We're On Island Time (Morning)...

On Tuesday morning, I got up just before my alarm was supposed to go off at 5:45 am, and I fed the cat & made coffee. I spent the next hour packing & getting everything in order for my trip, and at precisely 6:55 am I hopped in my car, and headed out onto the highway. About halfway there (it was a smooth 2-hour drive from my apartment to the Steamship Authority ferry dock in Hyannis), Brian called and said that morning rush-hour traffic through Boston was severely delaying his drive, so I took the slow boat solo, and he caught the 11 am fast ferry instead. I spent the first hour on the top deck enjoying the glorious morning sunshine, and the second hour under a walkway so I wouldn't burn. I finished the book I was reading, listened to Almanac Mountain's "When in Nature" EP on my iPod (as well as "Alejandro" by Lady Gaga), and then I disembarked in Nantucket! I was officially on "Island Time" at 11:27 am...

I checked into our room at The Chestnut House (a place I've stayed many times over the years because of their awesomely cheap off-season rates), unpacked, and then waited with the book's sequel for the delivery of the bicycle I rented, as well as Brian's arrival. When Brian arrived soon after my bike, we sat around for a few minutes, and then walked over to old favorite The Brotherhood of Thieves for lunch. I had an amazing bowl of lobster bisque and a Cisco Bailey's Pale Ale to start, and after thoroughly enjoying both, I savored an equally-good Cisco Beer BBQ Burger with smoked bacon & Vermont cheddar cheese, and a bunch of curly fries. What a way to start the island feasting.

On the way back to the room I grabbed an excellent Rwandan coffee at The Bean, I stuffed my backpack with beach gear, and then Brian & I headed out on our bicycles to Surfside Beach, 4½ miles away. Man, did we luck out with the weather! It was sunny and around 70 all day, and the ride was awesome. Once we got to the beach I slathered on extra sunscreen, and while Brian went for a walk up and down the beach, I spent a half hour in the ocean, body surfing, swimming, and just being a happy goofball. There were several bikinied beauties nearby for scenery, the occasional seagull squeed overhead, and the smell and sound of the sea wiped away weeks of "old apartment/unfinished new apartment/no job" stress. We hung out for an hour or so, and then rode our bikes back to the Chestnut House to chill for awhile (I read and finished my coffee, and Brian got sucked into the bizarre phenomenon known as 'World Cup Soccer'). Up next: dinner and Nantucket After Dark.