Headed out to the beach at about 10:45. It was overcast with a slight breeze all morning but the sun began to make an appearance at about 9:30. By the time I got to the parking lot it was mostly sunny and very very pleasant out.

Walking down the stairs, the breeze felt cool but was accompanied by warm sun on skin. As is so often the case before a swim, I’m thinking about how I’m not looking forward to the chill of the water mixed with the conscious knowledge that it is going to be more than fine because it has always been more than fine and why should today be any different?

When I get to the beach the tide is medium-high and there is a good amount of texture on the water. The water does feel cold on my feet and the shallow water rocks situation is the same as yesterday so I hobble my way out the first 20 feet and then drop down to soft sand.

I jump in and swim past the choppy surf which has come down even further since yesterday. This is definitely a different scene from early in the week of 8 foot waves. The water is warmer than it was yesterday. It’s so nice and I wonder how I could ever think it was going to be otherwise.

As I make my way out just before heading south, the small chop is breaking into my face and I struggle to get a breath in without inhaling water. Things get better as I take a sharp left and head down the coast.

I’m swimming closer to shore than usual today. I know this because I don’t see the South buoy so it must be further out than I am. I get to the South end, grab a few pictures and make my way back North. Now I do see the buoy because I always breath on my left. About half way up the beach I see a group of Pelicans swoop by. I’d just love to get a good picture of that, but you have to be ready and it just takes too much time to gram the camera and steady myself. Maybe one day I’ll get lucky.

When I get to the Green Monster there are several small (about 6 - 8 inches) translucent fish swimming around the kelp nearby. I swim around them for a while and they don’t really move away or seem too bothered by me.

I begin the swim back to shore. I don’t know why but the swim from the Green Monster, which is technically further than my usual turn around closer to shore, seems to pass quickly. Because I am angled more shore bound, the view is a little different.

I make the same clumsy rock scrambling maneuvers as yesterday before reaching sand and then I’m headed toward the stairs. The lifeguard station says the water is 66-68 degrees. Ok. It honestly did not feel much cooler than Hawaii did in January, which is probably about the exact same as Hawaii is today.

As I near the stairs at the end of the ramp/road, a woman passes by me and smiles and says, “Happy Friday.” Yes! Happy Friday! It is a happy Friday.