To the Beach for Breakfast

We arrived at Crystal Cove State Park (beach) for breakfast and found it decorated for Christmas.

The weather was a little chilly and a little overcast. Mr. Fun took the cheapie camera and captured the top two photos while I clicked a few with my iPhone to send them along with a text message to our daughter and to our friends, Scott & Peg--who we thought were in Houston visiting their son's family.

Scott texted right back to let us know they were home in Orange County and the adventure began. We've always been "spontaneous" friends--they call and say "Hey can you meet for dinner?" and we're all on an adventure. So this morning within 90 minutes they had joined us.

We had already eaten our breakfast, so Scott put in a request for a table for 4. For the next 30 or so minutes we talked and talked and watched--the waves, the sand, the birds, the people. Then we were all seated and they ordered lunch. The 2 of us had a small bowl of soup.

I honestly think it was last January since the 4 of us had been together. I have a blip to prove it.

After we ate, we all walked back to our cars together and stood there talking. Being with them was so good. Since 1981 when we met these two (and their then little boys) at Campus By the Sea on Catalina Island, we have spent an enormous amount of time with these friends. They have enriched our lives more than I could ever describe. We've eaten more meals together than any of us would want to count; we've bicycled hundreds of miles together, Peg and I were both re-entry college students at the same time (at different universities); we've traveled the world together; we've shared books, magazines, and music; they've watched our kids grow-up and we've watched theirs. They have one granddaughter and a grandson will be born in May.

So I meant to get a photo today of the 4 of us (like yesterday with Bob & Cherie), but I just never did. So after hugging both of them twice, we stood watching them walk away, and my natural reflex is to click a photo--so I did!

If I were going to choose just 1 photo today--I would choose the 1 of them. For me that photo is poetic and poignant--because they mean so much to us. I wasn't sure they would want to be the "star" frame of this blip, so I've included the other shots to capture the flavor of the day. We love them!

Good night from Southern California.
Rosie (& Mr. Fun), aka Carol

P.S. By the way, we did hear from Bob & Cherie, who I mentioned in yesterday's blip--her mom died on Christmas Eve. They learned today that so many people have died over the holiday weekend, that they can't have the funeral until Tuesday, January 5. So they now have more than a week to wait.