2003-03-08 - 2:19 p.m.
After a rainy week, we have a lovely spring day today. The sun is shining, and the azaleas are starting to bloom. My enjoyment of it was limited to going to Walmart. Soon I have to go to the library for another 3 hour shift. Three prime afternoon hours, unfortunately. I've been aching to see the ocean recently, but I suppose that will have to wait.
I'm still not very familiar with the Atlantic. While growing up, my family would occasionally go down to Galveston or Rockport, Texas, pretty basic Texas Gulf Coast beaches. The most excitement I found was poking at a beached jellyfish.
The Pacific developed a turbulent personality in my mind after tidepooling at the Mendocino Headlands State Park. My father and I would go out at low tide to see what sort of marine life was caught in the rocky depressions along the coast. He always warned me never to turn my back on the ocean. One moment of inattention, and I could be swept out to Hawaii. Very rarely have I actually been swimming in the Pacific because most beaches had warnings of rip currents. Growing up landlocked in Dallas has made me a little scared of the ocean's power, so I tend not to risk much when it comes to swimming.
The Atlantic beaches around here, though, seem perfectly inviting. One of these weekends, when I don't have to work on a Saturday, I'm going to head to the beach (with thousands of others, I'm sure) and frolic along the seemingly calmer East Coast.
Right now, I must go and stare at the spines of books which hold only pictures of beautiful beaches.
�
�
