I Got Inspired at Tybee Island

img_06871One tradition my husband and I have is to visit our daughter, Kristy, in Georgia every Memorial Day Weekend. This year together we explored Tybee Island on Georgia’s coast. A beautiful, colorful and laid back place, 18 miles east of  Savannah. It’s a place where the residents go to cool off in the hot an humid summers.

Tybee Island beaches are important nesting areas for endangered sea turtles. They return to Tybee each year from May  to October 31.

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I had to get out of the car and run through weeds to get this photo.

About 20 minutes later I wondered why me legs were itching and my husband said, “It couldn’t be the grass you ran through that’s causing you to itch, could it?

 

 

img_06923“The river is wide, the water fresh, and from the key of the town you can see its whole course to the sea, with the island of Tybee which forms the mouth of the river… The landscape is very agreeable.”   -James Oglethorpe 1773

Being in nature brings out the best in people. There is no room for worries or troubles on this path way. If you are a nature love you will love exploring coastal salt marshes and beaches withnatural, protected dunes, and subtropical forests of live oak, pine and palm.

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I love the fun restaurants and the quiet beach along the ocean.

AJ’s is where the locals go. A musician was playing his guitar and singing James Taylor songs.  Very close to the deck we saw five dolphins swimming.

The small barrier island boasts a wide, 3 mile long beach that’s perfect for sunbathing and frolicking in the waves.

We watched the tide come and go. It’s easy to run and bike close to the water. Kristy and I rented a bicycle built for two but that photo is on her camera.

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Tybee Island is a happy place filled with bright colors and bold and daring decorators who paint murals on their garage doors!

You can’t not smile when you see the bright, bold colors used to paint, homes, restaurants and everything else in sight!

 

The weather was perfect everyday. We actually extended our stay to a week.

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To say I was inspired by the colors is an understatement. Those that know me well know that I love to paint.

My home in Michigan had bright colors splashed throughout.

Love these happy looking chairs!

 

 

We returned home with a glow and 10 days later I painted my 6 kitchen chairs!

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When you need to be inspired look at things you haven’t seen before and do things you haven’t done before.  Where do you go and what to you do when you need a little inspiration?

{ 23 comments… add one }

  • Positively Present June 10, 2009, 11:53 am

    What a great post! I love the first image… so great. I think I need that posted somewhere in my room because I need to learn to SLOW down and stop rushing. I laughed when I saw the image with the question “What part of SLOW confuses you?” In fact, those four letters confuse me very much. I don’t understand why anyone would do ANYTHING slow, which is definitely a problem for me.

    As for where I go when I’m looking for inspiration…I find that I do my best thinking right as I’m about to fall asleep or while driving in the car (both pretty inconvenient times to be writing ideas down). I’d like to take some time to take a trip somewhere beautiful and see how inspiring it is… but, then again, that might require me to slow down… haha.

    Positively Present’s last blog post..dip your toes into the moment

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  • Mark June 10, 2009, 1:29 pm

    Looks like a great place. I love the idea of slowing down. Yes changing places and things we do is very healthy.

    Mark’s last blog post..Inconsistency In Thought – Consistency in Growth

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  • Tess The Bold Life June 10, 2009, 1:48 pm

    Positively Present
    The first image is a hoot and to have the turtle sitting in a boat is a hoot! Oh when you are driving leave yourself a message about your idea. It was difficult for me to slow down myself. Almost came home early because of it.

    Mark
    Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate your comments and love your blog!

    Tess The Bold Life’s last blog post..I Got Inspired at Tybee Island

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  • Julie June 10, 2009, 2:07 pm

    Tess, this looks like a wonderful, fun place. It seems very exotic—and it’s right here in the States! I know very little about the Southeast… Your turtle crossing sign cracks me up: I can just see a line of cars in both directions sitting patiently waiting for the turtle to s-l-o-w-l-y mosey across the road. :)) Love your colorful chairs! Color definitely affects our mood. Looks like Tybee Island is a sweet combination of relaxed energy. Thank you for giving us a little travelogue and chuckles, to boot.

    Julie’s last blog post..On That Note

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  • CJ June 10, 2009, 6:08 pm

    Tess you are fantastic – your website is where I go to be inspired!
    Love, love, love the kitchen chairs! Oh and now I want to go the the island too. So glad you had such a great inpired time and thank you for sharing it.
    Love ya,
    CJ

    Reply
  • Kristy June 10, 2009, 6:40 pm

    Mom the colors inspired me to as I planted my flowers on my patio the very next weekend. Of course, the brightest of pink won me over : ).

    Reply
  • Tess The Bold Life June 10, 2009, 7:03 pm

    CJ,
    Thanks so much for your compliments. You are the best! You would love the island.
    Put it on yourto do list.

    Kristy,

    It was so fun and the photos show it. Where are the bike photos? I always did have those flower boxes filled with some pink…blue, yellow…the best flowers on Lake Dr!

    Tess The Bold Life’s last blog post..I Got Inspired at Tybee Island

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  • jenn June 10, 2009, 7:41 pm

    Looks like a fabulous place to switch gears, relax and become inspired!!!

    I think anytime I need inspiration I turn to the net. I’ll surf (thats how I found you lol) and just relax. The best way to get inspiration though is to do what you did! Go away!!!! Just to leave our environment and go somewhere else, even for a brief time!

    Love the chairs Tess!!!

    jenn’s last blog post..We made it…

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  • Mary B Sheffield June 10, 2009, 8:22 pm

    What a wonderful place to visit ! The colors say it all ! Fun and sun …
    And everyone has to smile on the turtle signs ! We should all learn to slow down a little !
    My favorite down spot is on the Muskegon River. Just as the sun is coming up ! I love to fly fish and just to be out on the river as the mist is rising and to
    hear the slow waking up of the animals is magical ! I am always torn between
    writing and fishing ! But fishing is so limited it always seems to win ! :)
    Life is busy ! I think it is time for a little drive North . And the best time of all is when I meet our son who is going to Ferris State and our fishing spot is 1/2 home so we meet . I think I will go make a Date for Friday am !
    Thanks Tess !
    Mary B

    Reply
  • Phyllis Alesia June 10, 2009, 9:27 pm

    Shhh … ! We’re trying to keep Tybee a little secret down here in Georgia, so that it keeps that laid-back vibe. 😉

    Reply
  • janice June 11, 2009, 4:41 am

    Loved the holiday happiness of this whole post but the chairs were my favourite! I recently bought four tins of different coloured paint to do mine (the colours of the curtains in the header of my blog and that jug you saw in my post recently) but I’m waiting for the nesting birds to leave my wee stretch of garden so I can get painting.

    I agree with you about Chania Girl’s blog being inspiring. (I’ve never visited Stacey’s, but I’ll check it out. Thanks!) If you haven’t been to Chania itself, Tess, you’d love the colours of the old town there, too.

    My inspiration gets super recharged every time I go back to where I used to live in Greece (we used to paint our old olive oil cans red and fill them with geraniums) and by the daily happenings of nature in my own back yard. I’m constantly inspired by seeing how creative people get when it comes to making their homes expressive works of living art. Like your chairs!

    janice’s last blog post..45 Life Lessons to Celebrate Growing Older

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  • Tess The Bold Life June 11, 2009, 5:20 am

    How fun…fly fishing! We used to fish on the farm as a kid but fly fishing I’d love to try. And to meet your son is even better. The days our kids were in college were magical. We loved visiting. They are so full of energy during that time and I should mention excitement! Yes go make that Friday date:)

    Phyllis,

    That is what someone in Savannah told me! I asked why the island was so laid back with no high rises and condos and that’s exactly what she said and that’s the way the natives want to keep it. Sorry for letting the secret slip. I forgot:)

    I had no idea someone from GA was reading my blog! That makes me smile.

    Janice,
    We think a like and now we’re painting the same thing at the same time…how fun!
    Birds in a nest…we used to have a small tree in front of our home where a nest was built every spring. Now my duaghter has a tiny tree in her front yard with a nest every spring. Maybe it’s from the same family!

    I wold love to go to Greece. The geraniums are my favorite flower (and my moms). My grandfather used to plant tomatoes seeds in tomatoe soup cans and start them on his window sill.
    Thanks for the long post and all the sharing. I appreciate you.

    Tess The Bold Life’s last blog post..I Got Inspired at Tybee Island

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  • Jannie Funster June 11, 2009, 12:46 pm

    I wanna go to Tybee too, wah-wah.

    Tess, you more than live up to your boldness wtih those kitchen chairs. LOVE them! Is that you in the pink tee sitting there?

    As to Janice, I’m jealous. I’ve never been to Greece, boo hoo. Ate some grease tho. Lots of it in my day. Fries, bacon, roasted lard & such.

    Jannie Funster’s last blog post..Gravatar update

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  • Tess The Bold Life June 11, 2009, 1:06 pm

    Jannie,
    Thanks for the flippin laugh! The same goes for me and Greece and grease!
    Who do you think I am you personal assistant about that Monday thing?

    Tess The Bold Life’s last blog post..I Got Inspired at Tybee Island

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  • Hilary June 11, 2009, 2:41 pm

    Hi Tess .. great description of the coast and edge of land .. I loved your pictures and can’t wait to see the tandem pics .. were there lots of boardwalks to cycle down? Sounds like you had a wonderful time .. and the colours for your kitchen chairs are such fun .. I have cushions from Africa in bright colours .. to cheer my kitchen – not to say the home actually needs it – but a bit of Africa is good for me!

    Enjoy you kitchen with its sunny colours ..
    Hilary Melton-Butcher
    Positive Letters

    Hilary’s last blog post..Two Hs and Two 5s – half a millennia and skirts …

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  • Alik Levin | PracticeThis.com June 11, 2009, 10:51 pm

    Wonderful coverage and great photos. A breath of fresh air, for a moment I felt I could easily sense the breeze.
    Cool off, eh? 😉

    Alik Levin | PracticeThis.com’s last blog post..Single Step Toward A Journey Of Thousand Blog Posts

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  • Shankar June 12, 2009, 12:18 am

    Tess!
    Once again I felt compelled to leave a not, though I personally feel that I’m not matching up with your views about life, as I always focus on those issues which are making trouble in life rather than focusing only on greener parts. ( Sorry! If you find me sounding a bit objective.)

    “When you need to be inspired look at things you haven’t seen before and do things
    you haven’t done before”. – Once again you’ve inspired me with your great concept. Thank you!

    I would request you to drop a few lines for those people who are going through a lean patch of life about Mental healing. I think you are an expert to draw a line about it. How we could control our subconscious mind to concentrate more on the positivity.

    I hope to get your views, soon.

    You are loving and caring. May God bless you.

    Shankar.

    Reply
  • Lance June 12, 2009, 3:17 am

    Hi Tess,
    I love these pictures!! And what a great place to get away to, and really “experience”. When I need a little inspiration, I usually head outside. And I really like this idea of going to someplace new and different – the newness and change are all great ways to spark some new thoughts!

    And I love the painted garage doors!

    Lance’s last blog post..The Sunset Of Our Soul

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  • Jannie Funster June 12, 2009, 11:16 am

    What? You’re NOT my personal assistant? Boy is my bubble burst. :)

    And you forgot to say if that’s you in the pink tee sitting on the yellow chair, looking quite like the movie star.

    Jannie Funster’s last blog post..Gravatar update

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  • Jocelyn of I TAKE OFF THE MASK June 12, 2009, 8:19 pm

    That was a lovely day! Thanks for sharing your travel, maybe it’s time to go someplace close to nature and enjoy the fresh air once again :-)

    Jocelyn of I TAKE OFF THE MASK’s last blog post..Inspirational Quotes – On Religion

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  • Tess The Bold Life June 13, 2009, 4:09 pm

    Hillary,

    I think I’d like your cushions. I want my world colored happy and bright colors seem to do the trick.

    Alik,
    You certainly are using all of your senses! Oh yeah the breeze….

    Shankar,
    I’m glad you find my blog unlifting! A few posts ago I wrote about an acient healing teaching of Hawaii called Ho’oponopono. This continues to wonders for me. I would advise you to get the book as well called zero limits by joe vitalie. Let me know if it helps.

    Lance,
    Outdoors never fails to inspire me as well. Nature is so healing. The garage door is a hoot. The place is happy, filled with color and the ocean….can’t get any better.

    Jannie,
    yes it’s me! Sun glasses and hat are a must in AZ in the summers. I love my baseball caps.

    Jocelyn,
    I find pleasure in sharing my photos of fun and places of pleasure. Thanks for stopping by!

    Reply
  • Capt. James Moore June 27, 2010, 7:03 pm

    I am glad you enjoyed my Turtle in the boat. The sign was put there to hopefully slow down the fast cars hurry on our street. You might have missed the one on my bench (drive like your on vacation) words to live by on the island. I am glad you enjoyed your time on the island. Please leave only your foot prints and come back again. Capt. James Moore

    Reply
  • bonnierose June 29, 2010, 1:52 pm

    We’re going to Tybee for the first time Aug 25th for a week staying on the ocean. fr all we’ve read we cannot wait to go! So happy u had such a great time.. your pics were awesome! Any other suggestions for us? My email is

    hugs bonnierose in Fargo
    .-= bonnierose´s last post…Tuesday Throwdown 6 – Black and White with a Splash of Color- =-.

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