Changeable Days

The forecast for this morning was "mostly cloudy," 50% chance of rain, but at 9:30 a.m. the sun was shining and it was 62 degrees.  I am never certain about those fine distinctions between "mostly cloudy" and "partly cloud" and "partly sunny" and "mostly sunny" to a meteorologist.  What I did know was that it was a beautiful morning, I needed to run, and it was warm enough to wear shorts and a singlet.  My six miles went well, with only the slightest twinge in my lower back.

By the time I returned, it had begun to cloud up, and after lunch the 50% rain began to half-way fall, so light that when I went out on the dune-top deck to investigate, tiny drops seem to float almost like snowflakes and bounce off my shirt.  I was glad that I had already run, but this would not have been unpleasant to run in at all.  The clouds came right down to the ocean like a cozy blanket. 

This photo looks gloomy, but I love days like this at the beach; it is a good day to read and to write, to piddle around a little, to relish being just a little bored:  il dolce far niente, as the Italian says - "the sweetness of doing nothing." 

By mid-afternoon the sun was shining again.  "Slightly cloudy but mostly sunny," and then "almost entirely sunny," and then "absolutely sunny without the slightest sign of clouds."

What a changeable day!  I opened the doors to the balcony and a gentle breeze came in off the ocean - partly sweet, partly salty - and I could hear the gentle rhythms of the surf.  Entirely peaceful.