Juicy*S: March 2013

Well, I don't know about you, but when this time of year comes around, I start to get antsy for the summer. In college, spring trimester was always the toughest for me. I'd take my studying to the beach...yes, the beach! Picture brilliant blue sky, calm waves over blue-green Pacific Ocean, seagulls, a few dolphins swimming by, whitish (we are in San Diego, after all) sand, and a brisk breeze (all you locals can just picture Torrey Pines Beach). I would be cold, except that I'm prone, half-asleep on my oversized towel, and positioned to catch even rays according to the location of the sun (in other words, I'm probably not facing the water). I mean, it is cold...still spring...not even full-on spring...so I'd be freezing if I tried to get any color in my beach chair! (I did read for about a half hour, but it was distracted reading as you can imagine!)

Nowadays, my priorities are different. (Ya think!?!) My friends will say: "Sun bathing?! My doctor told me not too, and I'm already getting laser treatments for sun damage!" I say: "Sun bathing!? Who has time for that SH*#! I have to make sure my kids don't drown when they try to surf "outside" with the board they just got for their birthday...yesterday! Plus, it's FU*&ing freezing down there at this time of year!

Which brings me back to the yearning for summer that comes to me at this time of year. And last summer I didn't spend as much time at the beach as I spent driving kids to and from camps so I could work for a living. So when I got the chance to visit my friend Lori in Little Italy for the Mercato one Saturday, I took my camera and took it all in. Here's what's making me think of summer right now: