Now THIS is more like it...

And this is where I had dinner tonight...

So pretty!

How wonderful you were able to take this trip, Lexie! It sounds as though it has been worthwhile in spite of Hermine. It is annoying about the charger issue, but it sounds as though it wasn't that unpleasant to deal with :)

I'm about a 6 hour drive from there, and we had a lot of flooding and downed trees, too. And yes, when you live within 50 miles of the coast, you do get used to it. You learn what to expect and how to prepare for it.

I do hope your writing is going well and that you are enjoying a lot of fresh seafood!!

Well, I haven't gotten a whole lot of writing done. I did take my laptop with me to the beach yesterday and got a bit done there. And I got my presentations for next week done. There's still a bit of water in the street here, though it's now possible to walk around it. I'm leaving the car at the end of the street till it's time to pack up tomorrow, just so salt water doesn't get splashed on it.

Still, getting a change of scenery--and mostly away from the job--has been nice. I may go down to the beach a couple more times before I leave, and I'd like to check out the rest of the area a bit, too.

Haven't had a LOT of seafood, but the place where I had dinner last night was awesome--one of the most delicious meals I've ever had, in fact. It was shrimp and grits, but the grits (with smoked gouda) were smothered in this sort of jambalaya-like stew with sausage, tomatoes, chick peas, onion, and mushrooms.

I'm hungry now.... Yummy!

Glad to read that you're making the best of a vacation that has thrown some unexpected situations at you. Enjoy the rest of your time.

I'll also second COD's thoughts: that dinner sounds great!

My last full day here in OBX--I had lunch at a famously awesome little cafe (crabcake wrap with avocado), then climbed the highest lighthouse in North America--the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. They moved it in 1999 a couple thousand feet inland, due to shoreline erosion that was threatening it--a real feat of engineering! It was 250-some steps to the top, and man--you really FELT it. The view from the top was spectacular, though.

After the lighthouse (and the museum tour), I stopped, on impulse, at a little bookstore. I love bookstores, and there are so few independent ones these days.

The lady who ran it greeted me pleasantly, and as I was browsing in the room next door, I heard people talking about being "friends of Bill W." Holy crap--I walked over and there was a couple chatting with the owner, and it was obvious they were all in AA. I said, "Where's the coffee pot? I've got a resentment..." and everyone busted out laughing. The owner had 30-some years, as did the guy, and his wife/girlfriend had eight years, same as me.

The owner said when she got sober, she was the only woman in a group of six guys, and whenever she'd call one of them for help, he'd call one of the other guys--to avoid any inappropriate one-on-one. We had a great little chat, and when I left (having purchased a book she recommended for me), she gave me a hug and gave me her card so we can keep in touch.

There really is something totally awesome about traveling by yourself. When you don't have someone with you as your "security blanket" you're much more likely to have interesting conversations with strangers, I've found.

So even though the trip didn't go exactly as planned, I'm looking forward to another visit--it always takes me a few days to kind of get the hang of strange places, and I'd love to have another week here. But it's a good excuse to get down here again.

Cape Hatteras Light

These went up and up and UP

View from the top

And one more...

Really cool pics, Lexie, thanks for sharing! I think I've read that there are some lighthouses where people can volunteer to be the keeper for a month or a season, and I've often thought that could be pretty cool.

Actually, a quick search turned up this site: Volunteer Programs at Lake Michigan Lighthouses These are on the Great Lakes, not on the ocean like where you are, but still doubtless pretty cool.

This is so true--I don't actually "travel" much in the way that you do, but I find that even if I'm out at a farmer's market or doing errands, if I'm by myself, I talk to the people I encounter. If I'm with someone, I spend much less time interacting with the folks I meet out and about and much more time chatting with the person I'm with. Nothing wrong with that, I guess, but you get 2 different experiences depending on which way you do things, no doubt about it.

Hope your good memories keep you from having too many "vacation's over" blues!

Great post, Lexie!!!!
Have a safe return trip home.

Loved this pics!! Thank you!!

Hope you had a safe trip home