Kayaking

I went kayaking today. I wish I had some pictures, but I'll just have to paint one with words. The water was calm and the day was partly cloudy so I was sandwiched between the mirror-like water and the blue sky above with the puffy white clouds that are very rare to California this time of year. When I paddled out far enough away from all the other kayakers I felt this very comforting sense of peace. Normally I hate being alone, but kayaking is one of the few things where I can truly enjoy my solitude. There's something about floating by myself with water all around me that makes me treasure being alone, treasure the space between me and other people. The rugged rocky hills and tree-lined coast don't quite have the mystery of the misty mountains where I first went kayaking in Taiwan. But all water has a feeling of space and peace if you can just paddle out far enough.

Bicycling home, I saw several wild turkeys. One was a male with his dark brown and bright red feathers fully fanned out like the standard Thanksgiving symbol. I tried to get a picture but wasn't fast enough. He lowered his feathers as I got closer and waddled into the tall grass where he was mostly obscured and where he could continue to pursue one of the lady turkeys. Another female turkey was farther along with a clutch of baby turkeys behind her. It never ceases to amaze and amuse me that wild turkeys live in this area and are more common than the squirrels.