I’m on duty today, at work, doing my job. One of my jobs. The others involve writing; this one, my main breadwinner, involves being the temporary resident human of a lovable dog. So here I am hard at work, looking out at the Pacific Ocean while the dog sleeps next to me.
We just got back from a long walk on the Pebble Beach golf course. This time I took us all the way to the Carmel end of the course, which I haven’t done before. It’s a long and spectacularly beautiful walk – yes even with golfers and golf carts and sand traps in view.
I was thinking as we walked that for many of the people playing there it’s a bucket list experience. That gives it an extra something – emotional charge, I guess. The views – of the hills behind Carmel, Carmel Bay, Point Lobos, the ocean, the cliffs that drop from the course down to the water – could not have been more breathtaking than they were today. It was very busy, so we had to be careful not to get in the players’ way, and it felt very festive. People made a fuss over Cooper, and wished they’d brought their own dogs.
This morning we went to the beach here (Spanish Bay, a few miles from Pebble) about 6 o’clock, as the moon was low in the west and the clouds were turning pink in the east. Thundering surf, a mile of empty beach, hundreds of shorebirds skittering back and forth at the edge of the surf…it’s one of my favorite things here. Soon we’ll go back there for the sunset.
I put in a lot of hours on this job!
Comments
29 responses to “Hard graft”
This made me smile.
Sounds wonderful!
You’re making me pine for the thundering surf of the Olympic Peninsula now. So glad that you have this opportunity to relax and enjoy.
Sounds like a wonderful day. I feel all emo from your description.
Ophelia,
Pierce R. Butler is trashing you over on Alex G’s blog. He’s arguing against the commenters there but in so doing he’s described your behavior as (and I quote): problematic, inept, severely defensive, pained flailing, an overstressed person striking out in pain, etc. He’s also implied that you have indeed expressed transphobic ideas but he’s seeking to excuse it on the basis that you were and still are “hurting, defensive, and beleaguered.”
Just thought you deserved to know what’s being said about you behind your back. With “friends” like that, who needs enemies?
Major envy, sounds wonderful. Photos?
https://youtu.be/nmEKAaku8NU
Highly suspect #5 is not in response to #4? Which as far as I can remember surfaced a good deal later.
Ocean view is a fantastic thing to enjoy. As long as weather permits of course. Swedish high mountain station Tarfala reported winds of 53 m/s last night. OK, not in view of ocean but probably less than nice on the shore too.
Take joy when possible. Live good. Hey, wonder if my stew is done soon? ;-),
Yes, sorry, 4 was held for awhile so it wasn’t visible when Rob and Lady M commented.
I would love to look at some oceans from Sweden and Norway, but probably not in late November.
NP.
Often too foggy to see much anyway. But the breaking waves can be awesome — from a safe distance.
BTW, stew was well done and tender. Only too good and too little. From free ranging local animals and plenty of roots. 3½ hours in a cast-iron pot. And Adolph’s tenderizer, by which I swear.
I bet that makes a lovely oath!
#4
Fly back to the sandpit, shitstirrer.
I’ll add photos when I get home. I have only my crappy little for-travel notebook, and it goes into a rapid decline if I ask it to do anything.
Ophelia, that would be lovely. I think we could all do to focus on the beautiful at the moment.
Little birdie, you feel the need to shit stir and misrepresent (or at least present in the worst possible light) Pierce why exactly?
Not to mention – what on earth does that have to do with my walks with Cooper on the Pebble Beach golf course and the Asilomar-Spanish Bay beach?
I left Freethought Blogs. I left for a reason – to get away from a bunch of people I dislike and don’t respect. It worked! I got away from them. I escaped. They’re in the past for me, that is, over. I don’t spend my time thinking about them.They don’t interest me. I did do that one post about Greta, because someone pointed it out to me and the absurdity of it just jumped out at me – but other than that, I don’t waste my time blogging about them. I sure as hell don’t waste my time while on the Monterey peninsula doing that.
I have no idea who Birdie is but whoever it is is damn silly.
Ophelia,
If that’s all in the past and you don’t spend your time thinking about them, how do you explain all of your butt-hurt posts and comments to the contrary? We ALL know you aren’t telling the truth. We ALL know you’ve made dozens of posts and several dozen more comments whining and crying about how mean everyone was to you and how unfair your treatment has been.
Who are you trying to kid here? Do you think your other commenters are stupid or what?
Holms,
You are a sad and salty little person, aren’t you? Very entertaining at least.
Rob,
Because both Ophelia and Pierce seem like thoroughly dislikeable, disingenous, and mean-spirited people. That’s why.
We can only hope some of your charm rubs off.
Little Birdie, sure selectively (mis)quote anyone and they can look bad. I’ve read enough of both Pierce and Ophelia to have the sense that is not the case. I’ve also corresponded privately a few times with Ophelia and have formed the opinion that she is a fundamentally likeable, caring and passionate person who displays the complexity of her character a good deal more than the pure cardboard cut outs on some blogs. It’s one of the things that makes this an interesting blog. It’s interesting because you actually have to think, not just agree or flounce.
As for “thoroughly dislikeable, disingenuous, and mean-spirited people”; you’ve demonstrated yourself to be one in spades, as have many of the commentators in that thread back at Alex’s blog. That includes at least one who stated what I believe to be an outright lie in the absence of other information. Tell me, Little Birdie, did you make up your nym specially for this shit stir? Are you really that ashamed of your behaviour that you can’t use the same nym you use at FTB?
#16
If you aren’t already a pitstain, you should be, you would blend right in. But then, I suspect that you already are.
The only one “butthurt” here seems to be Little Birdie @16.
Rob,
I didn’t misquote anyone and I don’t post at FTB. That you think Pierce and Ophelia are nice people doesn’t change my opinion one bit but thanks for trying.
Holms,
Please keep going, you are really good at this. I bet you could mention your favorite boogeyman in every single comment it you really put your mind to it.
MrFancyPants,
Ouch, you nailed me right in the feels with that one.
^
Then I shrug in your general direction LB
Trolling troll trolls, but is unable to troll up much more than its own spit hitting the screen.
Excerpting individual words and short phrases from lengthy posts to demonise the author of said lengthy post is textbook misrepresentation by cherry picking. I also like the way you you dropped your friendly, conspiratorial approach within the space of a single post – a truly thin veneer.
I still don’t know what little birdy’s comments have to do with this post.
Nothing, just trying to start shit.
Little Bird just flew the coop in a loop and threw the poop?
Makes sense. To a slightly greater degree, I think. Rhyme if not reason.
Can’t wait to see pictures!
Maybe we have to wait for access to more powerful, stationary hardware?
Looking forward to that too.