This morning I spent an ideal few hours at the beach. It seemed like a perfect morning in every way – textbook breezes beneath a flawless blue sky. I rode my bike out around 8:30, just taking my time and enjoying the wonderful weather. The beach was nearly deserted (even when I left around 11:00), as if it was my own personal paradise. I sat under my rainbow-painted umbrella, re-read a few chapters from Middlemarch, and occasionally took in the unspoiled look of this remarkable place that’s just down the road from my apartment.