cogee beach – a few stolen moments

sunday 6 feb

yay, another beach day! this was planned a couple of weeks back with KC, JZ & MK. the beach location was dependent on whether the boys will be okay enough to get out of bed after a heavy drinking night. tequila, yum. i miss the salt, lemon & the cleansing taste which makes me feel brave when i drink it. and it’s fun to turn people off when i volunteer to swallow the worm. KC dramatically rang and said that i had to help pick up the Dominican Republic guest (DRG) from a Pitt St hotel. i was confused as KC previously told me that the guest was Puerto Rican and a friend. i wasn’t at all excited as KC told me DRG had an American accent and that i was to offer morale support. i don’t know- a stranger who had an American accent, possibly a freeloader- not excited at all.

when KC’s car slowed down, i got in the back. DRG was wearing a trucker cum military cap sort of similar to mine so i couldn’t really see DRG’s face. i wasn’t sure if DRG looked trustworthy enough. KC & DRG were conversing in Spanish. i followed enough of it and was amazed as KC mentioned DRG also spoke French and had just come from Japan after living there for the past 18 months. as we drove past central train station, i was taken aback as KC started to point out someone wearing a red T and yelled out something obscene like “show us your tits”, we all laughed but DRG and i suddenly came up with a scoring/ abbreviation game. driving less than 5kms, we were non-stop laughing and comparing abbreviations and scores like we were long lost friends. we dropped of DRG’s luggages & drove back to town. we invited DRG to join us at the beach but DRG had errands to finish.

picked up JZ from the city but MK had to stay home & nurse the hangover plus finish some university stuff. JZ & i bought lunch – Nandos Portuguese chicken & chips. we picked a nice spot under a tree overlooking the main coogee beach esplanade KC was keen to sleep on the beach but i had to go & sit in the bathroom for a long time to get my cancer tummy to settle. right after the lunch, it was so nice to lie down on the beach, perve, enjoy the blue sky, the breeze and another perfect Sydney summer. JZ & KC had a swim whilst i walked up and down the beach. as i walked and reviewed the morning, i felt very light. less troubled and very different from the lowness i had been feeling in the past 4 weeks. wow, did this mean that the old happy me is starting to come back? what a nice thought. being out with friends, laughing, the blue skies, the warm beautiful days, the sound of the crashing waves --- these all helped i thought. when i got back to our spot, KC was already sleeping. JZ & i sat on the water’s edge, buried our feet in the fine white sand and felt the wave motions. there were quiet moments where i just stared out to the sea. JZ phoned his girlfriend whilst another topless woman walked past or plonked down on the sand letting it all hang out. it was funny. JZ & I went to the northern end of the beach to the rocky part to perve some more. well, not really perve but to enjoy our day on the beach. we compared it to phuket, boracay & batangas beaches. the stench of one corner of the beach put us off, so did the prickly gravel and dried kelp. we had D&M’s and I started to explain my 2004 dramas and why I do not yet work full time hours at the office. But JZ already knew. KC or MC apparently mentioned it. it was a relief that JZ already knew. in the past, i would probably have been very upset because I had previously told KC not to tell everyone.

on the way back to KC’s place, we dropped by Marrickville. i got some lime, ochre & tomatoes. KC roasted pork in mama sita’s special bbq marinade. chopped tomatoes dressed with kamayan prawn paste became our salad. the steamed ochre was yummy on top of the steamed jasmine rice. and KC’s left over michado from the other night made DRG homesick of a similar Dominican Republic dish. after dinner, we all sat outside the balcony and checked out what the rest of the residents in KC’s complex did to wind down on a Sunday night. by the time we looked at our watch, it was nearly 11pm. a lot of times, we had to remind ourselves to keep it down as we talked and laughed so loud. our conversation varied a lot from comparing cities we have visited and romantic escapades we had experienced.

KC drove me & JZ home. our conversation was non stop. we kept playing the perspective lover game. just before we reached anzac bridge, the driver on the intersection next to us caught my attention. i loudly blurted out “we’ll be making love the whole night through”. my mind suddenly went overdrive and tried to figure out where i got it from. as we entered the bridge, I got it….”a few stolen moments, is all that we share, you’ve got your family and they need you there” … before we reached the end, everyone was singing with me. we dropped off JZ but KC, DRG and I sang out loud as we drove from the west to the east side of the city. we got to sing “I will always love you” and followed it by Madonna songs, as you do.