Residency has its privileges

This may seem obvious, but one of the nice things about living in Hawaii is not just that you've got beautiful beaches close by, but that going to the beach becomes an easy outing that doesn't require so much effort. Back on the mainland, when we went on family outings to the beach it was a huge ordeal requiring piles and piles of gear and hours and hours of commitment. Hours to get ready, hours to get there, hours to drag your shit from the car to your "spot" and get stuff set up, and then an obligation to stay for hours because the effort to get situated was so enormous.

But here, we can look outside at the breezy, sunny, 83 degree day, have no particularly pressing errands to run, and say, "hey, let's take Zeke up to Shark's Cove to swim in the tidal pools. But let's not stay too long, because I want to be home in time to go to a matinee." So Jason plays with Zeke for 5 minutes while I make an extra bottle or two, round up a couple of towels, and toss the chairs, umbrella and sunscreen in the trunk of the car. Zeke takes a nice nap in the car for half an hour, and when he wakes up bright and chirpy, we're here:

We walk about 50 feet from where the car is parked to set up under a palm tree. Zeke plays with some toys, and Jason enjoys the view:

We go for a swim:



After swimming, we relax in the shade while Zeke enjoys some naked baby time.
In a move guaranteed to result in years of therapy for him, we crack ourselves up staging a picture called "Zeke has crabs!!":

We chill out for about 45 minutes, and then go home with plenty of time to make a movie or go to the grocery store or nap or fix Jason's bike or watch crappy movies on HBO.

I know I bitch about Hawaii from time to time, but I'm not an idiot. Days like this obviously don't suck.