Waves of Wisconsin

As I walked down the sidewalk towards the beach a rank smell made its way up my nostrils. The memories of the dirty Lake Michigan from my childhood flooded in. Dead fish bones piled along the tide line, seaweed of some sort wrapped around my toes, vomit colored water flowing up my nose. I feared the worst as I looked out over the endless vast of H2O, which I dreaded because of my lack of swimming lessons. But at least there was sand, and with sand there are sandcastles. I just had to put up with the stench long enough for my smell buds to commit suicide. Alison, Ashley, and Zak made their way across the miniscule dunes. Trudging their bikes through the sand, proving to be more difficult than it seemed. I was glad when we got to our spot and laid down our beach towels that the smell actually barely repulsed me. And as I lay still, the sun beat down hard on my skin. The rays from the sun were not as I remembered them being in Colorado. Here in Wisconsin it seemed more like the sun was pulling at my skin. I could almost feel it lifting me off the sand. I lay there thinking for a few moments, about where I was, and my company. It was nice to be there with two of my best friends. I actually let my mind wander enough to think that I might actually like the beach. I decided it was time to test the water. Zak and I dipped our toes in and the chill that ran up my leg was not welcome, but I was going to enjoy this water anyway. So I dove in and it really wasn’t that bad. I enjoyed the rush of the waves push me back under the water. I didn’t enjoy the water up my nose though. The waves further out invited me into their wake. I jumped over the smaller currents that tried to slow me down on my way to the big kahuna. As the big one fell I turned around and made a miserable attempt at riding it. But as I continued to dive through, jump over, splash and ride the waves I realized I actually enjoyed this brisk, cool liquid that still smelt vaguely of soot and poo. I imagined myself swimming through the dark blue in California, building a great sandcastle and babes wooing all over it, well maybe not the babes, but definitely a magnificent sandcastle. And after the best day at the beach I came away with a hankering to take a trip to California and try my hand at surfing.