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A Eulogy for Dad
Charles Burke Baxley was born on March 25, 1952 and lived 72 years. Now, if I continue on to read the appropriate list of his accomplishments, his interests, and his activities, or if I stood here and just listed the family and friends whom he loved, we’d be here the rest of the day and into the night. Instead, I’m going to try and paint with a broad brush and give you an idea of who Charles was as a friend, as a professional, and obviously, as a father. I’ve got four themes that I think resonated throughout his entire life, but let’s start the story at the beginning, with…
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A Summer Without Adventure
I didn’t even let COVID stop me, packing the kids into the car and dragging that trailer through all 48 states and up into Canada. We’ve had some epic adventures. I say this a lot to people. I love travel, talking about travel, planning travel, finding amazing adventures and opportunities for my kids. I love to see their eyes light up when I show them dinosaurs, space shuttles, and sharks. I love the challenge of getting out of my routines and figuring out how to make these adventures happen. But last summer, we didn’t really travel. We stayed home. Skye went to a variety of local summer camps (which we…
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Transylvania Tae Kwon Do continuing to grow in downtown Brevard
Published in the Transylvania Times Martial arts studio Transylvania Tae Kwon Do has grown from an idea to a studio in downtown Brevard in the last year. Born of both a love of martial arts and a desire to bring a Tae Kwon Do style program to the area for their children, Transylvania Tae Kwon Do was started when parent,Caroline Chambers of Cedar Mountain, walked into the Hiker and the Hound and asked the owner Colin Watkins if he wanted to open a Tae Kwon Do school. “It actually was that simple,” said Chambers, who now has more than 40 students who attend afternoon programs at their studio in downtown…
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Where are the real mermaids?
You can be anything you want to be, even a mermaid. You think I’m joking? Skye is a mermaid. She says this with all seriousness. She’s worked very hard to become one and has plans for her future mermaiding. Weeki Wachee Springs (now a Florida state park) is home to the original mermaids. It boasts a clear water spring that is 72-degrees year round, an underwater amphitheater, and a long history of mermaids (even Elvis was a fan!). We took Skye for her 4 year old birthday, where she discovered that mermaids were real and, after seeing one of the mermaids putting on her tail, figured out that she too…
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The Changing Sky
Flying over America you watch snaking rivers, pointed mountains, large deserts sprinkled with towns, and patchwork farms slide underneath. Of course, mostly you read or distract yourself from the journey, peering out only now and then to get your bearings below. Driving, however, is different. You have to pay attention to the road and the areas around you. You see how the landscape changes, sometimes slowly and sometimes with the passage of a river over to a new world. You climb into the shadows of snaggled mountains, blink into the blinding light reflecting from ice and snow. Most of all, you see the sky. In the east, the sky is…
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The Cleaning Supplies Closet
One thing about living in a house, you have space for things. Sometimes, these are nice things to have, like a normal size broom. On the boat, I had a handheld vacuum and a hand broom. In the house, I not only have full-sized versions of both, but also a mop and swiffer and a whole closet dedicated to storing cleaning supplies. This seems like a somewhat decadent use of space, coming from a 30-something foot sailboat. I spend a fair amount of time as we settle into our home thinking about what we really need. I’m absolutely in favor of things that make life easier – cleaning with a…
