My Morning wake up call... Cock A Doodle Doo... October 29,2018

I wake to the sound of chickens! It’s early...6am in fact. At first I think I’m dreaming... I venture outside in my nightie to take a look... I believe it is this fine character! ... A Big Brightly Coloured Cock making all the racket... He is ruling the roost so to speak...hens in tow, proud and loud. Why is it the male birds are blessed with all the beauty & colour? Cocks and Peacocks flaunt their feathers shamelessly. Fast Fact.... Charles Darwin theory of Evolution & Natural Selection... Colour differences between sexes in birds result largely from female preference for bright colours in males. Interesting.... Further influences include female birds exposed to predators while nesting are less visible cloaked in dark unassuming colours. Colour is used in contests between males over mates or resources and territory. Isn't the reverse true in our North American Culture? As women is it us who are more likely to paint our faces, colour and curl our hair, botox, boob jobs and designer clothing? Ok... men do it too ~I am not making any firm stereotypes and not all of you Natural Beauties reading this blog choose to participate in any of the above nonsense... This is not about judgement just Curiosity... Do we do it for Men? I believe we do it for our own reasons. I find myself here in Sayulita with no intent of finding a mate nor attracting attention of men. I still brush my teeth, put on some lipstick, brush my hair, shave my legs & put on clothing I feel good in. I am doing that for me. Not out of habit but out of choice. The same reason I make my bed before leaving my AirB&B room. I appreciate coming back to a room that is inviting and clean. Look good... feel good mentality works for me. I try out leaving my bed unmade and my slight OCD kicks in... I return to make my bed.

This morning its overcast, hot and humid. Yah Yah Cafe is better than expected. One block up the street, a/c, fast speed internet, relaxed environment. I decide on the healthiest smoothie on the menu- full antioxidant, energy boosting cleanse in a mason jar deal... Its green and looks like sludge but it’s actually tasty! I indulge in a fresh croissant that is still warm to the touch. I’m disciplined ...I don’t get the chocolate one. I settle on a comfy couch and across from me I notice shelves laden with books! Free for the borrowing! Nothing catches my eye until I recognize an author... Robert B. Parker- my Dad’s favourite author. I’m always on the look out in hopes of a new one he hasn’t yet read. Buying a gift for a man that has everything has always been a struggle. There’s only so many walking canes, pig garden statues and framed prints a man needs. Why not... I’ll give Robert B.Parker a  chance. I am a speed reader after all and my options here are limited. Reading seems more enticing than laying in bed back in my room watching the ceiling fan spin while going through my M & M technique for insomnia. ( my close friends I have shared this secret with) 

I google free blog sites and settle upon wix.com.  Simple to use. I’m not looking to become some great author, serious blogger or make $ just a basic platform that I can purge my thoughts shamelessly while on this trip. I consider holding off on publishing... should I re-read, edit, improve? I decide “Fuck it” my seemingly new inappropriate word... Publish and Share. No regrets...

I bought my first Pyrrha talisman necklaces (www.Pyrrha.com) over 7 years ago....before they were a "popular thing".  I was wandering downtown Government Street in Victoria with my 7 year old when I passed a store window with charms. I was drawn to the necklaces. We walked by twice before my daughter said “ let’s go in Mom”...That day I purchased two necklaces- a Horse Shoe talisman meant to protect against evil spirits and bring good luck and The Tree of Life~ a symbol of a fresh start on life, positive energy, good health and a bright future. As a symbol of immortality. A tree grows old, yet it bears seeds that contain the very essence and in this way the tree becomes immortal. As a symbol of growth and strength. $700 on my Visa and my first pricey purchase as a single woman on the road to Divorce. I still wear them today. This will be my next one.... next chapter. This talisman reads 'Ni Regret Du Passe Ni Peur De L'Avenir' in French, meaning 'Neither Regret the Past nor Fear the Future'. It serves as a reminder of the happiness available to us if we live in the present

Sayulita Today... 

After a reasonably healthy balanced breakfast and some serious consideration to do a few pushups and planks in my room, a few work items checked off and I’m ready for the beach. I am  back at Cocos Beach Club. Comfy lounge  chair spot on the beach, steps from the ocean... I pull my chair out from under the umbrella. No one seems to appreciate the sun as I do. For a Brit I tan easily and maintain colour for most of the year. My family members are the same... so much for pasty white English folk with crooked teeth and skinny legs. Ok, we do all have skinny legs. Family trait... long and lean. I’ve learned to appreciate this asset. My thin, slow growing hair not so much. It’s funny what people judge them selves against. For me... long flowing heathy locks are what  I’m drawn too, for others it’s a thin physique, glowing skin or unattainable height. We can’t have it all... As I’ve aged I’m in process of appreciating my natural gifts... did I mention my beautiful feet? 

Back to Sayulita..  my second full day at this small beachfront community. Population of approximately 5000 located 40km north of downtown Puerto Vallarta in Nayarit Mexico. Best known as the "Magical Town" for its colourful ambience and richness and convergence of cultures~popular surfing spot...  as I sip my mango margarita and spoon up my shrimp ceviche (ok I did order lime salted French Fries to compliment my margarita~ I couldn’t resist the smell) I remove my beach cover up and let it all hang out... yes all 120 pounds of me, big breasted and tummy jiggling. ( just enough to feel sexy at 47). I don’t often wear a bikini out on the beach other than outside my house. A one piece ~high hipped suit is far more appealing and forgiving. Here... it’s back to “Fuck it” I’m going to embrace this sexy string bikini. Everyone else on this beach is doing the same. Confidence is sexy. Another milestone reached... I have had a strong mango margarita after all. Brazen confidence. 

The beach is quieter today. Yesterday was Sunday so likely busier with locals. Today the surf is calmer. Young kids navigate these waves with confidence and skill... similar to the kids who ski up at Mount Washington. I’m a “lame” skier...slow and steady prefer to spend more time on the slopes than time riding the chair... lessons began up at Apex in the Okanagan early on... I plateaued even earlier. Dressed the part in my name brand, bright blue, skin tight ski suit, gaters and expensive skis... combo combination gift from my parents  and my Ski Racing Sponsored boyfriend at the time. My ski suit zipper on day 1 broke- it was tight, as did my middle finger... faster is not necessarily better when you can’t stop. My Dad was irritated to say the least. First run of the day. As the ski patrol cooed and cawed over me , my Doctor Daddy told them to “strap it up” and for me to “suck it up”... it was the first run of the day after all. After that I spent my expensive ski pass days sitting in the lounge area... I did look the part after all.  Today I am a fair weather sunny skies skier on the blue runs. NO interest in tumbling down the black runs nor keeping up with my daughter.

Boyfriends... my pattern... ski racing coach, sailboat instructor, professional hockey player, golf pro, scholarship level athlete, personal trainers... can you see the irony here? Up until last year unless it involved dancing... jazz, ballet, modern, bar or riding a horse exercise was not in my vocabulary. In fact I resented the term. Ok... I did have a wee blip back in University... to avoid having to find full time employment & remain on the “good will parent payment plan”.   I decided to do the Fitness Instructors course. My plan...supplement my University education as a Fitness Instructor. For 2 1/2 months I was diligent, motivated and took the course seriously, it was at that time I reeled in my UVIC Athletic Scholarship boyfriend/ex- boyfriend, ex/husband, Baby Daddy, current close friend and healthiest male relationship. I was certainly fit, hot and disciplined. All desirable traits for a man in his early 20’s. I was “that girl” modelling bathing suits & winning contests. The $ was too easy!  I taught a few fitness classes and then hung up my leg warmers, head band and thong. I continued the bathing suit modelling... it was profitable, fun and wearing my hair in a bun I told myself I was the classy one. I think I truly was. 

That confidence was created when I turned 19. I was born with severe hip dysplasia- had major surgeries resulting in long scars down the outside of both of my thighs... I grew up believing I was deformed and ugly. Plastic Surgeons said I was lucky not to walk with a limp and the scars were through to the bone. I wasn’t given much sympathy. I could walk right? There was nothing to be done. I avoided team sports like the plague...anything that involved short shorts exposing my ugly scars. Volley ball shorts were the worst... todays equivalent of granny panties. I lived in a pair of red jogging pants when I had to endure school sports. They were so fucking hot in Penticton 30+ degree heat. 

Each year at Peachfest there is an annual bikini contest. It’s mellowed in recent years but back then it was “big” event. Gals from the big city came with breast implants, ribs removed, hair extensions and nose jobs to model their itsy bitsy teeny weenie bikinis on stage. It was this contest that changed me... I owed my Dad $, his proposal... "get up there on stage and participate- no one will notice those scars. They are in your head”. I’m not sure where the courage came from but I registered and I put on a bright blue, ruffled bum bikini and walked across that stage with the many other gals. I placed third, won my first $500 and my Dad wrote off my debt. Disclaimer... the judges DID notice my scars... in fact I was the only woman to be called back onto the stage for “another look”.  I didn’t care... I was done with having two scars control my life. Vanity insanity!

Today I chuckle... these two matching scars, my slightly deformed pelvis, protruding tailbone and a modest scar above my bikini line ( thanks to my amazing Penticton Surgeon who spent a little more TLC with special stitching)  C- section scar compliments of my just shy of 11 lbs daughter now give me character and a story to tell. A whole lot of action in a small area of my body... remarkable how the body heals itself.

Back to Sayulita...

The sun is about to set. The beach has emptied out. I still haven’t made it into the ocean for a real swim today.  I will venture to the far end of the beach tomorrow where the surf is calmer and more approachable for a swim opposed to a body surf.

Tonight I may sweep my hair up and throw on one of my three dresses~head to one of the local bars and have a cocktail... OR I may track down some reliable high speed WIFI and get a CMA done for a client. Yah Yahs opens at 6am- I can do it then when I wake with my neighbour Cock A Doodle Doo...