Gifts

[Tighe]

Early in the week I had been scanning the forecasts. The isobars were stacking up on Saturday, the weather was still going to be in the 70-80's and my birthday was looking to be sweet. My girlfriend and I were planning to road tripwo whereever it was windy, to ride, camp out...we were psyched. Weds everything looked different. The isobar maps looked a lot worse for Saturday, the high was to be 60, and rain was predicted. Waaaaaa
For those of you not recently with a small child that is not a whine, just a release of the disappointment.

After great sailing on Friday, I was ok with the realization that my birthday was not going to include wind. My girlfriend and I "played" inside most of the day, as the wind and the rain rattled the storms. I had been watching the radar and seen the wall of rain moving slowly to the NE over us. At about 3:30 it looked like the rain might be moving out, and the wind was still blowing statewide. I posted my call for fellow takers and hoped in the car. I was few blocks from my house and Ryan J. called. He'd been watching the weather and was itchin' to get out as well. We rendezvoused at Bellaire. The rain was stopping, and the whitecaps were rolling down the lake. Yes! We were going to ride! It was great to get on the water. The color palette changes daily this time of year and this session was no exception. Everywhere you looked the colors changed, lots of changing greys overhead, every once and a while a bright blue hole in the clouds would appear, the oranges and red on the shoreline were in full peak. Amazing. Ryan and I, (and a bald eagle) ripped back and forth for about a half hour as the sky to the west got lighter and lighter, then...

I was heading toward shore turned around and BOOM the other shore was ignighted in color as the sun dropped below the clouds and set the shoreline aflame in bright orange and reds, piercing against the dark sky above and the dark water below. I was hottin and hollaring, just trying to breath through the gift that was all around me. I came about and Ryan was lined up perfectly upwind of me in between me and the sun, his sail glowing, like a flame across the water, the water turning to liquid mercury. Ryan hollars out to check out the rainbow, whoa, how did I miss that! A full rainbow! rising out of the brillant orange shore ahead of us and returning somewhere down near Montemedi. I felt the warm sun upon my face...thank you, thank you thank you...were all I could mutter.

what a very special gift. Thank you Ryan for sharing it with me. My cup overflowith with gratitude. Another year is capped off with a wonderful memory.

[Randy]

When you're graced like this on you're birthday you know you're doing things right...seems like we all are...just needing to shift perspective from time to time to see the bounty. Ryan told me about your party on the water this morning...very rich and one I'm sure you'll both remember throughout this lifetime. You obviously were both completely open to the surpise of the unfolding moment and it's the harmony in stories like this that gives us all hope. Happy Birthday Brother!!

[Kevinousdigian]

Tighe:
That was funny seeing you on 35E in the morning. Today I saw James Norman turning onto 36, I'm guessing he had a session had Mahtomedi because he had all the boards on top of the car. My wife now thinks I"m due for another session because Tighe had all his stuff and so did Jim so I missed two days for fun with the family.

Glad you had a good time at Da Bear for a change Tighe. I sailed WB twice this week and really enjoyed cruising around the lake and enjoying the spectacular colors. The penisula across from Manitou island was tremondous with every shade imaginable. Looks like they'll be some wind up north tomorrow and in southern part of state on tuesday. It would be hard for this fall to get much better.

KO

[Sid]

My Saturday gift wasn't wrapped as beautifully as yours. I went to Cannon in the late morning. It was dark and gray but the wind was blowing from 180 degrees and it felt comfortably warm. I rigged a 5.5 and had about an hour and a half of the steadiest wind I have ever sailed. It started raining after that and although the wind was still good, if a bit lower, I had trouble seeing through my usual welder's/aviator's dark glasses and quit. I had a few passers by give me the "are you completely nuts?" stare while I tore my stuff down in my dry suit. I saw a gift and beauty in my session too.