After a week indoor, we're all eager to get out and go somewhere. People go clamming, fishing, kayaking, skying, snowboarding, windsurfing, golfing. We, Hubby and I, have never developed many outdoor skills. We attempted to fish the first year or two after we moved here.
Our fresh water lake, however, suffered a few major storms that destroyed the dunes holding the ocean back, and it became brackish, salty, losing a great deal of fish and other sea life. It has recovered somewhat in recent years and it has been stocked with new life from the hatcheries, and people are boating and fishing regularly. My children all caught fish here; and it tasted marvelous!
Hubby and I tend to enjoy the outdoor life vicariously as well. In the picture above, I filmed the couple doing some clamming while we ate clams in Charleston, clams that had grown in the same bay just a few hours earlier. While dining, we kept appreciating the couple's attempt to get enough clams to satisfy their hunger and not break any rules set up to protect the bay.
How often do we leave our Paradise? At least once a week.
At times, for days at a time, down to Southern California to soak up continuous sunshine, to enjoy our children and grandchild, and to stop in and around our old hangouts, Jerry's Famous Deli for a ruben sandwich, California Pizza Kitchen for their pizzas, Sagebrush Cantina in Calabasas for their brunch buffet. We can reminisce at each stop and catch up with old friends while we do that.
How long do we stay away? As little as possible.
We miss our greenery; we miss the wild rivers and forested walks. Most of all, we miss the marvelous beach vistas that only Oregon has. Here, we feel at peace, away from the maddening crowds, the traffic, the parking fees, the missed off-ramps, the hours spent on freeways to get anywhere.
