::lobster::

Yeah! It's officially lobster season in the Florida Keys. To celebrate, last week I let my boss know I wouldn't be in on Friday because I had a family obligation. Camping in the Keys with J, my siblings, and nieces is an "obligation", right? We've been going down for the past few years, although this is the first time we all did the tents. Usually we opt for a hotel on the water, but this year we thought we'd experience all that the great outdoors had to offer. And boy did we experience it: mosquitoes, no-see-ums, flies, raccoons, and the lovely Florida sunshine-- and lots of it.

We ended up only catching 5 bugs (that's a nickname for this yummy crustacean) and my little brother was the grill master who cooked them to perfection. Add a little butter and Old Bay seasoning...mmmmm.

On Saturday after the first trip lobstering on the boat we left our campsite and headed to grab lunch on Marathon Key. At many of the local dive shops and marinas I noticed stacks of new and used lobster traps.

I thought about how cute it would be to use this as a storage unit, decorative piece or even coffee table. Apparently, I wasn't the only clever cat. Kitka interviewed Adam Pesce, who created his own coffee table from a lobster trap. I love his mix of old and new.

So, 604 mosquito bites and 6 cans of OFF later, I'm finally home in the air conditioning and my comfy bed- thank goodness. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE camping and manage to do it very often, but the Keys in August is a big no-no.