A Breath of Fresh Air

The pollen count has been really high the last few weeks leading to streaming nose and eyes and a head full of cotton wool.  Even being indoors doesn't seem to help.

However there is one place that I am lucky enough to be able to escape to and ease my suffering.  After work we head to the coast, just sea and sand and I can breath!  Come for a walk along the shore with me and dip your toes in the cool water.

Joining with Amy for  Five on Friday here's five things I love about the beach:

1.  The air and light are different by the sea, I don't know what it is but you just feel better at the beach, breathing in all the salty fresh air, watching the sun reflect off the sea makes everything look magical.    It lifts your spirits and makes everything feel better.  Artists talk of the special light in places like St Ives and many make their homes there, I can understand why.

2.  The beautiful sand we have in Cornwall, I couldn't cope with a beach of stones, it has to be golden, fine sand for me.  Cornish cars and homes are full of sand, you can never quite brush it off after a visit to the beach.

3.  Picnics and bbq's on the beach, sandy sandwiches and orange squash in plastic cups are such a huge part of mine and my childrens' memories.  You don't have to spend a fortune at the beach, just treat yourself to an ice-cream and take everything else with you.  As it gets dark the smell of sizzling sausages, childrens laughter, a flickering campfire and someone strumming a guitar drifts across the beach.  The sounds of the waves crashing on the beach in the dark, as you pack up the picnic bags and make your way back up the cliffs.

4.  Rock pools, a little ecosystem of seaweeds, tiny fishes, and crabs revealed to us for a few precious  hours before the sea returns to cover them.  

5.  Swimming in the sea, there's nothing like it. Getting up your nerve to immerse yourself in the cold cold water, jumping over the waves, daring each other to go first, counting to 3 and ducking under together, screaming as the cold takes your breath away.  The taste of your salty skin and seaweedy hair.  I haven't done this for years, it is on my 60 x 60 list, what is stopping me?

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I really enjoyed a t.v. programme about Toni Morrison the other evening.  What an amazing woman.  The first book of hers that I read was Beloved, it still has the power to shock and move me.  You can catch the programme on BBC iplayer.  I really need to find the time to read more of her books.   Do you have a favourite Toni Morrison book? 

I hope you have all had a good week.

Chickpea xx