Jacksonville Beach

On my second day in Jacksonville the weather was predicted to be warm and sunny until 4 p.m. when it would rain. I decided to spend a day at the beach. I drove 9 miles east from my tiny house and parked for free at the beach where it intersects with I-90. As soon as my feet hit the beach sand my sandals came off. I walked south for 40 minutes keeping up a good pace. The sun was in my eyes so I had to keep my big sun hat tilted downward which made it hard to see. The ocean here on the Atlantic looked similar to the Gulf of Mexico except here was more foam on the shore. Tiny puff balls of foam blew across the sand and sparkled in the sun. I waded in the water and it felt colder to me than the gulf waters. Later I saw surfers wearing wet suits so that confirmed my idea that this water is colder than what we saw in Alabama. The waves here were plentiful and a half dozen men were surfing despite the red flag that was hoisted which means dangerous rip tides are present and no one should be surfing. After 40 minutes my bladder told me it was time to head back. I headed back and traveled a few miles south to buy a salad from Trader Joe's and eat it for lunch. I brought my salad back to the beach to eat. Ring billed gulls were around but I guess my kale and edamame salad did not interest them. After lunch I took another walk but this time I went north. I had a beautiful day at the beach. Kids were running and playing catch. Surfers were surfing. Kites were flying. Families were gathered. Young and old people were laughing. Some brave souls were swimming. I stayed dry myself. I really enjoy walking barefooted in the sand. The air smelled so fresh. The ocean breezes are refreshing. The sky started to cloud up so I went back to my car. Remember how rain was predicted at 4 p.m.? At precisely 3:59 the first drops of rain fell. Any day spent walking the beach in bare feet is a good day in  my book.