Do what you love, and love what you do.
Israelmore Ayivor
Guest host Sue (Mac’s Girl) who writes The Nature of Things threw down the challenge of pastimes — what we spend our time doing outside of our work lives for this week’s Lens-Artists Challenge. Since we’re at the beach for a week at Pawleys Island, South Carolina, for a little getaway (that still ensures a bit of safety during Coronavirus times) we’re sharing how we fill our days, just the two of us in a rental house on the North End of Pawleys.
Beach watching
Mornings begin early at the beach — well, most mornings — when we wake, throw on something to keep us decent and head out to watch the sunrise. Even though we’re groggy, there’s an infectious energy among morning walkers that perks us up.

And so we greet the sun, wide-eyed and waiting for more, as we take pictures and talk about the morning show.

Later in the day, you can find us under or beside a tent on the beach, celebrating the mesmerizing movement of waves up and back along the shore. (It’s just what we do when we’re not reading.)
But we also love to watch others doing what they like to do: build castles of sand, dig moats to catch the ocean, ride waves on a boogie board, surf, swim, bike, or fly kites.

Sometimes everyone on the beach watches the same event, usually in awe, before returning to life as usual doing something that requires little or no effort whatsoever.

Beach watching on cloudy days mimics what we do on sunny days unless rain threatens to shorten the time on the beach. What gets our attention? Dark clouds overhead and a rumble of thunder or two.

Then we have to weigh in on what to do. Head inside? Or stick it out under the tent to see how long the rain will last? If we think it’s just a long stretch of cloudiness, we usually tough it out. After all, cloud cover can be neat to see, and high winds are fun for bundling up and walking with the wind at our backs as long as we can.
Sometimes we think we’re on the Weather Channel imitating those crazy reporters who stay way too long out in the hurricanes! Sometimes, though, we just have to give it up for the day and head inside.

Shell seeking
This year at the beach, we were on a mission: Find a Pawleys Island shell or two. These little gems of the sea (real name: Imperial Venus Clam) populate the waters in and around Litchfield Beach and Pawleys Island, North End. But try as we have, we’ve never been able to find one along the shore, even a shore littered with shells.

So, what do you do if your pastime doesn’t yield the goods you expected? You go to an expert for advice. And John Henry Whitmire who founded Whitmire Jewelers in 1972 filled the bill. He told us the name, location, and unique habitat of the shells, and how he re-creates them in silver and gold for those who want an authentic souvenir of the island.

And so it is that we are still seeking these shells, but not as ardently as we did at the first of the week. After all, Mr. Whitmire included a real one in the box with my new silver Pawleys Island Shell. (Shell seeking pays off, you see.)
Time spending
And then there are other pastimes at the beach: Working jigsaw puzzles even when you can’t find that one last border piece . . .

and cooking shrimp (from Georgetown’s Independent Seafood) and grits from Kudzu Bakery. (Check out a great recipe from Chef Frank Lee on Discover South Carolina.)


Mostly our pastimes are these: sit, read, rest, repeat.
After all, we’re on island time!
Rusha & Bert
Be sure to check other posts on Lens-Artists Challenge #97: Pastimes.
Geri Lawhon
The just before sunrise on Pawley island was just gorgeous. Thanks for the post and photos.
Oh, the Places We See
Thank you for commenting. Oh, how I wish I were there right now! But maybe it’s a special place if I don’t get to go often. Have a wonderful day!
M.B. Henry
Love those sunrise photos 🙂 And I’ve been doing a lot of puzzles too!
Oh, the Places We See
Bert just finished one with old cars and 50s signs. It was called “Clunkers”! I wish we would do something with them since they take so much time. But we just tear them apart and put the pieces back in the box. Do you do anything with yours? Thanks for commenting and taking a look at our posts.
M.B. Henry
I do the same, actually. Then since puzzles are a bit hard to come by now, I like to let people borrow them who need something to do. My neighbor and I especially have begun swapping puzzles!
Oh, the Places We See
We donate ours to Friends of the Library who, in turn, re-sell them along with used books at our Annual Sale. (Of course, we buy more, too!)
M.B. Henry
How cool! 🙂 I absolutely love library sales. I’ve gotten a large portion of my own book collection that way.
Oh, the Places We See
I have as well. It’s the ultimate recycle for a cause!! Our libraries opened today for limited hours. How about yours?
M.B. Henry
One of them is still electronic only and the other one just opened for curbside pickup only this week. I sure do miss them!
Oh, the Places We See
Hope they’ll be opening soon.
Ross Lenhart
For nearly 80 years, I have been “a PI northender”. I loved your blog ~ thanks so much for posting. 🙂
Oh, the Places We See
And I love that you’ve been a PI northender for a gloriously long time! I must admit, I’m not a fan of the new sand at the south end, so we may try to rent north from now on. We love strolling the beach, picking up shells, reading, and watching the sun make the water sparkle. Thanks for visiting my blog. Check out Lens-Artists #98: Delicate Colors for sundown on the marsh. 😘
CompassAndCamera
Nice getaway! And those moody clouds are beautiful!
.lily
Beautiful, how nice! I like how the houses are on the beach like that, glad you two had a great time. 🙂
Oh, the Places We See
We love the houses on the beach. In fact, we play a game by asking each other which one we would like to have. Of course, we’ll never have one, but our answer is usually this: I’ll bet I could make do in that one!!! Thanks for taking a look.
Amy
Thank you for taking us to S.C. beaches Rusha! Enjoyed the beautiful beach watching with you. Gorgeous photos!
Oh, the Places We See
Beach watching and people are two of our favorite pastimes!!! Enjoy the weekend. And thanks for taking time to comment.
tappjeanne
Rusha, your photographs are absolutely stunning! Thanks for sharing.
Oh, the Places We See
Thanks, Jeanne. The beach is a pretty good place for taking pictures. No bad shots!!! We’ve relaxed and regrouped. Heading home this weekend. Hope you’re doing well.
Miriam Hurdle
Such an enjoyable and relaxing trip you had, Rusha. We love walking on the beach to watch the sun going down slowly. But when it reached the horizon, I realized that it’s actually going down quite fast. We went to SC right after Katrina and my husband went diving. It didn’t have the weather for us to see too much. Thank you for sharing all the lovely activities you had.
Oh, the Places We See
You are quite welcome. It is relaxing here. And a time to appreciate nature. We leave in two days, and although we’ve been here a week, I feel that there’s never enough beach time. Oh, well. Maybe next year! Best wishes for some quiet time for you as well.
Miriam Hurdle
I’m happy that you got to travel during this time. We still have to be careful in CA. The cases and deaths decreased a little but we’re still #5 on the stats. Thank you for your best wishes, Rusha!
Oh, the Places We See
I’m hoping we don’t have a resurgence of illness. Not sure everyone will comply with rules the second time around.
Anonymous
This looks so relaxing that it gave me an idea 🙂 Are the waters warm enough to swim mid-June? We were hoping to go somewhere for a bit of mental break, but still avoid the crowds. Thanks.
Oh, the Places We See
It’s my experience that the ocean is usually chilly; however, many kids and their parents are swimming there as we speak. I think you just get used to it, and on a hot day, it feels really good!! Hope you get a place. The ocean really does restore my soul.
anbaworldwide
We definitely need some soul restoring 🙂 Thank you.
Grammy Writes
So jealous! Morning on the beach sounds like heaven – or any other time of the day for that matter! Nice post.
Oh, the Places We See
Thanks. We were worried that “vegging” on the beach wouldn’t be considered a pastime, but it’s something we do well!
Tina Schell
So nice to see you enjoying the beautiful S.C. beaches Rusha. I’m a bit surprised you were able to rent this year. Many of the beach towns including ours were closed to renters during pandemic times. The shells are gorgeous and your cloud images are wonderful
Oh, the Places We See
Pawleys just re-opened, and, as you can imagine the beach was packed both Saturday and Sunday. Cars were parked everywhere there was even a tiny bit of space. We’re enjoying the North End — a first for us. Thanks for the compliments.
The Wandering RVer
The beach is a wonderful “pastime”. Relaxation at its best!
Oh, the Places We See
So glad you said this. I was afraid everyone who wrote using this challenge word would be much busier than we are. But somehow the hours are slipping away, and our week ends Saturday — pastimes or not!
JohnRH
Beautiful photos. Great sunrises. But I’m puzzled… 😉 😉
Oh, the Places We See
Why are you puzzled?
JohnRH
Reference to jigsaw puzzles. ‘Wink wink.’ See my posts this week.
Oh, the Places We See
Now I get it!!!! (Smile, smile)
kzmcb
Oh, how wonderful. I feel so envious. seeing your gorgeous sunrise shots over the beach and those unusual shells. What a well-earned break for you. Thanks for sharing it.
Oh, the Places We See
Thanks for taking a look. It may not seem that we are accomplishing anything, but my appreciation of nature is way up on the spectrum. Hope you are well and enjoying the last days of May.
cindy knoke
Beautiful!
Oh, the Places We See
Thanks so much. We have nothing to do with nature, for sure, except to enjoy it!
Sue (Mac's Girl)
Wonderful pictures for the challenge, Rusha! What could be better than spending time at the beach. I always loved collecting shells and it looks like you found the ideal person to tell you all about them. I know what you mean about finding that last piece of the puzzle. For us, it’s usually on the floor somewhere. Thanks so much for participating in the challenge.
Oh, the Places We See
Thanks so much. I was afraid that I wouldn’t have much to share because we truly don’t do much here but relax. However, soaking up beauty takes skill and time, right? So, I guess that is a pastime I should have included! Good choice of prompts, in my opinion. Thanks.