This is sadly the last summer for the Miracle Strip Amusement Park here at Panama City Beach. It’s closing its doors after Labor Day.

Miracle Strip was – and is – a tiny, cheesy, tourist-trap of an amusement park, but was a rare treat during family beach trips to Panama City. It has been on this sand for an amazing 41 summers, opening in 1963. This spring, however, the park fell victim to the onrush of development. Look for another high-rise condo to take its place next year.

I hope to ride the Starliner roller coaster one more time before the doors close for good. And perhaps take Kelly and Hallie around for a little tour.

It’s sad to see childhood landmarks fade away.

I have achieved a geek fantasy today by blogging from the beach. It took me dragging the access point to the balcony, but I’m here in the sand with the Gulf of Mexico ten meters in front of me.

Whew. Now that little milestone has been achieved, I’m going to take my big girl out into the water. Maybe later I’ll log onto IRC and taunt my cubicle-bound friends. I’m so evil!

We’re in at Sterling Beach. This place is a palace! Absolutely huge condos. I’ve got tons of pictures to upload tomorrow, so look for them.

Why do I wait three years before taking a vacation? I must be nuts.

We’re off on vacation. I’ll blog when I damn well feel like it. In the meantime, learn how to do something new.

Oh yeah, the harmonica is definitely going on vacation with me.

So why’s it always “bacon, egg, and cheese?” Why not “egg, cheese, and bacon?” It’s not like you put the cheese down first, the egg usually goes down first. So why not say “egg” first?

Here are a few links, just in case, you know, anyone wants to know what happened to Lionel Richie. He’s now available for private parties. Book him for your wedding today!

The initial public offering of Google is expected to take place today. Much has been made about its experiment with a dutch auction, and the Street is chuckling to itself. I think Google tried to do the right thing.

Now let’s see if the pressure of being a public company can keep them from being evil.

During my Navy duty, I had the opportunity to visit Diego Garcia, the speck of British-owned coral just south of the equator in the Indian Ocean. It is a beautiful piece of land: quite a tropical island paradise, with crystal-clear waters lapping on white, palm-tree topped coral beaches.

Diego Garcia is also one-hundred-percent military base. This military base needs no fences due to its remote location and dozens of patrolling ships. It is home to numerous B-52s, B-2 bombers, as well as serving as a staging area for materials bound for the Persian Gulf. During the cold war, it proved to be an ideal place from which to monitor the Soviets in the Indian Ocean. Thus, the Naval Security Group (of which I was a part) was the first to move in.

It wasn’t until after my visit to Diego Garcia that I learned how the indigenous people of Diego Garcia were unceremoniously packed up and shipped off, with only a suitcase of their belongings. To this day, they are not allowed to return to their homeland, even to visit. Kinda sad.

The people of Diego Garcia won a victory in British court in 2001, but a hollow one at best. The U.S. lease on the base runs through 2016, and even if we leave, the reef is now so damaged that its existence and that of the wildlife it supports is threatened.

Once again, individual rights get evicted by “national security.”