Luci Westphal

Baby gator sleeping on a log in Shark Valley, Everglades, National Park, Florida

Everglades National Park Photos – Part I: Shark Valley

The Everglades National Park is a wildlife and bird photographers paradise. All these photos I took along just one trail: the Shark Valley Loop.

Red-winged black bird, 1 dollar bill, buy local tampa bay

Discover and Buy Local from Tampa Bay Artists and Makers

Tampa Bay’s LocalShops1 created a great online marketplace to support local artists, makers and small businesses – and to help everyone find unique products. It’s a win-win for a healthy community!

music playlist favorite songs 2020 second quarter, April, May, June, sunset

Favorite Songs: 2nd 1/4 of 2020 Mix Tape

Not surprisingly, my favorite songs of spring 2020 were influenced by the events and mood of the world and how they influenced artists and me: coronavirus, Black Lives Matters, isolation, loneliness, loss, and the need to rise up and speak up.

Snowy Egret coming in for landing on new LuciWest photography website and blog

New Landing Spot: My New Merged Relaunched Imperfect Website

This new LuciWest site has been a work-in-progress long enough, and it doesn’t seem I’ll ever get it “just right”. Therefore, I’m now officially declaring it launched – or relaunched.

Great white egret on tree, pink roseate spoonbill in flight, facing away

Introspection, Reflection and Need for Action – by a White German Expat in America

During the anguish of these days, something comes through clearly: it’s not enough to think one is not a racist, one has to be a proactive anti-racist. And that starts with some introspection and reflection.

music playlist favorite songs 2020 first quarter, January, February, March, royal tern beach shadow

Favorite Songs: 1st 1/4 of 2020 Mix Tape

With some technical (new website!) and global pandemic delays, here is my selection of favorites songs from the first quarter of 2020.

Roseate Spoonbill, pink, bird, animal, Florida

Featured Photo: Roseate Spoonbill

This Roseate Spoonbill, I photographed on my 2020 birthday in April.

Cormorants, Florida, birds, black, orange beak, blue eyes

Refreshed

Testing the air and soon the water.

Favorite Songs: 4th 1/4 of 2019 Mix Tape

In some ways, the last favorite song mix tape of the year is usually the most interesting one to me. I usually get to add quite a few last minute songs to it as I discover great songs on other people’s best-of-the year lists.

Jumping Over My Own Shadow: My First Indie Market

In German, we have an expression that translates to “jumping over one’s own shadow” and means to do something that doesn’t come natural to you and is unsettling, even scary to you. It’s usually something that is not scary or even a big deal to others – but just outside of your personal comfort zone or natural behavior.

Favorite Songs: 3rd 1/4 of 2019 Mix Tape

Another quarter of a year came and went. A lot happened, a lot didn’t happen. There were songs, there was silence. More laughter, tears, outrage, thoughts, talks, yearning, gratitude, hope, disappointment, several road trips (one especially epic), sooo many beach walks and beach sunsets, a lot of work and never enough dancing. Here are my favorite songs from July, August and September 2019.

Favorite Songs: 2nd 1/4 of 2019 Mix Tape

Alright, I’m finally officially not making CDs for my quarterly favorite song mixes anymore… it’s all just playlists from now on. And since I now have the freedom to make the quarterly playlists as long as I want to… I decided to restrict them to the length of a 90-minute cassette tape.

Photos from the Weeki Wachee River and Springs State Park (Florida)

One of the best places in Florida: Weeki Wachee Springs State Park and the Weeki Wachee River and its manatees.

Spring Blooms and Chicks

This spring, I got to travel to North Carolina and various places around Florida. Naturally, I took lots of photos. Over the next few weeks, I plan on publishing several posts (either here or over on Happier.Place) dedicated to specific locations, e.g., Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Favorite Songs: 1st 1/4 of 2019 – #MusicMonday

How is it May already? Easy: time keeps on ticking into the future. Sigh. Anyway, here’s my “mix tape” with my few favorite songs from January, February and March 2019.

Photos of Florida Gulf Coast Birds

Since moving to the Florida Gulf Coast in June 2018, I’ve found real pleasure in admiring and photographing the local birds. At times, it seems that my camera is drawn mostly to waterbirds – but then I spent over an hour just standing near a bald eagle’s nest in hopes of seeing a white head.