Back in 2008 when I was still living in Montreal, I joined a writing group in California in anticipation of our move there. I was taking a leave of absence from my job at McGill in order to try my luck at fiction writing and knew if I had any chance of taking myself seriously… Read More Celebrating Kira (Day 232)
My photos from today look like they were taken with black and white film; except for this first one where the colorful buoys and hats of the 8 o’clock swimmers are bright against the gray. It was a gray and blustery morning; stripping down to my bathing suit and plunging into the water was uninviting,… Read More Black-and-White (Day 231)
I was going to be working in San Francisco today and so I decided it was a good opportunity to swim in Aquatic Park where there is less concern about algae and where I should be getting some practice in anyway because we will be doing the Alcatraz swim in less than a month! Angie… Read More Aquatic Park (Day 230)
I swam at the pool today. Not just because of the potentially problematic red tide, but that helped make the decision easier. Mostly I swam in the pool because it was a very busy day and the pool fit best with my schedule. Also, I’m stuck paying for the Y until December and so I… Read More Lap Swimming (Day 229)
Discussions about the red tide continue to abound on all of my open water swimming groups. Should we swim? Shouldn’t we? My reading last night led me to believe it’s mostly okay to swim in. The particular algae spreading across the bay is called heterosigma akashiwo and, unless there is a strong odor, distinct discoloration,… Read More Does the water look red? (Day 228)
Harmful algae blooms have been making their way into Bay Area waters in the last few weeks. The Oakland Estuary, Alameda Beach, and Lake Merritt have all been recently featured in local media warning of red tide and potentially harmful algae blooms. Today the warnings made their way to my local swim spots. A warning… Read More Red Tide (Day 227)
Sheila, Arwen, Angie, and I had a swift swim at Keller Beach and then soaked in a sauna. Keller was quiet when we arrived; the tide was low so our swim started with a slog through the muck and eel grass, but then it felt great. The temperature seemed cooler this morning; not yet cold,… Read More Swim and a Sauna (Day 226)
Angie and I joined the 8 o’clock swimmers this morning, though they shot off before we were even in the water, so it was just the two of us. Determined to get a good, hard swim in, we refrained from chatting and just swam. It wasn’t especially wavy, but the water still churned, and as… Read More The Bay (Day 225)
Arwen, Sheila, Angie, and I went out at the Albany bulb this morning—the first time the four of us were all swimming together since early June. It was cloudy and cool as we ventured into the low low tide. The bottom grew increasingly muddy, my feet sinking into the muck, as I searched out deep… Read More The Chatters (Day 224)
I went to sleep last night with the goal of waking up early for a 5:30am swim; we planned to watch the sun rise and the full moon set over the Golden Gate Bridge. I managed to wake up, but when I looked out the window, I saw nothing but clouds. So I sent a… Read More Solo Swim (Day 223)