Unsettled Weather

If you paid attention to the five-day forecasts for the Pines, you probably wouldn't have stuck around for this:

But unsettled weather defies predictability and offers its own rewards.

Butterflies fed between the storms.

So did we.

Rain refreshed the mid-summer flora.

Including our unfailingly exuberant hibiscus!

Occasional downpours washed the plastic people clean.  They mostly reside in the Grove.

Traffic through the Enchanted Forest slowed to a trickle.

A young buck boldly expressed his curiosity.

Bouts of bright sunlight bathed new construction in the Pines and the Grove, 

 

It cast strong shadows, too

. . . and illuminated ordinary items.

The Beginning of the End

2018 hasn't been kind to the Pines, although it still looks pretty upon arrival.

Few photos on social media convey the extensive storm damage along the beach.

This pier fragment in front of Calvin Klein's former home, serves as backdrop for many an exuberant selfie.  Tone guys, tone!

Some owners are actively fighting Mother Nature, elevating their homes and moving them back from the ocean.  Hope trumps experience in a community as ecstatic as the Pines.

Beach and boardwalk views of the same house.

Other FIPPOA members vent about the impact of beach reclamation on their property while Rome burns.  Speaking of fires, this house is rising from the ashes of one that claimed four last season.

The deer, of course, remain oblivious.  Can you spot them?  I shared the house on the right in 1988, my first summer in the Pines.  The beach was a LOT wider then.

Except for this unprotected home, the Grove held up better over the winter, perhaps because it didn't have as far to fall.

But four nor'easters did their share of damage on the bay side, too.  Saltwater washed over much of the Enchanted Forest.