Friday Five: Beach Trip

Mother Laura over at RevGalBlogPals reports:

The Grimes-Honkanen bunch is settling in after a challenging move, and bubbling with gratitude for our new "cozy cottage by the beach": a tiny rented condo on Pacific Coast Highway. We're five minutes on foot from Sunset Beach for my daily choppy-but-gorgeous swim or prayer walk, often with dolphin sightings. Ten minutes south by car is downtown Huntington with its pier and window shopping, and the same distance north is Seal Beach, much calmer for family swimming.
Nicholas is equipped with shorty wetsuit and boogie board, and game to learn mastering the local waves from Mom--though I need to get a big softy and learn to surf before he does to maintain my cool cred. But Katie is still learning to swim confidently in the pool, and Midwestern-raised Matt prefers something more like his beloved Great Lakes. "No waves, no salt?" "Yes, darling, and no worrisome wildlife." "Except for the water moccasins, dude." You get the idea...it's all a matter of taste.
So in honor of summer, please share your own beachy memories, plans, and dreams with a "Beach Trip" Friday Five.

1. Ocean rocks, lake limps? Vice versa? Or "it's all beautiful in its own way"?
It took me a while to figure that first sentence out. Finally I realized it's like "Ocean rules, lake drools." I guess that's because in Vacationland, "ocean rocks" = two nouns which usually go together. Anyway, I would definitely say "It's all beautiful in its own way." In my many years of living in Land of 10,000 Lakes, I did miss the ocean, but I enjoyed City of Lakes' lakes, Lake Ida where our church camp was, Big and Little Butternut in America's Dairyland which I'll be seeing in a couple of weeks, and of course Lake Superior. Then again I like rivers too. For someone who can't swim despite several tries at lessons, doesn't boat except as a passenger, hasn't fished in over 50 years ... I sure do love the water.
2. Year round beach living: Heaven...or the Other Place?
Heaven, if I had a chauffeur, because beachfront usually doesn't come with public transportation. But if there were a beach/shore front house within walking distance of groceries and the public library...I'd be there.
3. Any beach plans for this summer?
Probably just looking at the ocean, maybe a boat ride, and I will be taking my swimsuit along to the Midwest in case a lake opportunity arises.
4. Best beach memory ever?
So many beach memories shared with friends that it's hard to pick just one. So instead, the memory of my solitary explorations along Long Island Sound in Milford, Connecticut, ages 9-13. The shoreline there was a nice combination with some beach and some rocky shoreline, interesting seaweed to play with, a lot of scope for the imagination. One winter it got cold enough that the Sound actually froze a few feet out from shore. Yes, winter beaches can be fun too.
5. Fantasy beach trip?
You name it, I'm up for it. But I will confess that I've always wanted to experience one of those beaches that has different-colored sand -- I think there are pink sand ones, maybe in Bermuda? and black sand beaches somewhere else. Yup, I'd like to see that.
Bonus: Share a piece of music/poetry/film/book that expresses something about what the beach means to you.
I'm going to go overboard and have more than one. First this very nice video of John Masefield's poem,Sea Fever:


Book? it's a whole series: Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin novels, starting with Master and Commander. I actually haven't read the last two -- I'm saving them for a rainy day.
Film? The Secret of Roan Inish.
Music?

This isn't my favorite version, but the best I could find on YouTube. On iTunes, you can download a very nice version of "Rolling Home to Old New England" by Seamus Kennedy; my favorite is by the New Golden Ring Singers on their album "Five Days Singing, Vol. 2" available from Folk-Legacy.
I hope there's a beach in your future -- sandy or rocky, fresh water or salt.

Off to the Beach!

Sisterknits said I'd better do a blog post before I take off, so here it is. Time that might have been spent blogging lately has been taken up with the previously-mentioned photo scanning project, with hanging out with Sonshinein, who arrived Wednesday, and preparing for a family party we had on Sunday so lots of the relatives could renew acquaintance with him.
Since a great many of our relatives are vegetarians, our menu for the party was vegetarian (it's just simpler that way). I got out the old St. Martin's Table cookbook and made 7 sandwich spreads from it to spread on little breads and pieces of baguette. Each one was delicious and, as I of course made too much food, we were still enjoying them today. In fact, Onkel Hankie Pants and Sonshinein will probably not have to cook tomorrow either unless they want to. We had a great time with the family, and there was a special project done which may end up photographed on OHP's blog.
Today was spent getting clothes ready and packing for the beach!
At about 2 am we will drive to the bus station in City by the Sea so I can take the bus to Boston and make a 6 am flight to Savannah. There I'll meet up with 3 of my oldest friends and we'll drive to An Undisclosed Location in South Carolina for a week of beach walks, maybe some swimming (tides and weather cooperating), shrimp eating, wine bibbing, and catching up. We'll also hang out with our Honorary Oldest Friend who lives there fulltime and has a dog almost as beautiful (and much better behaved) than mine. If we feel very energetic we may do one touristy thing. We'll probably go to the bookstore. Otherwise, being together is entertainment enough.
I have been very blessed to have these women in my life for (shockingly!) well over 40 years now. When I moved to their hometown in 8th grade I had the good fortune to be seated at a lab table in science class next to The Decorator. The CEO was in my English class and The Accountant in Social Studies (as was our friend The Boss who, once again, has some pitiful excuse for why she's not coming). Having now shepherded two daughters through the junior high years, I can appreciate even more fully how wonderful it was that these girls, who had been friends in some cases since preschool, opened their circle to me. How great to find kindred spirits and how many good memories there are of those three years (I moved again after sophomore year in high school). Their fruitless attempts to teach me to ride a bicycle...our "15 mile hike" when President Kennedy was pushing 50 mile hikes...walking to school with The Boss trying to get us all to harmonize on "Mary Hamilton"...sharing 25 cents worth of French fries at Cindy's, the local hangout...getting to school early to watch Sunrise Semester with our social studies teacher.... And then the letters back and forth during my stay in Germany. After my return to Maine and graduation, going to Connecticut to attend their graduation and ending up getting a job and staying all summer -- with jobs and the ability for some of us to use the family car, a whole new level of enjoyment! After college, marriage, cross-country and international moves, we didn't see each other very often for many years. A few years ago events conspired to allow us the first of the beach getaways and now they are an annual event. I am so grateful that our lives have -- not slowed down -- but changed in ways that allow us to make this time together.
Above and below, sights I'll be looking at this coming week, taken a year or two ago with my film camera and only developed last week!