Double Beach Pwned - Are You Kidding Me?
After yesterday's little voyage to the Keys and back, I decided to get up early today and hit Ft. Lauderdale Beach. When I woke up, the sun was shining and it was slightly breezy out, but nothing that would deter me from chillin' under my umbrella with my copy of Cosmo and a few good books.
Please tell me why the clouds rolled in right after I pulled into my $10 parking spot at 10am this morning.
I checked the weather from my cell phone (after dropping a dollar for 24 hours worth of mobile web access and god knows how much for the airtime) and was told that the rain would pass south of me and the clouds would clear out by 11. Oh, and there was wind gusts from the NNE at 25-30 miles per hour.
Greeaaatttt.
Since I already parked, I figured I could chill under the cloud cover for an hour and then the sun would be out and everything would be happy again. I hit the beach with my gear, the clouds broke, and all was good. Except for the umbrella...it was too windy to put it up. Since it was still fairly early, I knew I could chill out under one of the permanent umbrellas until the rental guy came by. (Umbrella rental is $15, but they don't start charging people till noon or so.) 5 minutes after settling in and reading the Confessions section (in Cosmo), I realize that it's too cold to be in the shade because of the wind. I move out from under the umbrella. 5 minutes after that, the sun disappears.
Dammit.
I stayed on the beach anyway, with my shirt and shorts on over my bikini because I was cold, gusty winds whipping the pages of my magazine whenever I had to turn them. Yes, I was pissed and I was cold, but I was not giving up, dammit! I wanted to go and read on the beach this weekend, so I'm going to make sure I get to read on the beach! Besides, the clouds were going to break soon.
At 11:30, I check the weather again. Now the clouds are supposed to move out by 12. I gritted my teeth and kept reading. After all, the breeze wasn't all that bad and I was getting tiny pieces of warmth through tiny spots where the clouds thinned for a minute or two. And the beach still wasn't crowded, so I was able to read in peace.
12:45. Still no sun. But I can tell that the clouds are starting to break up, and soon I will have my sunshine. I might even spring for the $15 for an umbrella, I thought.
1:15. I'm alternating between reading two pages and looking at the sky. I can see the patches of blue in the distance. It won't be long now...
1:45. Hooray! The sun is back. And it is hot. Very hot. (I forgot that I was now on a beach in South Florida in the midday sun.) And now the beach is getting crowded...people with screaming children and radios and teenagers in packs of 8.
And as the last of the clouds floated southwest of the beach, I was headed back to my apartment with a possibly sunburnt face (even though I used sunscreen) and a resignatory mood.
All I want is to be able to sit on a quiet and sunny beach under an umbrella with just enough of a breeze coming off the ocean that I stay comfortable, reading my books and magazines and occasionally wading into the crystal blue water when I feel like it. Is that too much to ask?
Apparently that is too much to ask for when you think that you're going to find a decent beach somewhere even though you have no money to ensure that you have the experience that you're looking for.
Note to self: Let's go back to Ft. Lauderdale on Saturday, provided that we've thoroughly checked the Weather Channel before heading over. With a fully loaded iPod and less forceful winds, this whole beach thing might just work out all right.
Please tell me why the clouds rolled in right after I pulled into my $10 parking spot at 10am this morning.
I checked the weather from my cell phone (after dropping a dollar for 24 hours worth of mobile web access and god knows how much for the airtime) and was told that the rain would pass south of me and the clouds would clear out by 11. Oh, and there was wind gusts from the NNE at 25-30 miles per hour.
Greeaaatttt.
Since I already parked, I figured I could chill under the cloud cover for an hour and then the sun would be out and everything would be happy again. I hit the beach with my gear, the clouds broke, and all was good. Except for the umbrella...it was too windy to put it up. Since it was still fairly early, I knew I could chill out under one of the permanent umbrellas until the rental guy came by. (Umbrella rental is $15, but they don't start charging people till noon or so.) 5 minutes after settling in and reading the Confessions section (in Cosmo), I realize that it's too cold to be in the shade because of the wind. I move out from under the umbrella. 5 minutes after that, the sun disappears.
Dammit.
I stayed on the beach anyway, with my shirt and shorts on over my bikini because I was cold, gusty winds whipping the pages of my magazine whenever I had to turn them. Yes, I was pissed and I was cold, but I was not giving up, dammit! I wanted to go and read on the beach this weekend, so I'm going to make sure I get to read on the beach! Besides, the clouds were going to break soon.
At 11:30, I check the weather again. Now the clouds are supposed to move out by 12. I gritted my teeth and kept reading. After all, the breeze wasn't all that bad and I was getting tiny pieces of warmth through tiny spots where the clouds thinned for a minute or two. And the beach still wasn't crowded, so I was able to read in peace.
12:45. Still no sun. But I can tell that the clouds are starting to break up, and soon I will have my sunshine. I might even spring for the $15 for an umbrella, I thought.
1:15. I'm alternating between reading two pages and looking at the sky. I can see the patches of blue in the distance. It won't be long now...
1:45. Hooray! The sun is back. And it is hot. Very hot. (I forgot that I was now on a beach in South Florida in the midday sun.) And now the beach is getting crowded...people with screaming children and radios and teenagers in packs of 8.
And as the last of the clouds floated southwest of the beach, I was headed back to my apartment with a possibly sunburnt face (even though I used sunscreen) and a resignatory mood.
All I want is to be able to sit on a quiet and sunny beach under an umbrella with just enough of a breeze coming off the ocean that I stay comfortable, reading my books and magazines and occasionally wading into the crystal blue water when I feel like it. Is that too much to ask?
Apparently that is too much to ask for when you think that you're going to find a decent beach somewhere even though you have no money to ensure that you have the experience that you're looking for.
Note to self: Let's go back to Ft. Lauderdale on Saturday, provided that we've thoroughly checked the Weather Channel before heading over. With a fully loaded iPod and less forceful winds, this whole beach thing might just work out all right.
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