Exhale

06 May Exhale

So yesterday I gave my hair a deep treatment.  (Don’t stop reading!! It’s not really about my hair!!!)

First I washed it and got it all smelling fresh and grapefruity.

Then I gifted myself a long tough workout and got my hair so sweated up there was basically just one little dry bit at the top of my head.

And the final step of the treatment:  I went to my beach and dipped my hair and the rest of me in the salty ocean!

Yes!  I did it, I did it, I did it!!  First swim of the year.  May 5th!  Unheard of to get in this early.  I think that Thanksgiving swim changed my cold water boundaries.  I won’t pretend I was in for more than a flash, but oh it was fabulous!

My hair and my body breathe out a sigh of relief when we hit salt water, I think.  I appreciate things about the whole year but I never feel better or more like myself than when summer hits.  I love taking big gulps of fresh air year round, but I enjoy more than anything when that fresh air comes with a sea salty tang and I’m enjoying it not in a heavy coat and mittens but my favourite blue bikini.   (Oh, have some thoughts for dear Blue.  Blue’s looking a little worn out.  Sigh.)

Last fall I decided to really make an effort to appreciate all of those things about fall and winter that make that time of year special.  Even though it’s not summer.  (Spring gets a conditional pass because it carries with it the promise of sunny warm times, even if around here it usually still carries huge amounts of cold water falling from the sky.)  I optimistically started a little series of posts to remind me of those fabulous colder weather things, the things on the dark side of the calendar as I like to think of it.  “Things I like about fall even though it’s not summer.”  One post, my friends, one post.  The ‘series’ ended up having one post with four words.  I don’t know, was I really trying?

But that’s in the past.  We’re in a stretch of hot weather and it’s all good!  I’m swamped with work lately, little time to paint or write or play, but the other morning I started in at work early early in the morning.  You can do that this time of year.  And sort of feel lucky being up and enjoying the soft morning colours.  Isn’t that whacked????  And by the time 2:30 came my concentration was gone and the ocean water was sparkling.  What a perfect system.  And the next day I left all forms of painting behind and concentrated on that hair thing.

So my hair is messy and salty and that’s just the way I like it.  Consider the treatment a success!

And this, my friends, is the definition of a goofy grin.  A dripping salty goofy grin.