Castles made of sand

I spent about two hours on the beach this afternoon but didn't quite make it to the end of the island. It's longer than it looks of course and the head wind was really strong although not as icy as last night. The bonus was, when it turned into a tailwind on the way back, the walk was shorter. It was cold but not all that unpleasant with the sun in a cloudless sky and the water very blue with impressive whitecaps.

The few sandpipers were quite bold dancing just ahead of me. Even more impressive however, was the crow in the courtyard as I leaving the house. There's a wooden walkway all around each level. I'm in the middle. As I was leaving I heard him calling above me so I walked around on the opposite side. He was just sitting on the top rail, surrounded by a bunch of little wrens who were excitedly responding to his caws. I stood and watched him for a long time. He never moved. I looked back as I reached the far stairs. He looked straight at me, extended one wing and started preening for his little fans.

There were maybe a dozen people on the beach. Three guys were surf fishing and a couple was flying an acrobatic kite. They were really good at making it do tricks. There was actually one family out in their bathing suits with their giant beach umbrellas breaking the wind. We made a funny juxtaposition I think.

Picture me bundled up in long johns, pants, three sweaters, a fleece with the hood up and a big scarf wrapped around everything - all black - standing next to three kids in multi-colored swim trunks splashing at the edge of the surf, making a castle in the wet sand.