The Coastal Life

07/04/2025

HaPpY 4th of July!!!

07/02/2025

This ‘youthful’ piece of fossilized coral is a mere 350,000,000 years-old. Found along the shores of Lake Michigan near Northport, MI (and polished by a professional). It’s a Petoskey stone. What’s a Petoskey stone?

The Petoskey stone is a fossilized coral called Hexagonaria percarinata that lived over 350 million years ago during the Devonian Period, when Michigan was covered by a warm, shallow sea. These corals formed vast reef colonies, and after they died, their skeletons were buried and slowly turned to stone. During the Ice Age, glaciers unearthed and scattered the fossilized coral, which eventually washed up along Lake Michigan’s shores. Each hexagonal pattern in the stone is the preserved skeleton of an ancient coral polyp. A beautiful snapshot of prehistoric ocean life and a reminder to slow down and cherish every moment of our brief time on this coastal planet.

06/23/2025

10:10pmET tonight.

06/22/2025

To my Coastal Life Community, I personally invite you to also join me on my writing journey, “The Exhausted Dream Chaser”, now on Substack at:

https://substack.com/profile/328596512-the-exhausted-dream-chaser/note/c-128312543?r=5fmyow&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action

Eye on Dunedin David Jordan Gary Reilly Angela Brown-Ligon Tracey Short Jennifer Barilla Sean Marsiglia Valerie Sladki Powers Micki Long Carolyn Grunenwald Pucks&pizza Kerry Gentry Viardo Dave Pettitt Voice Over Don Dunlop Kay Valentik Rebecca R Nichols Edith Mendez @

Despite every accomplishment, I didn’t feel extraordinary. I felt tired. Tapped out. Surviving. Performing. Pushing. Putting myself last. Flying on auto-pilot. Running on fumes. Failing to even notice. Gambling and wishing away precious gifts. Justified mistruths. Buried in a mound of duty. Drowni...

06/20/2025

Who loves lighthouses? During a recent trip to the Old Mission Peninsula along Grand Traverse Bay on Lake Michigan, I captured another Coastal Life Story Lab episode with my new friend Brit who taught me about this charming old lighthouse, one of 129 lighthouses along Lake Michigan. Stay tuned!

06/17/2025

COASTAL FAMILY LIFE - Grand Traverse Bay, MI

05/25/2025

Jensen Brothers Seafood has/had cold water lobster meat and some monster U12s so I couldn’t resist. To my Northeastern friends, how’d I do with these warm butter and cold traditional lobster rolls?
Eye on Dunedin @

05/24/2025

05/23/2025

The Coastal Life Story Lab on another story-filled adventure last night. Stay tuned!

05/22/2025

THE COASTAL LIFE STORY LAB MANIFESTO: Everything changed the day I quit law school. I thought a prestigious and affluent profession was the answer. But deep down, prompted by my youngish mother’s lost battle, I knew it wasn’t my calling.

Then came the moment I couldn’t ignore. Something I knew I had to do. A path far less certain. Placed upon it with a purpose. A relentless desire to tell stories. Not perfect stories, but honest stories. The extraordinary inside the ordinary. The best stories.

27 years later, I’ve somehow managed to not starve. Somehow carving out a wonderful life. Fueled by storytelling across multiple mediums. Fascinating client projects affording me time for my own projects. Film. Music. Photography. Podcasts. And, yes, writing. My lifelong coastal dream finally awakening right here in Dunedin, Florida.

I’m done with algorithms. ‘Reel’ stories engineered for addiction. Zombie scrolling that ‘feeder bar’. Cheap thrills. The viral drug du jour. The digital world’s lost art of longer form storytelling.

I’m here to reclaim what’s truly important. Honest stories. Human stories. Stories that matter. Stories that make a difference. Stories that make us smile warmly. Stories that elicit a stray tear. Stories which make us feel less alone, not more alone. Stories designed to connect us. Not divide us. The United States of Shared Humanity.

The Coastal Life Story Lab is an evolution of my storytelling. An independent passion project. A penniless project. Digging for something extraordinary. Lurking beneath the ordinary. Immersing you in the moments of life. The coastal life. Daily rhythms. Deeper reflections. Examining life. Purpose. Fulfillment. Meeting others who call the coast their home. Embracing the rewards. Weathering the challenges. Living it to the fullest.

If you’re still with me, and I hope you are, welcome to our shared journey! Today, the story evolution continues. The newest chapter awakens. Meet the extraordinary David Ufer. Venture into his cherished Sandpiper.

David walked away from the corporate world to roast coffee. His new office a charming hundred-hurricane-seasons-old house. Just two short blocks from Gulf waters. Trading computers for something that finally felt real. Showing us that true success is rooted in a slower life, brewed with intention.

Oh, and by the way, if you’re enriched by what you hear, tell a friend. A stranger. An enemy. A former enemy turned friend. A former friend turned enemy. We could all use something real about now. Future episodes will be fueled by your encouragement.

I now invite you to meet David. After all, he’s been waiting patiently. Simply open the door and walk right through at https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ep-6-from-corporate-it-to-coastal-coffee-roaster-meet/id1750370785?i=1000709471394 OR, as the worn expression goes, “wherever you listen to podcasts”.

This is The Coastal Life Story Lab. Where real stories live. And the soul of storytelling still breathes.

05/19/2025

COMING SOON - Ep. 6 David Ufer: From Corporate IT to Coastal Coffee Roaster

The Coastal Life Story Lab immerses you in the overlooked moments of daily coastal life through soundscape-filled audio documentaries. Each episode a fascinating human story capturing daily rhythms and deeper reflections. Offering a glimpse of what coastal living teaches us about life, happiness, and fulfillment.

Available wherever you listen to podcasts.

Stuart Meyer is a documentary filmmaker, composer, podcast producer and writer who finally realized his landlocked lifelong dream of living the coastal life when he moved permanently to the captivating small coastal town of Dunedin, Florida.

05/12/2025

NEED YOUR HELP - As you may be aware, The Coastal Life has been a combination of a five-episode video documentary series on YouTube, a memoir-style podcast, and lots of photography/social posts. Last month I hit the 'pause' button on the The Coastal Life to reassess interest and contemplate its evolution.

I'm presently exploring the idea of combining the video and podcast into an immersive long-form audio documentary series-based podcast entitled, "The Coastal Life Story Lab". Thanks to the support (and blind faith) of David Ufer, I now have my first full-fledged 'pilot' episode featuring his story and the story of Sandpiper here in Dunedin, FL.

I'm in desperate need of feedback as I'm trying to determine if this storytelling approach is compelling. Something you might enjoy listening to regularly. Something that might resonate deeply with others. Is it entertaining? Does it leave you wanting to listen to other stories? Or is it nice, but a one-and-done type thing.

While this pilot episode has not yet been released, I'm including an unlisted YouTube link where you can listen to this audio-only episode, which has a runtime of 21 minutes (reinforcing my strong desire to tell stories, not to become a TikTok sensation).

Feel free to share your feedback as a comment in this post or via DM/messenger if you'd prefer.

My thanks and gratitude in advance for your time and consideration.

With Appreciation,

Stuart