Failing Curmudgeon

Agonda Beach, Goa, India
The waves are rolling in through the haze and I can just make out where the sand gives up and the rocks, shrubs and trees take over. The few brave souls that have lounged in the sand are being pushed into the shade by the sun and the advancing tide. My hammock, slung under the eaves of our beach-side hut, has saved me the trouble of migrating with the advancing heat and sea.

Yesterday was just like today though I think that the tide started coming in just a little sooner, it’s hard to tell these things for sure. Finding the energy to look at my watch (still strapped to my wrist) is a rare accomplishment. We have been here like this for a week and a small concern has started to fester in the back of my mind. What if I am losing my Cynicism? What if all this lax idyllic beach living has corroded the lens through which I see the world? When we arrived here in Goa only a sliver of the moon bothered to show itself in the evening. Last night after a dinner of chicken vindaloo and Kingfisher beer I watched a miniature me follow each of my foot steps in the sand back to the hut. It was my moon shadow that got me wondering if I could still look on the dark side.

In an effort to promote my own sense of security and self respect I give you my list of complaints:
1. At around lunch time the sun has been up long enough to make the sand hot under my feet.
2. The ocean waves are too small to body surf in and too big for a serious swim.
3. Every other evening the sun fails to put on any kind of a show and instead slips uneventfully into a bank of haze on the horizon.
4. In the late afternoon the sun has moved low enough in the sky to make my feet hot as I lie in the hammock and I have to drape them over the sides to keep the bottoms from getting burned. 5. For reasons I cannot explain the people here like to put salt into watermelon juice.
6. Our hut came with a mosquito net. The net is an ugly shade of blue and is invariable the first thing I see each morning. This is all the more troubling since the bugs here are rare, harmless and seldom annoying.
7. After walking in the surf the sand gets stuck to my feet and it’s hard to keep it out of the hut. It seems that we are always sweeping the floor. If I could remember to use the bucket of water at the entrance I could probably fix this problem.
8. Though there are coconut palms everywhere no one seems to understand the beauty of a coconut shake and try as I might I cannot find one.
9. I am told that dolphins are common around here but they refuse to come around when I am looking.
10. It took the kitchen a long time to grill our fish dinner last night. Though even I could not complain about the resulting meal.
11. The biryanis are not quite big enough to cure the munchies.
12. The roosters make a lot of noise in the mornings. Though since I have started to eat more chicken this problem has gotten a bit better.