Beach Bummin’

There’s something about being in California and going to the beach. It’s almost like it’s mandatory – if you are in CA, and at all close to the beach, you must go. To be entirely honest – I feel the same way about Florida, like if I’m in the state and I don’t have sand in my shoes for a part of the trip, then I did something wrong. And I’m not a beach girl at all. I grew up in Maryland, where the closest beach was Ocean City… In fact, I’m pretty sure that I can count all of the beach trips I’ve had on one hand – Ocean City (and it’s giant splintery Board Walk – ick), Virginia Beach in February (school trip… came for the sand and the whales, didn’t get either), a spring break trip to Destin and another Gulf of Mexico trip when I was 5 (where we found out how long I can go without sunblock – answer: not long). Toss in a few trips to Biloxi and a road trip or two to Florida and that’s every experience in my entire life that involves the CHANCE of seeing sand.

All of this information is to impress the point that I have not spent a lot of time on the beach. Even less time on a beach where the water isn’t always 70 degrees and the humidity doesn’t make your brain boil. But Cali = Beach for me, so to the beach we went. Yes I know, it was barely February. And I completely failed to comprehend that 65 and sunny doesn’t mean perfect beach bumming weather. First off, there was the wind. I sorta knew that wind comes off the ocean… but I didn’t realize that COLD wind comes off the ocean. Fail there. Secondly, there is something wrong with Pacific ocean water. omg, it was cold… not at all like the Gulf of Mexico. Where was my warm bath water? The sun is out all of the time!! What was it doing? Obviously not warming up those arctic waves.

But hey – now I know. Only silly tourists plan an entire day to playing on the beach and jumping in the waves. Or serious surfers…

Fortunately, Venice Beach has a lot more than just the chilly beach. There’s fantastically magical coffee at Intelligentsia, good enough to make me wish that I could drink grown up beverages. And there is shopping, on the beach, around the beach, off of the beach. Oh yeah, I could spend a thousand hours on Venice Beach just melting my plastic. Fortunately, we only had a day…. but beautiful belt I saw and swore I’d come back for – you are always on my mind (they do internet sales…. so don’t worry Belt, you will be mine!)

And if Virginia is for Lovers, then Venice Beach is for characters. I could watch the skaters and roller bladers wipe out all day long. Or the cutesy couples and artists writing whatever in the ice cold sand. (What? Harping you say??) But there’s also the people on the boardwalk. Like the pot selling chicken…. Yeah I mean the bird not a man in a costume, though either would be pretty effective. I mean that has to be good weed if you’re willing to go outside in a chicken costume. Or really good weed if you get your chicken to sell it…. And there were the performance artists that I wasn’t sure knew where they were. And all of the various street art sellers. Yup, I could spend a lot of time there…

But enough with the talking – here are some pictures so you can feel like you were there with me. Ahh behold the power of the interwebz – cyber traveling. (btw, if you go there for realz, that cute belt at Alternative is mine! We made a secret pledge to each other….)