Breakfast out on hubby’s recent day off was a good idea. The walk that followed (over 3 miles of it) was shockingly sunny on the most beautiful Puget Sound beach. The sand shone with glowing things, and I couldn’t resist these lovely rock oyster shells calling to me from all over the beach.
Everything glittered under our feet as we wandered.
I’m very grateful for public bathrooms on our walks. I don’t feel I have to compromise. I can walk far and drink plenty of water. Plus, if you’ve never experienced a stainless steel seat in an outdoor bathroom on a cool (not frigid) February day, you haven’t lived. That’s something to wake you up!
We could have stayed home and puttered, and I wouldn’t have gotten sand in my shoes, gritty between my toes. We wouldn’t have seen pied-billed grebes, mergansers and surf scoters. We wouldn’t have seen that little sailboat leave the dock and then hoist its spinnaker into the sky. And we wouldn’t have seen the last glowing thing. I don’t have a closeup picture, so you’ll have to imagine yourself zoomed in on this bird (photo captured on a different beach walk) right now.
A cormorant is sunning below us on the sand, blocky yellow beak tucked backwards between his wings. One eye is visible, closed to just a slit. The lid is leather, grayish yellow streaks in a circle, lying just beside the startling yellow beak and cheek. Bumpy. It slides open and there is a glowing jade gem within. This eye is a smooth circle of green swirls, layered and patterned within one another. Staring through the binoculars, I’m grateful for this glimpse.
I could have stayed home and puttered, but instead I got glowing things, chilly bathrooms, and sand in my shoes.
The Best of It 