If we were having coffee: Blustery day edition

Passing by the beach again. (From Thursday’s outing in the kayak on the Manokin River.)

Have you also learned that secret from the river; that there is no such thing as time? That the river is everywhere at the same time, at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfall, at the ferry, at the current, in the ocean and in the mountains, everywhere and that the present only exists for it, not the shadow of the past nor the shadow of the future.

~ Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha

Beach and marsh grasses.

If we were having coffee, tea, fresh apple cider, hot chocolate, water, or some other beverage, I would be delighted to see you again.  Come on in out of the wind and make yourself at home.  It sure is blustery out there, isn’t it?  There are gale warnings in effect today.  We also have a coastal flood advisory, but that’s typical with windy weather.  It blows the water in from the bay and into the woods so the fish can swim on the woodland trails.

Let’s grab out drinks and have a seat in the living room.  It’s a little chilly out on the porch right now, even with the windows closed.  The clouds have been clearing, and after the sun warms things up, we can move out to the porch if you like.

A glimpse of the paddle.

How are you?  What have you been up to lately?  Have you traveled anywhere?  Seen any new sights?  Have you taken any good walks or hikes?  If so, are you going to participate in Walktober?  (Don’t forget to link to or post your link here if you are participating.)  Have you read any good books or seen any good films?

Great Blue Heron looking for breakfast.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that I am currently reading Euphoria by Lily King.  I am about halfway through and enjoying it so far.  The book is said to be loosely based on the life of anthropologist Margaret Mead.  How loosely, I don’t know.  I am sorry to say I know very little about Margaret Mead.  It might be time to remedy that.

Standing on the shore.

As for films, M and I watched Cloud Atlas last night.  It is a strange and beautiful film.  I would like to watch it again, and maybe even a third time.  I found it a little difficult to follow at first, but then I either caught on or the movie began to flow.  I’m not sure which.  The cinematography is amazing.  It is, however, fairly long.  About three hours.  I just had a look at the critical responses to it and it was interesting to note that some critics named it as the best film of the year (2012) while others decided it was the worst.

Heading back to where we started.

If we were having coffee, tea, or something else to drink, I would tell you that some of the photos in today’s post are a continuation of the short kayaking trip M and I took early on Thursday morning.  In case you missed it and are interested, you can find photos from the beginning of the trip here.

Almost there.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that M and I took a ride over to a local orchard this morning where we bought apples, apple cider, and a variety of vegetables from the farm market.  The red cabbage, beets, butternut squash, and potatoes all looked good.  I also picked up another aster, this one pink.  All of their mums and asters were a low, low price of $3.00.  I thought about getting some mums, but they have never done well out in the scrounger’s garden.  I think it gets too dry at times for them, and I forget to water them.

All finished.

Speaking of the garden, I was out there a little while ago and there were Monarch butterflies enjoying the butterfly bushes and the zinnias.  The poor butterfly bushes are not doing well.  They got knocked over at some point, and after getting their roots back in the ground and watering them, plus last night’s badly needed rainfall, they still look wilted.  I do hope they survive.

A small patch of glasswort blooming.

If we were having coffee, tea, or some other beverage, I would tell you that I will be glad when this political season is over.  I won’t spend too much time on this subject because it’s one I generally avoid on my blog.  I will tell you that when all has been said and done, I finally decided that I cannot waste my vote on a third party candidate.  I thought about it, but I don’t care much for the policies of either one, and I am afraid that if I cast my vote in that direction merely to make a point, I’d be inadvertently casting a vote for a man who doesn’t seem fit, in my opinion, to be President of the United States.  I’ve voted third party in the past and it didn’t work out well.  In fact, I’ve come to see it as a somewhat selfish act on my part (although to be honest, I didn’t see it that way at the time).  Maybe I’m seeing it that way now because of interviews I have seen with people in the U.K. after Brexit.  Several folks, when asked why they voted to withdraw from the EU, said things along the lines of, “I wanted to make a point, but if I’d known it would really pass, I would have voted against it.”

A popular fishing spot at the Point.

I think this election has been more polarizing than others I’ve experienced (and that may be saying a lot given how the last presidential elections have played out).  I have friends who are die-hard Bernie supporters, and are so disappointed and enraged that they will either not vote for the Democratic candidate or they will not vote at all.  Sometimes I feel as though that’s a tad immature, but at other times I see their point.  One good thing has come of this and that is my decision to deactivate my Facebook account.  I’ve been sitting on the fence about that for ages.  There’s nothing like watching people play out their politics on Facebook to push me off the fence.

A short walk on the beach before we leave.

If we were having coffee, I would ask if you’d like to take a walk with me.  It’s so pretty outside now that the clouds have cleared.  The weather is much cooler than it has been so you’ll need a jacket or a sweatshirt.  A hat might not be a bad idea, either, since it’s so windy.  We can go out to the garden and sit on the bench out there, or maybe walk out to the dock.  We will need to keep an eye out for snakes.  I saw three when I was out and about yesterday.  They like to stretch out on the paths in the sunny spots.  More than likely they will move for us, but it’s still a good idea to step carefully.  They are rather sluggish now, and I wouldn’t want to step on one.  None of our snakes are poisonous, but I hear their bites are painful.

When the cold front moved in yesterday the sky was filled with sunbeams.

If we were having coffee, tea, cider, or some other beverage, it would be time for me to turn this over to you.  I’ve chattered on enough for now.  Thank you so much for stopping by for another coffee chat.  If you’d like to stay for sunset, I think we’ll go down to the Point.  It will be gusty down there, but at least we won’t have to worry about mosquitoes.  Sunset is at 6:15 PM.  I’ll probably go early because I like to take a walk on the beach before the sun goes down.

Yesterday in the garden.

Be good, be kind, be loving.  Just Be.  🙂

Just Bee.

This post is in response to Part Time Monster’s #WeekendCoffeeShare.  Thank you to Diana for hosting it.  Also, a big congratulations for the #WeekendCoffeeShare being featured on WordPress’s Daily Post.  So glad to see it being shared among the rest of the community!  Put the kettle on, start the coffee maker, open a bottle of wine, or whatever your preference is, and join us.  I’d love to hear all about what you were up to this week.