I think the last time I visited the ocean was July 4, 2006.

An argument could be made for September 2012 because we went on a cruise out of Port Canaveral for our anniversary that year, but if the measure we’re using here is toes in the sand, salt water lapping at your ankles with every wave, then it’s been 11 years…

Which admittedly seems like far too long for anyone living in Florida, though in my defense I’ve been to the beach plenty of times – it’s just that living in Tampa, we tend to favor splashing around in the Gulf of Mexico rather than the Atlantic Ocean purely for proximity purposes!

The last time my wife and I hit the east coast, we had driven over to watch the space shuttle takeoff on the 4th of July and then spent the rest of the day until fireworks went off playing around at Cocoa Beach. Today we returned, not to watch a space launch – sadly – but to splash and play with family, and I think that everybody had a pretty swell time. Christopher was a bit nervous of the waves and instead preferred to just play in the sand, but in a way that actually made it a little easier… 😉

Despite having to constantly joust with the salt water to maintain my balance, I think that the ocean is probably my #1 Relaxation Destination … mostly because I love just listening to the sound of the waves rolling in one after another. In a way it’s almost kind of soothing how between the wind and the water, sometimes you can barely hear other people talking – makes it easier to take a step back and truly unwind, something that I’m always challenging myself to actually do.

Of course, it didn’t take five minutes of flipping through my phone once we were ready to leave to see that reality continued even during my day off, with today infamized by the GOP finally getting their way and burning the Affordable Care Act to the ground. I, like many, don’t know how any decent human being could justify stripping the standards from the health insurance industry relied upon by hundreds of millions of people, but the ones behind this destruction don’t really care about that.

I commented on one friend’s Facebook post earlier this evening that I do still think that eventually the United States will embrace a single payer healthcare system like the rest of the industrialized world, though it’s sad how much pain and suffering so many people will continue to endure until we get there…

But the waves crash onward and occasionally every one of us must pause to take a breath for our own good health …. that’s how I spent my day today – away from all of the noise, and it was nice. 

Be passionate, be vigilant, and never stop fighting for what is right, but don’t forget to take care of yourself, too.