I felt I deserved a day of rest today, and since I’ve reserved an entire week here at the Halifax Harbor Marina in Daytona Beach, felt I could afford one, too. A day to not think or hopefully have to talk much about the engine, but just get my feet on solid ground again, hit a coffee shop, and maybe get some groceries.
It turns out this marina is right next to Daytona Beach’s “Riverfront”, a quaint section of shops of all kinds with a beautiful espanade right along the Halifax River (really, the ICW).
I knew I’d be doing some yoga here over the next few days!
I found a cute little coffee shop called Sweet Marlay’s and had my favorite half-caf cappucino and worked on this blog for awhile. It was nice just sitting in air conditioning and doing mental work (which I much prefer) instead of physical work for a change!
The forecast called for rain in the mid-afternoon, so I decided to go back to the boat, break out my folding bicycle, and head for the nearest publix about 2 miles away to try to make it back before the rain started. This would kill two birds with one stone: get me my daily exercise and a much-needed restocking of produce and dairy. I have a bike bag that mounts to the rack which has fold-out panniers which, coupled with the main part of the bag, can carry a fair amount of stuff. I decided to also bring a medium size backpack which I had found for $5 at Salvation Army a couple of months back. I was very glad I did!
It was an interesting ride on the back roads from the marina in the heart of upscale, modern Daytona, through neighborhoods located in very different locations socio-economic stratum, as well as different cultural ages. It felt like I was biking through about five different Florida decades on the two-mile trip.
Right as I arrived in the store, I received a note from a friend informing me that a common friend had died suddenly just a couple of days prior. It was a real shocker. I had just talked with this man a few days before I had launched. No details about his death, but just the idea that he was no more threw me.
And it screwed me up more than I realized because while shopping, I totally forgot that I had arrived (and had to carry all my groceries back on) my bicycle! I ended up with a cart full of groceries (including, can you imagine, four rolls of paper towels!), and it wasn’t until I exited the store that I realized what I had done. I looked at my bike bag and the backpack and then the cart full of groceries (much of which didn’t appreciate being out in the 90-degree weather) and wondered if I’d be able to pull it off.
It was quite the unromantic cruising lifestyle moment. Not only did I have to pack and then unpack and repack everything in order to get it to fit (and that was only with me also holding two bags in my hands as I peddled), but I had inadvertently parked my bike in the midst of homeless/crazy people land (which Daytona seems to have more than their fair share of). I had to deal as tactfully as possible a bunch of crazy talk, turn down requests for money (or to go back into Publix to buy them beer), etc., for about 15 minutes while I was trying to concentrate on efficient packing. I thought, “Yeah, this is the cruising lifestyle I’ve been working toward, right here!” Lol
The ride back was quite a bit more tiring than the trip out, not only because I’m very out of shape and my legs were now tired, but I was also carrying probably 30 lbs of milk, OJ, cold cuts, and fruit on my back. But, I made it back–barely beating the rain–and got everything into the fridge as soon as possible (after 45 minutes in the heat!).
When the rain stopped in the evening, I decided it was time to do laundry at one of the three mini laundromats at the marina.
After putting in a load, I was called by Robin Groelle, the friend that I had visited my first day out, who had started a three-month road trip across the country and back to visit friends and relatives.
As I waited on my clothes to dry, I decided to check out the book exchange. Every marina has one, somewhere, where people can drop off books their done reading and pick up a couple that others have left.
I struck pay dirt! There was a Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of John Paul Jones, U.S. naval hero of the Revolutionary War and the father of the U.S. Navy. I love history, especially having to do with sailing ships, so that was a great find. I’m going to dig into it tonight. Although it’s going to be a hard choice between that and the Led Zeppelin biography (which band, coincidentally, has a cofounding member and bass player named John Paul Jones!)