I drove out to Point Reyes yesterday for three days of solitude with my computer, my printer, and my manuscript. I’ve been editing, editing, editing. Chopping, chopping, chopping. Winnowing, winnowing, winnowing. And it’s been ridiculously gorgeous outside while I’ve been staring at my computer screen. So I’m going to give a brief, albeit indulgent, description of where I am, letting analogies and similes and metaphors roll off my fingers unfettered (I’m only allowed one every once in a while with my book and it’s killing me).
Yesterday (and, truth be told, today too) was one of those rare halcyon days of winter that look like a bag of gems has just been upended over the earth; sapphire sky, emerald hills, even a topaz-tinted shimmer to the air. As I drove west, the views kept unfolding into ever more splendid tableaux. Tiny lambs dotting the hills, indistinguishable from the dirty white scree sprinkled on the carpet of kelly-green grass. Vultures perched atop telephone poles drying their massive wings in the sun, like living capitals crowning wooden pillars.
The house I’m renting is at the very southern tip of Tomales Bay, where it turns into more of a marsh than an actual body of water. I walked through the house, beyond the wall of windows and out onto the deck. Below me egrets ambled amidst the grasses and sea birds splashed en masse like children in a swimming pool. I breathed deep the otherworldly scent of water and earth and sky entwined.
Later, after I’d settled into work and the sun had traced a path along the ridge across the way, a raft of ducks began heckling like like fat men with cigars in a 1920s comedy and I couldn’t help but laugh with them. A light mist rose from the wetlands as the sun set and water fowl paddled by, etching lines on the milky reflection of twilight like skaters on a frozen pond.
This morning, I was awakened by a lone bird that sounded so like Noe in between morning coo and cry that I bolted up and looked around for a good long while before I was convinced she wasn’t hidden somewhere, calling for me.
Now, the window that framed the vivid life outside all day long shows only my reflection; a face flickering in the blue-white light of a computer screen. An image beckoning me to work once more.
Happy weekend everyone . . .
9 Comments
Port Reyes is such a beautiful place. Kayaking on Tomales Bay is one of my very favorite memories. You just can’t help but be inpsired there.
Hello Lia !
All I could think of when reading the beginning of your post was : “How is Lia going to feel spending 3 days away from Noe ?” Has it happened to you before ? The reason I’m wondering is probably because Gilbert and I are about to spend our first weekend away from Antoine in 2 weeks - I’m looking forward to it… but can’t help wondering whether I’ll miss him.
The place you describe sounds wonderful - have a great time working on your novel there !
Bisous & à bientôt
We once spent a weekend at a place called Sea Star Cottage that must be very near where you are staying. The surroundings are just as you describe, and your helpful metaphors brought back very happy memories. Hope your editing is going well; editing your own work is such a difficult thing to do, albeit necessary.
A beautiful write, Lia, can’t wait to read the novel.
I was wondering the same thing about Noe, Anne_Liesse.
It reminded me of a trip my (former) husband wanted us to take overnight when our first child was 6 months old. As we walked to the plane, I stopped and could walk no further. I couldn’t do it. Back to the in-laws’ to get my guy and started nursing him. It is hard when they are little but wait until they are teens - you will be happy to have a break! 
Lia - that area looks wonderful and wish I could get over to the ocean. I drove through a blizzard this afternoon.
steph
Gorgeous! Really, is there anything else that can be said?
Those are some beautiful photos
I took my first trip to Point Reyes in November, when we were down there for the book tour. I couldn’t stop taking photographs. So gorgeous. And your photos are resplendent — they took me back.
I can only imagine that three days there did wonders for your manuscript.
good luck!
Robin . . . This trip made me fantastize of about a billion things I’d like to do there in that spot on the coast, and kayaking is one of them. Lucky you!
Anne Liesse . . . C & I took a 3 day ski trip over Christmas and left Noe with Grandma and Grandpa, and I kept trying to feel sad or guilty about it. But after waiting four months to bring her home, 3 days feels like a drop in the bucket. And I’ll tell you, Anne Liesse, it’s amazing how much she seems to change in three days. So prepare yourself for that! And don’t feel bad if you miss Antoine . . . just make a concerted effort to focus on your husband and ENJOY yourself!
Laurie . . . You’re right, self-editing is so tough. I’ve probably got 500 pages or so of scenes and paragraphs I’ve cut from the manuscript over the course of the past few years. I’m just hoping this is the last pass!
Steph . . . I’m already dreading when Noe turns into a teenager. Teething is tough enough! I’ve come back from the coast to a sort of blizzard myself . . . the surrounding mountains are covered in snow, which is very unusual!
Foodette, Mike . . . Thank you both! Would you believe that I forgot my camera and took those with the webcam built into my computer? I looked absolutely ridiculous out there on the deck trying to position my laptop, like I was showing the ducks a presentation or something. But I had to capture it somehow!
Shauna . . . I’m so glad you got to Point Reyes when you were here; it truly is a unique place. It was great to have uninterrupted time on the book . . . but there are still several scenes to tweak. I’m trying not to get disheartened by the way the top of the mountain always seems to be just over the NEXT ridge. My literary legs are getting tired.