Red Flag My Ass!

My folks were passing through Lansing today on their way to Soaring Eagle, and as is usual, they stopped in town for a meal. I suggested Soup to Nutz in Lansing, as the brunch is usually really good and the atmosphere is comfortable. Sheryl, Mike, Runs with Spatula and Corky joined in, as they have gotten to know Rose and Hal over the last few years. After enjoying a good brunch and some amusing conversation (note to self: explore the idea of a website where you get to suggest people you think may be the Missing Link between neanderthals and modern man...), we headed out. Everyone had missions or errands except me and Sheryl, I discovered. So, I proposed a trip to Lake Michigan. In true Sheryl fashion, she was up for the adventure.

The trip to Grand Haven State Park was uneventful. We found a parking spot quickly and close to the beach, which we found out was quite the stroke of luck. We walked up toward the beach, and read the sign declaring the conditions for the day: water temperature was 73 degrees (yahoo!) and the swimming conditions were considered red. Red? Reading further: green meant swimming was safe, yellow meant to take caution, and red meant no swimming. No swimming? To drive almost two hours to such a beautiful lake and not swim?!? Sheryl and I looked out toward the water at throngs of people playing in the waves, looked at each other, and said, "Fuck it!" We headed down, and found a great spot where a family was leaving for the day, putting us in what can only be described as the front row of the beach. We set our stuff up (a ridiculous amount for two people, really), and headed into the water.

We quickly discovered the red flag was due to nearly three-foot waves crashing in. So, we made our way out fairly far and started jumping! Waves kept crashing into us, and we kept jumping into them. There's nothing quite like being slammed in the chest by a white-capped wave - it just makes me laugh, and I get that feeling of being a kid again. Sheryl's fascination of being in the water easily matches my own, and we spent the next two hours chatting, swallowing water, laughing and people watching - not a care in the world and no inclination to go home. We even got to enjoy a little rain shower while playing in the waves! We finally headed to shore and discovered that being out where we were wasn't nearly the workout that people were getting by being closer to shore. It took forever to walk up to the beach with the waves breaking all around. The rain picked up quite a bit, and we decided to call it a day and head back home. We decided to stop for a quick bite to each before hitting the expressway, and swung into Butch's Beach Burritos near the beach. It was an interesting place, serving burritos, tacos and hot dogs. For some reason, though the food wasn't fantastic, it certainly hit the spot. We continued home, and while I have the barest sunburn on my chest and sand caked in my toenails and clumpy, sandy hair, I wouldn't have traded the day for anything.