BOOOP

I slept in on Friday.  By the time I had my coffee, toodled around on the computer, fed the kitties, and resolved that my missing keys were not in any drawer, cupboard, nor under any furniture, in any normal spot, nor in the garbage, the recycling, the refrigerator or freezer or any insanely unlikely spot, I had wasted yet another morning.  I mentally went through what I had hoped to achieve, and what I wanted to achieve.  There was the obvious mandatory phone call to the landlord to get the locks changed.  I should really get back to the hospital's administrative office downtown and try again to pick up my last paycheque.  Call the pensions company.  Check the government pension.  Close accounts.  Bake and stop by work.  Due out for the 2nd last Friday night in town for happy hour at 5pm at the Newstead.  Go for a run.  Do the laundry coz i need that white dress for Sunday.  As I looked at the clock and assessed how this was all going to play out, I made the wisest decision I have made in days.  I listened to the little voice in my head.  And what that little voice told me was this.  Boooooop it (although it didn't say boop, but I think a little censorship is necessary how and again).

That little voice inside is pretty smart.  It often lies dormant, not saying much, and carefully watching for just the right time to speak up when the logical side of my brain is having its nap.  "OK," I heard it say when someone said they would learn to play volleyball when I learned to skydive.  "Or...you can move to Bermuda," it stealthily snuck in one fall day as the leaves were falling off the trees in Canada.  Well, on this particular day, boop it may not have been much of a revolutionary concept, but it was a fabulous idea.  I grabbed my bathing suit, a coverup, and hopped on the scooter to go to the beach.  My first thought was Elbow Beach -- closest and hopefully quietest.

No way, not only were there people, but a tent??  I have a scooter, I can find a private beach for myself I thought, and carried on down the road.  Next stop was Warwick Long Bay.  I parked at the far end and walked in, knowing it was likely to be deserted.  Much better!

that looks better already

I laid out my towel, ran my fingers through the pink sand, and checked the time knowing I couldn't stay too long in the sun with so much skin that hadn't seen the sun since last summer.  SPF?  Actually, I am a believer in the new research that says the body needs a very short exposure to UV light daily to boost vitamin D production, which has the health benefit of better bone density, less Multiple Sclerosis, less cancer, and many more such things.  They are pretty specific that it should only be 15-20 minutes per day, so that it what I have decided on.  15 min each side, 30 in total.  I could be as baked as a rotissiere chicken in that time anyway.  That's about long enough to go for a quick swim, and dry off.  Anything more than that, and I would be reaching for the SPF 30, 55, 65, or 85 that I keep close by. So don't think I take the sun too lightly, we just all need a little bit.  But back to my beach day.

Warwick Long Bay

This was my first swim of the year.  I use the term swim lightly, because what I actually do is more of a float with some direction orientated arm flailing.  It didn't take long for the undercurrent to pull me out a little further than I wanted to be, requiring maximum speed flailing, and then I stayed a little closer to shore.  As I floated in the crystal clear azure waters, I felt stress melt away.  I congratulated the little voice on a job well done.  The little voice was not done though, and it had a bit of a stern conversation with me.

cool, glistening, clear blue waters await me these last days

"This is YOUR time," it told me.  "You promised that you would make this time about you.  To walk, run, go to the beach, and float in the ocean.  This isn't a time to rush about doing tasks, to book a thousand catch ups, to rush about taking photos.  You were to do that in your last year.  You have to make these last days just about you and the last things you wanted to do."  "OK, I promise."

And so, I floated lazily in the water and decided to let it all go.  No commitments.  No rushing.  What isn't done now does not need to get done.  What needs to happen in August will happen in August.  If I don't have time to diet and exercise and float in the water, then I will float in the water like a chubby little float toy and not care.  Because this is my vacation now.   I finally just relaxed and bobbed about in the water.

And so, when I found out our plans of Friday Night at the Newstead had been dashed, and the hotel had cancelled their Friday night event for the season due to not enough attendance, I met friends for an hour or so at Flanagan's, and didn't feel bad at all about going home at 9pm to indulge myself in some extra sleep.  It is a vacation now after all.

Springshine

It may not technically be spring here yet, but we are getting days of what I like to think of as Springshine.  A little bit of sun and a few hints of summer showing up equals springshine.  It cancels out the cloudy days.  The rainfall has been pretty major in February, but it is at least waiting until after dark before unleashing the torrents of rain, allowing both us and the flowers to turn our faces to the slowly warming sun in the daytime.

It is not yet hot, in fact it is not yet even always warm.  This makes the ocean blues just a little bit darker than in summer photographs.

The "Winter Blue" shade of the ocean in February

I know a few friends are in much colder places as I type this and are probably screaming at their screen to move the camera to the right so they can see more beach and less foliage.  I kinda like the effect of the foliage, but in anticipation of your request, here is a beach only shot of Warwick Long Bay.

"Beach porn" as Margaret calls my photos

On this particular day (it was actually the same day that started in the Botanical gardens many posts ago), I decided to scoot about the island like we all used to do when we arrived.  Just drive and pull over when something catches your eye.  It had been a few months since I had driven up to Southampton.  It's only 10 km away, but it feels like a lot more when you are used to short 2 and 3 minute drives to get everywhere you need to get in your daily life.  I will miss the smallness of Bermuda when I go.  As I was driving, er scooting, down the road I wondered what would there be to photograph that I had not already photographed many times.  As if to refute the thought in my mind that nothing changes, I was treated to the views of several things in the process of change.  The first thing I noticed was the Gibbs Hill Lighthouse, the subject of much local banter last summer for looking rusty and worn down, has somehow quietly begun the process of a makeover.

The Gibbs Hill Lighthouse surrounded by scaffolding.

The next thing I noticed is that an old hotel sight which has been abandoned since before I arrived on the island appears to be starting construction.  I am not sure what hotel used to stand here, I suspect it may have been a Sonesta hotel.  I am also not sure if it is being developed by the nearby Fairmont hotel, the even closer Reef's hotel, or a new entity, but I think it will be one of the most desired vacation spots due to its location.

I think I see a future awesome ocean side outdoor tanning and bar location

I had to drive up the hill to take a closer look at the Lighthouse, as it isn't every day that you bear witness to such sudden and undisputed change happening on the island.

|I do believe a new paint job o get rid of the visible rust is underway

After that, I carried on a little further down the road to Church Bay.  The days are often windy in Bermuda winter, as the trees in this picture show even though it is a springshine type of day.

It almost seems like the colder weather gives the shrubbery a little more "texture" than in summer

Church Bay is a smaller beach, but has good snorkeling and normally very pink sand.  On this day however, it was covered in a mass of seaweed, that could be seen washing in to the shore on the waves.  The seaweed has a distinct red tinge to it.  I have virtually no botany skills as you well know by now, so whether this is truly red algae or just reddish algae that is actually under the brown algae family, I don't know.  But if it is red, I find it interesting because red algae tends to come from the colder deeper waters, which might explain its presence on this February day.  For all my Microbiology nerd friends, red algae is also the stuff we use to make agar base, although perhaps I shouldn't admit that or my current job description will entail collecting weeds to save a buck on supplies.  For the rest of you, red algae is also used for chocolate milk and puddings.  Everyone has reason to love red algae.

Church Bay showing some unusual spring colours

While it made a very pretty picture, the algae tends to attract swarms of bugs and lets of a pretty pungent odour as it dried out in the sun (and not a good odour), so fortunately it is not present later in the summer.

The ocean shows the tinges of red beneath its surface

A nice new view on a familiar scene

The last treat I enjoyed on my stop at Church Bay was to meet up with another kindred spirit who also wanted to bask in the springshine.  Normally these little chameleons dart away from people very quickly, but this guy was content to pose and share the warm rays of light with me.  I like to think we shared a moment, but he was probably just happy not to be eaten, squished, or maimed.  We take way too much for granted as humans.

All of us in Bermuda are happy to see the sun shining again