurants that looks out over the inlet toward the ocean.  You might as well stay tuned for more posts from the coast.  There is the matter of beach music and a dance that was born before most of us were, inlets and waterways, live oaks with spanish moss, a shabby little island with a historic district and a ghost who goes door to door warning people of impending hurricanes, the matter of Lowcountry dishes such as shrimp and grits and how to properly cook a hush puppy (which isn't a baby dog, by the way) and much more.  And you wondered why I paint all those palm trees.