We took a picnic lunch to the beach today and were there nearly three hours.  It was gorgeous.  We treated ourselves to chips and salsa followed by sandwiches.  Then we each took a 30-minute walk.  Then we enjoyed steamed green beans in a very light dill oil/vinegar dressing.  Water to drink.

We read.  We watched people play on the sand and in the water.  We watched kids and families and surfers and paddlers and joggers and bicyclists.  We saw the gulls and the godwits and the sandpipers and the pelicans.  We saw the helicopters and planes.  We saw blue sky and blue-green water and sparkling waves.

We also saw our friends the stones and rocks.  “Spotted stone” reminds me of the British dish “spotted Dick” — which I have not tried.  I probably won’t.  Suet does not appeal and I detest candied fruit, visceral reaction.  My mother laughed when I had my first and last bite of fruitcake, as she had the same impolite response.

But spotted stones are still compelling.