Seven days of rain in a row now — so far. We had an hour or so, maybe less, of dry this morning and got out and headed “up the neck”. Waccamaw Neck is a long peninsula of land north from Georgetown with rivers on one side and barrier islands and ocean on the other. There is only one road, Ocean Highway, up and you must cross two high and long bridges to get there. Too often there is an accident on a bridge with traffic back-ups and nothing to do but wait until it clears.
Most of our stores, medical services, etc, are Up the Neck and it’s just a fact of life that there will be delays. Thank goodness for today’s cell phones. If you have an appointment you just call and say, “There’s an accident on 17 so I’ll be there when it clears,” and they fit you in when you get there. 
Last week we waited 30 minutes in this spot to get moving again.
The views are nice, though, and you get there when you do.
Don’t think all traffic accidents and delays are on the bridges though. This appeared in the town news on line last week.
Shopping Up the Neck and in Georgetown has a whole new meaning these pandemic days. We don’t go in stores anymore, browse the aisles, exchange pleasantries or money. Our shopping goes like this.
For the hardware/garden store, you shop from pictures and pay on line and they notify you when your things are ready. You drive Up the Neck, park in a special spot, and try to follow the somewhat confusing instructions on the sign. Sometimes they work, other times you have to call the store service department. Either way, eventually someone in a mask comes out, checks your I.D. through the window, places your stuff in the back of the car, and you’re on your way.
Walmart (groceries, prescriptions) has a similar system, but you send a text when you leave your home, they track your car and are often waiting with your order when you arrive.
Does this seem a little, um, 1984 to anyone else???
If you have to wait a bit, no worries because there is lots of activity cavorting in this large drainage pond where you have a front row seat. That thing that looks like a stick in the center — that’s a 4 foot alligator that entertained us. The other dark spots are large turtles. We counted nine with their heads out of the water at once this day.
Well, enough of that. Let’s get to the real news.
For months I worked on a little project. Months because — I made it and remade it three times! The first time the color was wrong when we got a little important information about its recipient. The second time I didn’t realize it was getting wonky from uneven tension (crocheting too tightly (me - stressed), then too loosely (me - relaxed)). Instead of a rectangle we had a rhomboid,and I frogged it and began once again. Third time was the charm.
So ...
Meet Jack, our ninth (9th!) grandSON!
Masked and socially-distanced, we are looking forward to seeing him for the first time this weekend.
