Running on the Beach

The forecast for Friday morning called for intermittent rain all day, heavier rain in the afternoon.  But when I awoke and went down to the dune-top deck, it was not raining at all - there was fog out over the ocean, and too cloudy to see the sunrise, but no rain.  But what a joy it was to stand in this familiar place, surrounded by sand and dune vegetation, breathing in the tang of ocean air, and practicing slow, mindful Tai Chi after all the driving we have done in the past two days.  As I was going through the movements, the sky seemed to break open, and blue sky materialized overhead in a rough little window of calm, the fog and clouds melting away just as my travel stress was, shuffled off in the brisk morning breeze off the ocean.

When I returned and finished breakfast, there was even more blue sky.  It was low tide, too, so we decided that the tides and the weather (always difficult to predict out here on the edge of the world) had conspired to create the perfect conditions for a run.  We went down to the beach and headed north toward Fort Macon, on wide flat sand, our feet crunching on the many seashells, and then as we went farther north it was smooth and wide and free of shells, a place absolutely made for running.  The fog began to lift a little, and we turned and headed back to the Sands Villas.  Martha said, "I'm going to pick it up a little," and sprinted on ahead; I struggled to keep up.  What a wonderful run!  Martha said it was the best run she has had in a very long time - the Atlantic Ocean literally at our elbows, the morning sun so warm that I took my shirt off and ran bare-chested all the way back.

In the afternoon, we attended to practical things, airing out this condo that has been closed up for a long time, cleaning windows and tables, putting things in order.  A leaky toilet flush valve was replaced, light bulbs were replaced.  Lizette is gracious enough to let us stay here, so we treat this place as we would our own home, making small improvements each year.

In the afternoon, we checked out the nearby Morehead City Parks and Recreation facilities and I signed up for a year-long pass, at the incredible price of $40.00.  Free weights, Barre and Yoga, Tai Chi, and pickleball courts - we look forward to making good use of this place on rainy days while we are here!  On the way home, we found that Blue Ocean, the seafood market we discovered two years ago, had moved into spacious new quarters, and we came away with fresh dry-pack scallops, remoulade sauce, and smoked salmon dip.  Martha prepared a delicious dinner of scallops, heirloom potatoes, and organic carrots.  There is nothing better than simple food like this at the beach!

So our first day here on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean was a good one - sunshine, running, good simple food.  And the endless churning of the ocean, always in the background, and the ever-changing sky spread out to the horizon, sunshine flashing through the clouds.  That's why we like to come here - to re-connect to this beautiful natural world and to each other.