More to Life… Longing for Dog Beach

So perhaps there is more to life than cars, but… not much. In a world where people are completely process driven, focused on efficiency (if nothing else), need constant entertainment and instant satisfaction, life–the important things in it, that is–becomes a distraction. These days, people generally don’t tolerate any amount of downtime before they turn to their smart phone to check on something or another, which incidentally, is wired to their ear streaming music and possibly taking a photograph of something mildly entertaining and completely inane.

Since our smart phones and computer technology are so tangled with our personal and professional lives, it raises the point that perhaps there isn’t more to life, since technology is our life. For me the same is true: cars are more than just an interest, but how I make a living. Just for fun, I’d like to list the things that fall into my personal “more to life” list. To wit:

• My boyfriend
• My dog
• My family
• The beach

You see, the list isn’t very long. Or profound. The automotive industry is literally what funds my “more to life” list. Also, my own car is what gives me the freedom to move about, going to the places I want, leaving when I want, all without argument or compromise, and sometimes with a little guidance from the GPS lady. That said, I think it’s perfectly fair to add cars to that list. So here it goes:

• Cars

Of course, the only way any of these things can be improved is by combining them:

• Being with my boyfriend and my family and my dog at the beach

In my first post back in April, I promised to blog about my professional travels and also my travels “on the road,” but completely failed to do so. Now I’m making up for lost time.

This photo was taken (with my Palm Pixi, by the way) last May when Ramon and I took a weekend trip to see my father and some other relatives in Westport, MA. Mason Dixon, my beautiful, brilliant and blonde golden retriever, and I seem to have very close “more to life” lists. You’ll notice that he is smiling as he takes in salty, early summer Massachusetts air out the window of a red Infiniti G37x sedan.

Considering my father grew up in Westport, I’ve been there dozens of times and know my way around pretty well. Travelling down a strip of road that follows the shore of the Atlantic Ocean, I was planning to make a right turn. Ramon suggested that I continue going straight. “The road has to end somewhere,” he said.

The end of the road produced a causeway that led to a small island with a public beach. Not only that, public parking. There are few places left in the world, waterfront especially, where you can pull up, park without a permit or a fee, strip down to your bathing suit and swim with your dog. And this little island, that had actually been used as a submarine lookout in WW2, is one of them. I can’t for the life of me remember the name of the island; it’s Dog Beach to me.

Now that fall has suddenly pronounced itself, I’m already missing the beach. Just another 9 months or so, and I’ll be back at Dog Beach.

What’s on your “More to life” list?