This past weekend Kim & I went to Rehoboth Beach for our annual May long weekend at the beach. With all that is going on in our lives and my business, we couldn’t wait until the time to head south came. When Thursday morning arrived, we ripped out of the driveway like people with pants on fire ready to just get away from it all.
We always have a good time in the town. While we’re not into the bar scene, we are into the 
fine dining, food, and getting away on the beach and in our kayaks. Of course the LGBT community is strong and visible there which makes it feel very homey. No having to explain to crazy hotel clerks — yes we only need a queen bed, no twin beds wouldn’t be more convenient. The simple pleasures…
I have found that much of life’s mysteries can be explored and big life decisions made while walking on the beach for mile after sandy mile. It is one of my favorite things to do and has been since I was a kid. As a big kid now, I have yet another seaside passion and that is paddling my kayak in the back bays. Once I get in my kayak I am simply a world away from everything. We had the good fortune of paddling in Rehoboth Bay on Thursday and the Assawoman Bay Wildlife Area on Saturday. It was simply the best way to bliss out and paddle amidst amazing wildlife and general quiet. With nesting ospreys, egrets, gulls, oyster catchers, coumerants, horeshoe crabs doing the nasty, and other birds it was a firsthand look into spring and rebirth. No matter what else is going on I always return to the take out refreshed and invigorated (even if I am dumb enough not to check the tides and have to portage 1/2 mile in knee deep sand — not a recommended recreational activity).
Whenever I have these moments where I can let out a great big sigh and bask in just living I wonder why it is that moments like this seem so few and far between. I have this perspective and I regularly get out and do things I love to do. I know many other women treat themselves to R&R even less frequently. With summer upon us, paddling is almost a weekly event. What it says to me is that I crave open space — in my mind, my schedule, and my surroundings. Time to be free from excessive mental activity.
After getting back in the swing of things this week and quickly going into overwhelm mode, I decided it is time for a late spring cleaning of things on the to-do list. Today I started going through my wad of “backburner” items and simply slashed and burned the ones that don’t fit. I was also pleasantly surprised that I had already handled many of these items without even acknowledging it (heck I wonder what else I accomplished recently that I haven’t even noticed??). And, I already booked the next “bliss out” day for this Sunday to paddle with a group of friends somewhere new. That feels good already.
When was the last time you did something that just blisses you out? Why has it been so long? How can you schedule some bliss out time in the next week?