She's gotta the gas

Fueling up in this place is something of a culture shock. Leave the car running while using a sprite bottle funnel to guesstimate when the tank is about to overflow. But keeping our dollar spending at this local level did allow for me to meet new friends. Alex was happily able to return to his hammock once the dumb blonde adventure wagon was on its way once more.

I, on the other hand have taken to fueling up on beer. I have taken it into my head to survey michelada mixtures (beer, lime juice, salt, ice and tomato juice) in each different place I visit.

"Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder." Kinky Friedman

Wait! Who's this riding in?

"I prefer a bike to a horse. The brakes are more easily checked." Lambert Jeffries

There's a new bandito in town. He don't need no stinkin offshore wind.

“The best surfer in the water is the one having the most fun.” Duke Kahanamoku

As I've said before seeing old friends together is such a pleasure. A companion to share the incessant watch of wave and water.

"A friend is one to whom one may pour out all the contents

of one’s heart,chaff and grain together,

knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it,

keep what is worth keeping,

and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away."

Unknown

Now for every photograph you see of me and the kids in the waves, Greg was also there taking a wave on the head in the pursuit of that photo. He is obsessed with going into the water 3 times a day, we too are more than keen to hang out in the surf with him.

This arrangement is great for the kids who have to log at least something down each day as a Physical Education activity. I share no such excuse, boogie boarding for my 40 year old body is like slamming repeatedly into concrete.

"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again

and expecting different results." Albert Einstein

Perhaps the only wave I should consider is one of goodbye to my new sport? How ever did I talk myself into such foolishness? It sort of mentally goes like this:

Oh oh big wave coming…ooh, under or over?

Hey maybe I can catch this one?

Yes I can, c'mon Andrea, I'm sure I can….

Turn, start swimming, come on kick, kick, look over my shoulder….

Argh, shoulda gone under.

Too late now, oof I'm riding it…

Nooo... now its riding me.

If I throw my lips into a sort of goldfish expression I'm sure I'll suck in the last gasps of air.

I'm under, way under, which way is up, open your eyes, ah thats up…

Gulp…salty….where's my bikini bottom, phew, good still there.

Stand up, blink blink, snuffle, snort, pull my hair out of face, straighten up...

Would ya look at me…a boogie boarder, a sponger, 'sponge mom'.

"Either you decide to stay in the shallow end of the pool

or you go out in the ocean." Christopher Reeve

Before you start making some wild assumptions and blaming Greg for unkind photos of me, this is Lolita. She belongs to Lola's restaurant at Avellanas, talk about surf hog.

Lots and lots of wildlife here, just hanging around in the garden, on the beach and in the fields. Think its time I went up river to see some crocs or maybe up to the volcano....