Bell Peppers and BBQ

We have something different lined up for today’s swim. Kristina from New York contacted me about a month ago. She and her husband were planning on coming out for the Ohana Music Festival and she enjoys open water swimming whenever she gets the chance when she travels. So she stumbled upon this blog and reached out to see if she could tag along one day during her trip. Well today is the day!

I’m disappointed to see clouds in the sky. It was sunny and so beautiful yesterday and I thought it would be great if my new New York friends could see some Southern California sunshine during the swim. It was perfect yesterday. Oh well, it’s still nice and the water will be warm.

I’m very out of sorts due to some personal issues and I end up driving on the wrong side of the median on Selva Road. Jeez - good thing there was no oncoming traffic. I meet Kristina and her husband at the bathrooms and we head down to the beach. Kristina was so generous, gracious and thoughtful to give me one of her swim buoys for keeps! She gave me a swim cap too. I’m a real bonafide open water swimmer now! Thank you Kristina!

We swim north almost to the Monarch Bay Beach Club. Kristina is a faster swimmer than I am. As we pass the Ritz, we smell food. She is thinking it’s barbeque sauce and I am guessing bell peppers. I think breakfast is being served up on the bluff. The water surface is calm and the water visibility is poor but much better than it has been. We see pelicans and a seagull. It is a lovely swim.

I am thankful for the company because it is taking my mind off of my personal troubles but I do take a minute on the swim to check in with the ocean and it assures me everything will be ok. It’s so amazing how we can be so convinced that everything will not be ok. Then hours, days, or however long later, we are still here and have managed to find joy and plenty of reason to forge ahead. It’s just more reason to keep moving forward. Never give up. Things will get better.

We finish our swim and then Kristina and her husband treat me to breakfast at Coffee Importers. They are an absolutely delightful couple and I am so happy that I agreed to this social swim. I have done this a few times now with different people I don’t know and it always ends up being great.