A-Z Challenge – O

Redondo Beach, 2013
Photo info: SONY NEX-6, 28mm, f/13, 1/160 sec, ISO100
Redondo Beach, 2013

O is for “Ocean”

I’ve always loved the ocean… swimming in it, listening to the waves, or hanging out at the beach during the summer… so many good memories! Living in Central Texas for the past 16 years, I really miss the water. Sure, there are lakes and rivers here, but swimming in them gives me the creeps! Salt water is much more to my liking. Scuba diving in clear tropical waters is such an amazing experience! 🐠

A few of my fondest ocean memories are:

  • Torrance Beach (California) – My hometown actually has a small strip of beach, just south of Redondo Beach (my birth city), and the strongest memory I have of this beach is going there with my family when I was really little, and the smell of french fries from the snack bar was so strong and good! I have a vague memory of eating some fries, and they were limp and greasy but yummy all the same! 🍟
  • Manhattan Beach (California) – During my high school years, my friends and I would hang out here during the summers. A great period of my life, driving our used cars, working part-time jobs, and looking for parties. At the beach, we worked on our tans, but maybe now we are paying for it with extra wrinkles! 😝
  • Ho’okipa Park (Maui) – We visited my Dad’s hometown (Wailuku) on Maui during the summers when I was under 10 years old, and we would often go to this small beach. These days it is famous for windsurfing, but back then in the mid-’70s, there was surfing and spearfishing. While my oldest brother was riding the waves, my dad was spearfishing and my other brother and I would float along in inner tubes (real car inner tubes made of rubber) following my dad as he speared fish. Fun! 🐟
  • Enoshima (Japan) – This touristy island can be reached by a long bridge, and Mariko and I explored the island for a whole day. Lots of great views of the Pacific… a wonderful memory shared by us newlyweds. 💞

We are planning on moving to Japan when our kids are independent, and I’d love to live near the ocean again. Even if we don’t live in a coastal town, Japan is small compared to Texas, so we should be able to visit the ocean much easier. I need to hear the sound of the ocean waves on the shore again. It makes me feel alive! 🌊

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