Life's a Beach

Better late than never on this one...I started writing this what seems like forever ago, and I refuse to let the drafts continue to build up.

Anywho, I'm still in limbo in many respects of my life, but every now and then I'm reminded that I have things pretty good for the most part.  The last few weekends were some such reminders.

If you've read this blog or seen any of my pictures, you know that I'm a sucker for the beach.  Three weekends ago, I was fortunate enough to spend a long weekend house sitting for a friend who lives down the Jersey Shore.  The weather wasn't as cooperative as I would have liked, but that just enabled me to rest and relax a little more (which was sorely needed).  By Tuesday, the rain finally cleared enough for me to ride on the Ocean City boardwalk:

I make a big deal out of this because it's sometimes tough to do this in the Summer, with pedestrians filling up the whole width for the most part.  On off season (and overcast) days, it's a different story.  At only 2.5 miles long, it was a very nice ride, albeit short.  Something about the sea air is so invigorating and relaxing even while exercising:

I didn't keep track of time, but I know it didn't take that long.  So, still with plenty of energy in the tank, I decided to explore a little of the town.  Gotta say, compared to the boardwalk, OCNJ's neighborhood is pretty dull.  At least there are bike lanes:

I'm not gonna poo poo it too much.  I was, after all, on vacation at the shore, and for what it's worth, it was better than not taking a ride at all.  One of my former roommates from Maryland used to live here, and I could see why he liked it, because there are some absolutely gorgeous houses in the neighborhood.  Though it's not really my thing, I've had worse rides.  And incredibly enough, this was the first time my "new" bike has laid rubber in New Jersey, only the 3rd state in which we've rode, despite nearly 2,000 miles of riding.  Weird, eh?

That night, I drove up to Philly for the baseball match, the tickets courtesy of another generous friend.  Rather than paying $18 for parking (seriously you guys), I parked my car near my house and rode to the ballpark:

That evening ride was beautiful too...and we won!  Any excuse to ride a bike, of course, I will use.  Believe it or not, I had enough energy to head back to Jersey afterward for one more night.

On the final day of my stay (coincidentally the last day of Summer), I ventured down to Cape May. Still a bit gray, but still decent enough for riding:

Seeing the lighthouse off in the distance, I decided I wanted to ride there. Not through the water, of course.  3ish miles later, I was there:

I had seen on the map that there were some trails in the state park surrounding the lighthouse, so it seemed natural to find them and explore, right?  Alas, I was greeted with this:

Bah!  It was just as well.  I was starting to get hungry at this point anyway.  I rode to this plant-based cafe I found called Bella Vida.  I love a tempeh reuben every now and then:

I also really liked these safe cycling advocacy signs I saw outside the cafe:

I guess I should have taken a wider shot for better context, but basically these are placed on the left side of a two-way street, against the flow of traffic.  My roommate has heard me and heard stories of me yelling at cyclists for this sin.  If we had more of these, I might not be yelling so much.  Wishful thinking at this point, but one day...

After 3 hours or so of riding and lunch-ing, the skies finally cleared completely, so it was the perfect time to let the muscles relax on the beach!

And to wind out the trip, a ride to my absolute favorite food spot in South Jersey, the Good Earth Organic Eatery.  It always comes back to food, right?  It's macrobiotic, yo!

This time around, I was floored.  It wasn't so much because of the food, which was excellent, but rather what the head chef said to me.  He noticed that I posted a few pics on Instagram that included the cafe.  He thanked me for the kind words, and made it a point to let me know that he checked out this very blog that you're reading.  Now, I don't do this to gain followers specifically, but it's always nice to hear that someone gets curious enough to check it out.  His genuine nature (that shows through his food, too) is just one of the many reasons I keep going back there.  What a great way to end my stay!

But, I wasn't quite done with my 2016 beach-ing.  You see, a few weeks back, my Mom and I wanted to spend a Mother/Son weekend together at the beach that didn't materialize due to an impending Labor Day hurricane.  She re-scheduled for two weekends ago, and though I had to work, I came down on the Saturday.  First stop (since it was night, not the best time for the beach) was this fantastic brewery:

That picture is from Crooked Hammock in Lewes, DE (near Rehoboth), which is where we found ourselves.  I only stayed for a beer, because it was getting late and I was pretty damn tired by this point.  But again, the sea air can be invigorating, and I was up early the next day to soak it all in, literally.  I'm glad Moms rescheduled the trip instead of canceling, because September beach weather can be absolutely incredible:

And not to stray too far from my vices, I rode to yet another microbrewery just before lunch time, Revelation:

But it always comes back to food, right?  So why not eat at ANOTHER brewery for lunch?

I've been to Dogfish so many times at this point, they practically know me by name.  Who knew Southern Delaware was such a hotbed for microbreweries?  Actually, I did.  But anyway, the bike went back to the car at this point and I headed back to the beach for a few more hours.  The date said September 25, but I view this as my official final day of Summer.  Sad to see it go, but I look forward to some great Autumn rides and (of course) another fantastic Summer next year.

I'm not quite sure how to wrap this up, other than to say thank you to everyone for always reading and riding along.  I owe a lot to a lot of people, and I'm never quite sure I do enough to give it back, so just in case, thank you one more time.  Happy Autumn, happy cycling, happy Tuesday.  Life's not a bitch; it's a beach.