Beach Therapy

So, lately, it seems that life has been a bit twisty-turny for both my friend Summer and for me. Oh, nothing to tear our hair out about, just the normal stress that can happen when job worries pile up (in her case, a rude student and a hectic summer school schedule at the college level, and for me, a summer job interfering with me readying myself for my new choir job). We frequently vent via email (we're old school), and try to get together often enough to have adventures and let off some steam.

We had plans for this weekend--set a month or so ago--for me to come to her place in Oakland on Saturday night, and to set off on Sunday for a free concert in San Francisco's Stern Grove Park, after a quick jaunt to the nearby Ocean Beach. It sounded great...until we both realized that this weekend was absolutely not the weekend that either one of us should sit in a crowded park surrounded by people. With that, our plans changed, and on Sunday, we drove an hour or so to Half Moon Bay, to have lunch at Cameron's Pub (because that's the only place you can eat in Half Moon Bay, duh) and to park our hineys on the beach for an hour or so.

It was foggy and a wee bit chilly, but who even cares? I had my toes in the sand, the sound of the Pacific rushing through me, and a dear friend by my side. Life is good.

Hello, Pacific. : )

Looking back towards Half Moon Bay and the hills behind it.

Love.

Fog doesn't stop us.

I took a TON of wave pics.

Cheaper than therapy.

Two California Girls takin' a selfie.

Looking north--beyond those hills/mountains lies San Francisco.

Of course, I took a ton of Instagram pictures, too, so those will be posted on Saturday.

It was a lovely getaway. Summer met her harried, crazy friend with a big hug after I climbed out of my car and declared, "There are two things in this life that I'm really good at."

"Getting lost," replied Summer drily.

"Yes. And singing."

It's true. By now, you'd think I would know how to get to Summer's house, but I took the wrong exit for Highway 13 and ended up right smack in downtown Berkeley. A few twists and turns and one stop to text Summer the reason for my tardiness ("I'm in Berkeley but I know how to get back to your place.") later, I was back on 580, thankfully going towards Oakland and not towards the Bay Bridge. I started laughing hysterically, because...really folks, only me.

We went out to have some frozen yogurt, then came home to chat, vent, cry a little, laugh a lot, and just relax. By the time Ben got home from work, I was calmer than I had been, and we sat around eating turkey burgers and drinking vodka and cranberry while watching the Zimmerman verdict come down and discussing our thoughts on it (we all agree it was bullshit).

My little getaway was just what I needed. Good friends make all the difference in life, don't they?