Hola,
The waves have been a little bigger in the last few days which is great for Michael. There was a bit of south swell that came through which is perhaps not the optimal direction for this beach, but it did increase the wave size. This afternoon it looked as if we were getting a little northwest swell which is a better direction. Although, when it mixed in with the leftover south swell, things got a little unpredictable. Surfing is a hard sport to learn. There are so many factors such as tide, wave size and direction, wind strength and direction, not to mention the skills and strength required by the surfer in order to paddle out, catch a wave, stand up, and turn etc. It can be frustrating, scary, exhilarating, fun, difficult, and satisfying all in the same session. It is physically demanding and, certainly for me, demanding in ways that neither I nor my body are used to. It can also be rewarding. I'm just hoping that with a little perseverance maybe I'll start to get the hang of it. In any case, I'm having fun trying, and that is really the point I guess.
We've run into a few characters in our daily meanderings around here. For example, there is Rick and Joan from Florida who are here finishing up a condominium project that we pass every day on the way to the beach. I think it's 4 units right now and there may be more in the works. Rick is a contractor who couldn't wrap his head around quitting working, so he hasn't really retired. They find projects that have stalled out in the middle (pretty common here) and finish them off. Joan's job seems to be to pick out the paint colors. She really takes it seriously. For the past three weeks she's been dithering constantly about what colors to paint the building. Every day she is standing out front holding up paint samples and the building has had a rainbow of paint swatches applied in different locations. She saw a shirt I was wearing one day, and later said she wanted to match one of the colors in it, if I could just stop by the next time I'm wearing it, she could get out her fan of paint chips. They have been to San Jose (a 6 hour trip) more than once to get paint. She can't seem to make up her mind and is willing to change it at the drop of a hat. Rick must have a lot of patience! The building is now painted in places blue, yellow, terra-cotta, and green of varying shades. It looks nice, but who's to say if it will stay that way!
Another character here is Robin. She is an American woman who moved down her in 2006. She has a delightful ice cream shop that also has yummy smoothies, wraps, salads etc. Most of it is organic and there are also vegan and vegetarian options. The ice creams and sorbets are homemade and scrumptious! Michael met Robin the last time he was here when she had just opened her shop, which in those days was ice cream only. It seems to be a very successful endeavor now. Robin seems to know every dog in town. A couple of them are usually lounging in the shade on the cool tile of her cafe. She has a tiny dog herself named Betty. We borrowed a book from a stack that Robin had out at the cafe and both read it. It's called "Walking in Circles Before Lying Down" by Merrill Markoe. I recommend it if you like dogs and like to laugh. We were both laughing out loud while reading it.
Well we're off to watch the Super Bowl at one of the local bars. Not because we care greatly about the Super Bowl, but rather because several of the bars are offering specials and enticing people to come and watch and we expect quite a few people will. Time for a little socializing!
Cheers,
Sojourner Sarah
P.S. We'll get some fresh pictures up very soon.
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