rainy day woman

If you haven't stepped away from the seat where you gaze (eyeglazed) at your monitor while slowly becoming internet fungus...

or

If you've been locked up in a building all the livelong day breathing nothing but recycled air...

It's time you took a break to discover
 all that is discoverable. 

I haven't much to complain about when it comes to the weather, since the climate round these parts is quite accommodating, so it's indeed a rare treat when I have a chance to venture out into the rain for a lunchbreak on a blustery  day.

Throughout my explorations, I've made some great discoveries:

• a grand piano inside a grand hallway

• a group of four lifelong friends and musicians
 who gather every tues to practice in a garage

• a city historian - who has shared with me that very spot in which I am seated daily was once a field of lemon trees

• a diving competition

• bits of street art
• a Japanese bakery
• Thursday afternoon Farmer's Markets 
• interpretive trails

• a hummus factory tour
• a well seasoned tea expert

• a magnificent field adjacent to a major freeway

• a residence with six quack-quack, waddle-waddle ducks as pets

It's a wonder what one can discover in their very own backyard.

My favorite place to wander for the hour is the Bayfront.

 Therein lies a hidden gem, just seven miles north from the International border. It's an eye-candied spectacle for any treasure-seeking footwanderer.

Here, you'll find a lone bird overlooking the masts of sailboats posted at the entrance of a fishing pier

A living museum along the seaside marsh 

Seaboats and sailships

A musical, waterfront harp that hums in the wind

"to lift your heart and reach those memories that touch your soul".

As I wandered beneath the dark and sheepcloudy sky, I gave little notice to the oncoming rain and happened to have strayed off the beaten path. 

Wandering in the drizzle of the day, the rain unexpectedly turned into a downpour. I did nothing to avoid it. In doing so I crossed paths with an elder fishergentleman beneath the animated raindrops. He acknowledged me with a warm "Happy rainy day" greeting, to which I immediately repeated it back to him with a smiley grin. 

When I arrived to the edge of the pier, I closed my eyes and listened to the sound of the rain falling onto the seawater, and the splashy, rhythmic lapping against the rocking boats. A plane flying quietly above. It was a breathtaking, rhythmical soundscape to take in.

Not having a change of clothes on my person, I returned to the department soaked from the cat and dog weather, much to the horror of my colleagues.

"Did you get stuck in the rain?"

"No. I went for a walk in the rain". 

I flashed a beaming smile,

 and it didn't leave my face for the rest of the afternoon as I slowly dried off.

What wandering wonderment can do for your soul.

If you have the opportunity, go for a stroll beneath a raincloudy sky to reflect

Or just step into the outdoors to do so, come rain or shine

There is quite likely an amazing place just outside your doorsteps you have yet to discover.

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...
It's about learning to dance in the rain

~Vivian Green

x