June 19th, 2020

Earlier this week, for no reason whatsoever, Tim and I decided to do an after dinner walk to the beach.  

We used to walk over there regularly.  Any time of day is a good time at the beach but there is always something special about being there around sunset.  But then the Virus came and things got shut down and they closed the beaches and there went that.  

It was the right decision, please do not get me wrong. I find no fault with the choice.  But when a long standing routine is suddenly stopped, something else steps in to take it's place.  Nature abhors a vacuum and all that.  So we created a different after dinner routine.

And then now, of course, the beaches are open again, hurrah, and we can go back to the old way of doing things.  You'd think that the very first day the beaches re-opened,  we would have not just walked, but run, to the sand.  I mean, come on, it's just a few blocks from our house. Not like we are trekking across the frozen tundra for miles.  And yet we did not.  We had a whole new routine to change. Again.

Well that and people.  We did want to wait and see if people were just going to go crazy and re-infect everyone. But thankfully, at least here, that has not happened.  So once dinner was cleared away and the kitchen tidied up, we put our shoes back on and headed westward.

When we walk to the beach we like to go to a pedestrian only access point  to avoid dealing with traffic. And the closest pedestrian access point for us is nearly a straight line.  Well it would be if we were birds.  The streets are not straight so it feels a little round about but no worries, we still arrived.

And it wasn't crowded.  At least where we were.  

Oh there were people, but they were for the most part, well behaved, just walking quietly, or swimming, or lounging but staying away from others.  And that's a good thing.  

Looking out over the water is always a beautiful view, no matter the weather, the temperature, the attitude or my mood.  There is always at least a nice breeze, the sand feels good beneath my feet and the sight and smell of the ocean puts me in an entirely different state of being.  That's looking westward, out over the gulf.

When we turn around and face east again however, we see the backs of a line of condominiums.  Sigh.  I'm told that none of those condos existed until sometime in the 1980's when, during a recession, a developing came swooping in with big ideas and the town caved and allowed these condos to be built.  I suppose it's great for the people who live there, even part time.  All they have to do is step outside and they are on the beach.  When they look out their windows they see that unparalleled view!  Perhaps it's jealousy on my part, or maybe I was just born in the wrong era (I've been told that before!) but wouldn't it be nice if walking down that road everyone got to enjoy the view of the water, not just the folks living in those buildings.

The funny thing is that from the water, it's hard to tell one building from another.  The dunes, the sea grasses, the beach and buildings reflecting the sun with all that glass, it's like a maze!  How do you get back to your building?  Well they outline the pathways with shells.  That's kind of pretty don't you think?

But that's not the view that we came for.  We came to see the water and the boats and the birds and the shells and the water and the sunset.  And all of those things require looking to the west.

And so we did.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!  And a break in your routine.  (it's a good thing!)