Evanston, August 20

I felt better Sunday but decided to stay home anyway. Leo and Jody went and reported surfing quality waves at Ohio Street, something I have never seen. They had fun in the surf but not much swimming.

Today the forecast was for possible storms and a strong north wind with 1-3 foot waves. So we decided tentatively on Ohio St if possible. But the morning dawned partly cloudy with only light variable winds reported and no reported waves anywhere on the Lake. So Jody and I changed our plans to Evanston. We were glad we did. It was a bit cloudy but otherwise conditions were perfect, flat 74 degree water. There was a fair amount of activity on the beach but we had the water to ourselves. It has become more and more clear to me over the years that swimming can be either a high energy adrenaline inducing sport or a serene form of activity akin to meditating. Today was the later. We paused for a while at the turn enjoying being the only two beings in evidence on a calm orderly planet. We had no interest in hurrying back to reality.

Later in the morning, after we were safely home, there was a totally unexpected thunderstorm lasting almost an hour. So much for the serene orderly planet idea.