Birthday Bliss Weekend

I just had an extra great birthday weekend, full of sunshine, laughter, love and friends. It was awesome.

Gone was the morning gloom we've been having at the beach, and bright blue skies were happening all weekend long. Which meant I was firmly in place at Playa de los Amigos all day, both days. The water was super warm, and you could already feel the rip pulling from Hurricane Maria (which is now causing our coast to be pumping!), so my annual re-birth baptism in the sea was a little less dreamy and floaty than most years, and a bit more about just survival ... metaphor? Anyway, it was a complete joy.

Venice was showing off all weekend, with the perfect weather, tons of people out, and the Summer Music Festival was happening on Saturday, which created a nice, groovy atmosphere and had the locals and tourists all dancing together.

Little kids and Grandmas were out there learning to hula hoop, bikes were everywhere, it really was exactly the kind of day you expect to find when you come here to visit.

 

As the music and the growing waves competed with the skaters at the park for who could be loudest, I got to close out another year, complete with a magical sunset.

I pretty much got to do it all over again on Sunday, my birthday. A whole day of swimming and sun, and then it was time to celebrate with friends at The Ladies' Gunboat Society.

I cannot say enough how very delicious this joint is, and I'm so very lucky to have its Chef, Brian Dunsmoor, as one of my favorite homies.

Brian hooked us up with a family style feast of favorites like their ridiculously good fried chicken, shrimp and grits, whole trout, and all the sides that make this one of the most talked about food destinations in town right now. For great reason.

So we ate, drank, and laughed our faces off, and I kicked off another year, feeling loved and beyond grateful for the people and places that make up my life.

 

 It's gonna be a great year, I can feel it. I so look forward to telling its stories ...

Thank you, one and all. Thank you, Venice. Thank you, Mom! Thank you, LIFE!