Nine and a half miles of walking today, all beach.

Three walks. Morning, afternoon, evening, on the Gulf of Mexico.

I woke late, losing an hour of a gorgeous day. I walked to Bradenton Bridge and back by myself. It was already hot and bright. Frank met me back at the entrance to the beach and waited while I had my first swim of the day in the delicious water.

My daughter and her boyfriend woke late, so it was early afternoon before we got back to the beach and we took a long walk, the three of us, to see the shore birds – the terns and laughing gulls and plovers. . . they posed for me on the breakwater just for fun.

More swimming in the Gulf, I didn’t want to come out. But we had plans to meet friends on Siesta Key for the sunset drum circle. Dear friends came down from Tampa; and on Siesta Key we met new friends from Sarasota and a dear friend from Martha’s Vineyard, and walked more along the hard packed sand full of beaching bodies on Siesta Key to the drum circle where I danced and danced as the sun dipped below the horizon. A perfect Sunday, and I head to bed perfectly exhausted.