I Bought a Boat!

Whew, I feel like I haven't stopped moving since I got home from Texas. Yesterday I finally got to use a Living Social Deal I'd gotten for stand-up paddleboarding. 

 I roped the new boy (guy I am dating, boyfriend, I don't know we haven't discussed formal titles yet) into coming with me. He was quite handy in strapping the boards to the top of my car, because I couldn't even come close to reaching. We decided to explore the marsh, partly because we thought it would be too windy on the open water and partly because we didn't want anyone to see us looking like fools. We had so much fun. We both fell off a few times as we were getting used to it, but luckily the marsh water was warm. We were going against the tide and wind on our way out, so it was quite a bit of work. My back and abs are sore today! We also went through some shallow places where we had to lay down and paddle or even carry the boards. We saw a ton of cool birds, some fish, and a lot of other random critters. We made it all the way to the open ocean and then enjoyed an easy ride back, propelled by the wind and tide. On a hot day, I was so happy to spend the day in and on the water.



Last night I watched the Olympic Gymnastics Trials with Breezy. Even though I am a runner, cyclist, triathlete, etc now, in my heart I will always be a gymnast. I can only watch with another former gymnast who understand my critique. Non gymnasts just think I am a judgmental jerk.

This morning I was up early for kickboxing. My shoulders and abs were not happy to be working after so many hours on the paddleboard yesterday. Then I took a makeshift shower (meaning I wiped myself down with a wet towel) before running off to meet my Mom, her boyfriend Gerry, and our friends to look at a boat. We sold our family boat 2 years ago because it was totally unreliable and kept leaving us stranded at sea. No fun.

I honestly thought we'd just look at it, find something wrong, and leave since that has pretty much been the story of our boat hunt. But we ended up loving it. So I bought it! Totally unexpected. A year ago I would have freaked out about spending that much money, but I think buying my house made me immune to the shock of draining my bank account.

But then after the thrill of buying the boat, I had to watch my parents drive away with it! We'll keep it on the mooring there, so I won't even get to use it until I go up for the 4th of July. To console myself, and to cool down since it was soooo hot, I headed to the beach. I think the marsh water spoiled me yesterday, because the ocean felt frigid! It made my feet and hands ache. Still, I knew I was so lucky to be able to get cool when so much of the country is stifling.

Have you ever totally surprised yourself by making a major purchase?