Off we headed to the beach. Most of the beach is free, no parking sticker required, but a 3 day limit. (On the beach closest to downtown, a parking permit is only $12 per year. Some places are reserved for people with a county park permit... we didn't check on that.) We selected a spot with hard sand (all the better to drive on without getting stuck if you park) spot near the toilets, and we were good to go.
I only took one hat. Sheila made me take it off.
The official Beach Queen
The official Beach Princesses
The official Boules Queen (that's english for sand bagger)
Oh what fun. It got into the 80's, and it didn't get windy until late afternoon. Sheila went for a walk, and Joyce and I "sorta" did arm chair aerobics. I guess it's a Canadian thing... hoisting a glass of wine, taking a sip and then swapping hands and repeating the process to get an entire upper body workout. The lower body workout consisted of walking to and from the car to get another bottle. Hey, it worked for me. Obviously it's a good workout, look how tiny Joyce is.
When Sheila got back, we had our picnic lunch (cheeses and crackers and fruit). Then it was time for a game of Boules (french version of bocce balls). The current form of the game originated in 1907 in La Ciotat, in Provence... Southern France. Sheila's set uses metal balls, weight perfectly balanced. The object is to throw a "le but" (french word for target) or "cochonnet" (french word for piglet) target ball. The players then attempt to roll their ball the closest to the target ball. The player closest to the cochonnet receives one point. If the same player also has the 2nd closest ball as well, they receive a bonus point. You play to 21. Now, there are several variations of this game, which is an international sport. Some play on crushed rock courts, specially designed grass courts, etc. The type of toss is also different. Some versions only allow standing with both legs on the ground and rolling the ball with the palm up, or some tossing the ball with the palm down (creating back spin).... on and on. We just played "Sheila's Mom's Version". Both feet on the ground and rolling palm up to the cochonnet.
Oh gosh.... my BLOG has become a source of international learning.
Anyway, Joyce storms into the lead.... when she reached 13, Sheila was 4 and I was 1. Then Sheila took control of the game and stormed in for a strong finish. Final score was something like Sheila 21, Joyce 18, and me.... well... I AM NEW TO THE GAME...SORTA.... I think I scored 5 or 6. Hey, I get better every time I play. Unfortunately, they do the same. It's hard to beat a Canadian at a French Game.
All you single people.... if you want to get lots of attention on the beach, besides twerking to get attention, you can also play this game. Everyone stops to watch and then they start asking questions.
Joyce and I also went for a walk. Not as far as Sheila went, but we did go for about 30 minutes. We then decided it was starting to get a little to cool and breezy, and we headed home. We got cleaned up and went to Virginia's restaurant by the marina. We all ended up ordering the crab cakes. They were delicious and were served with fresh steamed veggies, rice (Joyce) or garlic mashed potatoes (me) or double veggies (Sheila). Joyce and I both took our cameras, but both of us forgot to take any pictures. GASP! We get to having such a good time we both forget. Hey, at least we remember to take them with us. I have now delegated Sheila responsible for reminding us to take pictures.
We came home and chatted and then we all watched Blacklist. Great series, by the way. After that, we were all pretty pooped so we hit the sack. I got up this morning at 5:30. Here it is and hour later, and the two of them are still snoozing. Oh well, all the more coffee for me. I'm not sure what's on our agenda today, but we will once again try and return the shrimp boil pot.
I'll close by posting a photo of Sheila preparing to watch Blacklist.
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