A few weeks ago we were able to sneak away from Seattle for a few days and visit the beach. We walked on the beach under cotton candy skies as the sun set over the ocean. We played endless rounds of rummy and cribbage while looking out over the coast. And treated ourselves to lots of yummy seafood that we ate by the seashore.
Naturally I am a homebody as well as an introvert. I love being at home, curled up on my couch reading or watching a documentary or needlepointing. In general I am fine by being away from people, other than Riley, for periods of time. But, I didn’t realize just how cooped up a felt until I was able to leave and relax for a couple of days. It was nice being in a different place, with different scenery, with different food to eat. Even if it was just for a few days.
After dropping our sweet Mickey off at the doggie hotel and loading up the car with disinfectants and masks, we headed for the coast. While Riley has been going to the Oregon coast his whole life, this was my first trip and a was giddy with excitement. We finally arrived in this tiny little town and drove through the lush and picturesque golf course. Followed by street after street of little cape cod style beach houses complete with cedar shingles and hydrangea bushes out front. For just a moment I felt like I had been transported back to our honeymoon in Nantucket.
After a long day of travel we were excited to relax, eat a delicious meal and have a glass of wine. And that is just what we did. We walked around the neighborhood a bit. Ate a yummy dinner of crab cakes, Caesar salad, and lamb burgers. We enjoyed a glass of wine while we watched the sun set over the ocean.
The next day we woke up and enjoyed a delicious homemade breakfast of pancakes, fruit and bacon. Our goal for the trip was to eat out as little as possible, as to not put ourselves and others in unnecessary risk. For the first time in as long as I can remember, I spent the rest of the morning reading (28 Summers). It reignited the love for reading in me. Being transported to another time and place for even a small period of time.
After a quick lunch in Seaside and visiting a couple of Riley’s favorite little shops, we had the whole afternoon ahead of us. After being in town for almost a full day, we finally got to do one of my favorite things in the world. We went for a long walk on the beach. We walked as far as the beach would allow in the bright afternoon sun. Splashing in the water, looking for seashells and taking in the beautiful view.
That night was probably my favorite of the trip. Our anniversary was only a day after we got home for our trip, so in a way this was a trip to celebrate it. With all of that in mind, Riley arranged the sweetest of surprises. He found a way to get Maine lobster shipped to us so we could make lobster rolls. He found Cape Cod potato chips to go with the lobster rolls. Then he found a bottle of our favorite wine from our favorite meal of our honeymoon in New York. It was like a beautiful compilation of this wonderful trip that celebrated our marriage. It was the most scrumptious meal with all of our favorite things and couldn’t have been more perfect.
The next day of our trip was filled with walks on the beach, reading and more seafood. We had an epic morning puzzle session, trying to finish a 750-piece puzzle in one setting. While we weren’t successful, it was a lot of fun and filled with lots of laughs. After a morning inside, some fresh air was necessary. We took our first walk of the day on the beach. Again, walking as far as we could in the most perfect beach weather. It was sunny, but not hot. There was a slight breeze, but it wasn’t cold. It was low tide, so there was perfectly packed sand that was easy to walk on. It was pretty much the perfect daytime beach walk.
That night we went out for an outdoor dinner at Riley’s favorite restaurant in the area. While I was hesitant of going out, the restaurant did a great job of implementing social distancing. We feasted on seafood salad, perfect French fries and the most delicious scallops. I quickly learned why it was Riley’s favorite. We ended the night in a pretty ideal way in my opinion. We went for a sunset walk on the beach then had a a couple hour long rummy tournament. While it may sound boring to som, it was perfect to me.
As I walked on the beach early in the morning on the last day of our trip, I couldn’t help but feel at peace. The water, and specifically the ocean, has always had such a calming and clarifying affect on me. Whenever I am having a bad day or am feeling conflicted, taking a walk by the water will help me sort through things or feel better. While I didn’t have anything to specifically feel conflicted or sad about, being able to take an hour to walk along my happy place during the middle of a global pandemic was one of the biggest blessings I could have asked for.
Traveling and the ability to travel has been so heavily impacted because everything going on. We are so fortunate to have the ability to drive to a family house and be able to get away. That is definitely not something that I will ever take for granted again. Until next time, friends… CML
