SPRING!

It was looking like a whole lot of nothing was going to happen today (just like a whole lot of nothing happened yesterday!)  But then... I went outside.  Oh, glorious day!  Spring has sprung and I am a happy girl.  The trees are flowering, the flowers are blooming, and the birds are just achirpin' away.  Now, please understand that this is all just one big procrastination fest.... but still.... what a great day!

It started with me having to drop Bubba off at a friend's house.  He mentioned ice cream (the local ice cream shop is now open for business), so OF COURSE, I had to get some.  Nothing says spring like ice cream!  After getting my second favorite choice of flavors (They do not have soft-serve coffee ice cream yet.  While that's a bummer, it's a reason to go back and try again next week .  But, I digress...)

Mmmm... after I had licked all the jimmies off :)

I decided to to take a walk down to the walking path that meanders along the shoreline.  It is one of my favorite places to go.  There were lots of people around... walking, biking, hanging out, flying kites, etc.  While it was a tad breezy, it was so nice to be out and about.

I use to walk on this pier as a little girl.

This area use to be a home to an amusement park.  After it closed, it was derelict for MANY years.  Rides and other attractions were sold off, building were left to decay, and vandals set fires and put graffiti on anything they could mark.  The city finally took the property over and it has been a work in progress for the past few years.  

This was the main entrance.  Such memories!

I was shocked to see the amount of work that has been done in this area since last fall.  Beyond the amusement park was an abandoned community of houses.  Originally, the houses were summer homes for workers and guest rentals.  After the park closed, people lived in the homes until the city took over.  Once the people were evicted, the houses stood abandoned for years.  These two pictures are from September 2014.

This is what the whole community of houses looked like.

Now....

I am so glad I had the opportunity to take the "before" pictures.  I am not sure if there is a plan to keep this area evolving into something more.  There has been talk of bringing back the Chowder House that was here during the time of the amusement park (The Shore Dining Hall is a local legend!), but for now, it is a beautiful place to go and just hang out.  I am sure there will be more pictures coming in the future.  I love it there!

So, I will end this post with well wishes for the upcoming week.  I have reports to finish for school (I am a terrible procrastinator.  I've been putting them off all weekend).  But, I am feeling the need to extend my break from the hustle and bustle just a little more.

My plan for the night :)