Pacific Jules

Monday 20th May 2019 Classic & Epic.

Iconic  Manly@7.04am.

 

 Shelly start.

 

Jim Bob#1.

 

Power Nap.

 

John said “172 swimmers, 2 newbies & water temp 20.7” while queuing with Blogger Jack  - RN@RNS ER.

 

Yesterday I completed an epic 11.30 km swim only because  of my fantastic support team - Captain Charlie (who swam the last 1.5 kms with me, Danny (my swim partner) and Jane (crew queen @ 2nd Captain).

 

Tired me, Charlie & Jane

 

With Danny@Watson’s Bay finish.

 

Many other BnBers also completed or gave team support at the Bondi to Watson’s Bay South Head Rough Water Swim.

Bianca, Ali K, Mel, Ali A.

 

B&B swimmers Lyndall, Ken, Mel, Pete, me, Claire, Danny & Andy @Bondi.

 

We done Guys , and thanks again to Charlie, Jane & Danny.

Simon

Have a great week ahead

Beaut Morning ... 19th May 2019

Not sure this will work 😩 but here’s today’s vlog...  Lesbubs 😁👍

Warning - worse editing ever!! 😂😂

 

 

 

Injecting some fun into a very serious day

Today we have a federal election. This is Serious Stuff where we have the privilege of voting for the leadership and philosophies that will shape our country for the next few years and possibly much longer. Many things are at stake - our livelihoods, how people less fortunate than ourselves will survive, and the very planet we live on to name but a few.

This is all very important, but for a little while in the early morning we can put this on hold, catch up with friends and enjoy ourselves and this special corner of the Northern Beaches.

Happy birthday Gemma from some of your friends. Lesbubs is channeling Rainer in his absence - I think Rainer may have to lift his game. Janet certainly thinks so.

Nearly winer and the water's still warm.

Maybe the warm water and weather are why so many people showed up

The French Connection

Another gorgeous sunrise...

And in we go.....

I spotted an unconventional swimming style here. I have been called a slapper by an expert swimmer so who am I to judge? I can only assume that evaluation  was feedback on how my leading arm goes into the water - feedback I have taken on gratefully and hopefully improved upon receiving it.

Shelley and Alex waiting at the point for the let's go. Be like Shelley and Alex. 

The answer to last Sunday's big question

It was someone's birthday today. Have you noticed how the volume suddenly drops when the Happy Birthday song gets to the person's name? Maybe we should have a generic birthday name. I suggest Mumble.

A practiced blog tart

Here's some fish. Most of us like looking at fish photos with the exception of a curmudgeonly few

I took this photo yesterday - who doesn't love the giant cuttlefish?

Some happy swimmers who didn't want to get out

Dog of the day  is Derek's Bindi with some of her mates. Fewer choices these days. There is a little less joy in the mornings now that pet dogs have effectively been banned from the walkway. The thoughtless acts and words of the few have diminished the happiness of many dogs and their human owners and friends - such a shame.

Lucy and Roger solving the world's problems and waiting for more seed pods to drop

 

No stats today and apart from  the daily temps - I can't even begin to guess the others.

Also no management notices.

What am I listening to? This has been running all around my brain this week. 

I found this live recording which has some help from George Harrison. The bulk of the vocals come from the Bobster - proof that once upon a time he really could sing.

Bob threw it all away. Don't be like Bob - don't throw your vote away.

See you on the other side.

 

Friday 17 May Hard to get in . Hard to get out

It was 21.4 in the water today. Hot Hot Hot

But it was still hard to get in. Once I did get in, it was hard to leave the water. It was so lovely. 

Happy birthday Alan ! here surrounded by beautiful women

A team under the A team tree. Protected from slow swimmers by an invisible force field, I think

Look at these happy 3

It takes a lot to stop an open water swimmer from swimming

lovely Sam swam early 

A Manly documentary photographer seems to have forgotten to take off his T Shirt

 

Some fish photos to show how hard it is to take good fish photos. Lots to see today

a wave

What I am reading

Abyssinian Proof

Also enjoying Angelby on SBS. weird 

Thursday 16 May 2019: The Living Room treats us to breakfast

This morning there was great excitement at the surf club with John announcing the Miguel Maestre from Channel 10's "The Living Room" was making us breakfast for the first 50 people who signed the waiver agreeing that their image may be on television.

John asked us to wait on the beach while the camera crew filmed a clip with Miguel and John before heading off on our usual swim.

Miguel, who swims with B&B from time to time, swam with us to Shelly Beach and then sprinted back to prepare breakfast, ready for hungry swimmers as they exited the water.  The show will screen sometime within the next month or so.

They really couldn't have picked a better morning as Manly was in all its glory with a spectacular sunrise.

The yogis were going their thing.


There was also a little commotion pre swim with one of our regulars thinking she had seen a not so friendly shark in the water.  It is believed it was a grey nurse which has been in the area for the last few days, while others thought it might have been the dolphins seen in bay before the swim.

The waves this morning were perfect and clarity was good.   I love swimming as this time of the year there are plenty of dusky whalers in the bay as well as other friendly sea life to see.

More happy pics from this morning.

Till next time:

15/05/19: Conversation, Care and Cross-Pollination!

Bees and BnBers have much in common. First and foremost, the world is in dire straits without us. We must be cared for and preserved. BnBers do a good job caring for eachother. Bees need a little more help but we are onto it. Secondly, we start with a B; we buzz around holding important conversations (or discussions - depending on how many bees or BnBers in the pack); and lastly, we are into cross-pollination. 

After last nights excellent talk by Pete Anthony, we all know what a successful conversation looks like - they are authentic, optimistic where one is mindfully present. They start with a goal, aim to build rapport, take lead and listen to understand. 

Cross - pollination may need a little further clarification. In the Bee world, that is fairly straight forward. In the BnB world, it looks something like this:

A-Team relocating from A-Team tree to Women of the Wall for a meaningful discussion.

 

Tree of Knowledge is home to fruitful discussions between A-Teamers, Men of the Door and Floaters (those not in any particular group but happily have goal oriented conversations or discussions with everyone).

 

Floaters and Women of the Wall plant their feet firmly at the base of the A-Team tree as they converse and demonstrate what cross-pollination is all about.

 

Swim bag cross-pollination: This BnBer (photo credit Dave Cooper from 30 yrs ago) was given the green light by the A-Team to move his bag from the opposite side of the A-Team tree to the A-Team side. He was most chuffed. The men of the BnB may have more of a chance of identifying this man than the ladies as he's not sporting much hair on top these days. 

 

Pete Anthony spoke to a packed house at Blue Water on 'conversation' - striving to have a valuable one every time you engage. Having presented in many different countries for the last 20 years, he knows a thing or two about the subject! He stressed the importance of cross pollination, jumping out of your comfort zone and engaging with people in other groups within BnB.  From now on, you will observe the cross-pollination phenomenon happening more and more every day! 

 

JK introduced the evening and highlighted the importance of the "listening to understand" part of conversations/discussions. Just in case we may not have quite understood, he reiterated:  You can't log if you swim after 7am. Wait at the point for the Let's Go and wait at Shelly for the Lets Go. Its a safety thing. 

 

Here are some of the party goers ruminating on valuable lessons learned before heading home for the night!

 

This morning was business as usual with a touch of cross-pollination in this beautiful piece of paradise. The sun emerged surrounded by a pretty pink hue.

 

The board of all things swimming and a rather poignant comment from the fish.

 

Newbies - just the three today! Thanks for joining us!

Official officials.

 

Disappearing into the ocean.

Shelly shenanigans.

 

Fish doing what fish do best. Thanks a million to Ros Beaver who loaned us the camera while the BnB camera is out of action. Thank you for providing the beautiful groper photo!

 

And....at the end of another magical swim, its goodbye from me and the BnB! Have a great week!

 

Question for Pete Anthony (or anyone else for that matter): What happens when you engage in conversation with someone but you both have different goals in mind. Do you do paper scissors rock to work out which goal you tackle first? 

 

Stats:

Swimmers: about 120

Newbies: 3

Water temp: 20.4

 

Did anyone lose a key? If so, see John Kelly.

 

There are no other notices this week.

 

 

 

Tuesday 14/5/19- Morning bliss

Another morning of Autumn perfection! Feeling so lucky to have had this run of amazing weather and conditions, with water temperatures staying so warm! 

There was a lovely sunrise this morning, followed by a beautiful swim in such clear water! I could see the bottom the whole way. 

The camera battery died halfway so I am lacking on the photo front but if you did miss this morning, there is always tomorrow with a good chance of similar conditions (if i’m going off the recent track record!) 

 

I cannot for the life of me figure out how to flip this blogging off my phone- a beautiful sunrise none the less..

Anika and Tamara showing me how clear the water was- no wonder we are always late to Shelly.. 

The 7am crew in rush hour on the way back to Manly. 

 

Spotted a few duskys around Shelly! 

 

Thats another tuesday done! See you next week! 

Ali xx

13/05/19 - Arriving Illumination

The sun has been an inspiration since before neolithic people conceptualised it being carried across the sky on a barge; and with good reason too.

Nature can provide us no deeper symbol that hope, renewal and a second chance is just around the corner than that of the rising sun.

Those first rays you feel on your face in the morning have taken almost 10 minutes to radiate across space and reach you. And the light from the closest star you can wish upon at night will take more than 4 years to beam it's reply.

It's important to remember this in the fast pace of our 'have it now pay later', tap-an-app, microwaved world of instant gratification.

We've all found ourselves stumbling in darkness feeling lost and about to give up. But what if the illumination you require was already heading your way, about to arrive 10 minutes into the future? Would you wait for it to come to you?
Would you give it time?

And what if you knew that every cell in your body emits its own measurable light...
Would you be prepared to let it shine?

 

(Click photos to Zoooom... )

 

 

 

With love,
Andrew Maher.

Foundation, Neuro-Structural Optimisation. Collaroy (mention you swim with B&B)

Stats:
Swimmers: 152
Newbees: 1
Water: An intriguingly warm 19.4 deg C 

The Monthly Dinner – 14^th May 2019 – Guest Speaker

The Next B&B monthly dinner for the year will be held on Tuesday 14th May at 6.30 pm at Bluewater Restaurant. Our guest on the night will be B&B Swimmer, Peter Anthony, who has a Masters in Communication and has written a book on conversations.  The title of his talk is You talkin’ to me?  and is a talk about talking. Great conversations build better relationships, better businesses and stronger families. And can make you better parents, better partners, even better lovers. Own your hook, claim the wall, master the benches. Learn how to tell your story in your own best words, and why your way is the best way.

Please book early for this event as it is sure to be popular. The cost of the dinner is great value at only $25 a head, which includes shared entrees, and a selection of mains to choose from (including a vegetarian option). Glasses of beer or wine and desserts are also available at the special price of only $5 each. Numbers are limited, so bookings are essential:  To avoid disappointment and secure your spot please book at www.boldandbeautifulmanly.com.au/bb-bluewater-monthly-dinner.html

The Morning of Golden Light

Such gorgeous light illuminating these 3 early swimmers to perfection.

It's Mother's Day today - the official day of of mothers. So if you are a mum or have a mum today is the day of fond thoughts, celebration, reminiscences. Message to my kids even though they don't read this - please do a bin run today.

Today is a dry blog as I didn't swim due to a persistent lurgy. Just being down by the ocean on a gorgeous Autumn morning is therapeutic.

Edwina had a baking stall to help fund some volunteer work in Nepal 

This is Doctor Ray's book which was also on sale today - Edwina will be volunteering with Doctor Ray. A noble undertaking and I'm sure Doctor Ray will be happy to have her skill and care.

A sneak shot of Edwina, Roz and Lainey working the stall

Checking out the goods

Above the water was beautiful as always

The sun coming up is always lovely

But some seem to prefer the colour-saturated version

Board riders waiting patiently

I was on dog minding duty for Snoopy and Rocco this morning.

They were very well behaved, got lots of socialising and a short walk but did need a bit of down time towards the end. Once removed from stimulation they were able to chill. I am convinced that some dogs are all bladder on the inside.

Heading to the wet and salty stuff. Lots of swimmers. I did experience a little envy.

Janet got to swim with her son Lyndon. More envy. Must start working on mine early, like probably now.

The plan was to walk Snoopy and Rocco to Shelley but a plastic bag incident and (unrelated) broken glass on the path put the kybosh on that idea so we had a leisurely trek back, with every blade of grass inspected for wee-worthiness.

I did manage to capture a strange effect of light. Probably a reflection off one of the houses I guess

All (some of) the noms

Lainey's Sunday morning (seedy nutty) slice

Gluten free!

Yummy fruit cake

Obviously I did not take any under water shots, but heard it was fabulous today. Lots of schools of small fish, duskies and the regular CTB crew.

This from my recent trip to French Polynesia - beautiful little clams.

Stats - absolutely no idea so lets say around 200 swimmers and water temp of 20 degrees and 15 newbies. More than happy to stand corrected.

The Monthly Dinner – 14^th May 2019 – Guest Speaker - Peter Anthony

The Next B&B monthly dinner for the year will be held on Tuesday 14th May at 6.30 pm at Bluewater Restaurant. Our guest on the night will be B&B Swimmer, Peter Anthony, who has a Masters in Communication and has written a book on conversations.  The title of his talk is You talkin’ to me?  and is a talk about talking. Great conversations build better relationships, better businesses and stronger families. And can make you better parents, better partners, even better lovers. Own your hook, claim the wall, master the benches. Learn how to tell your story in your own best words, and why your way is the best way.

Please book early for this event as it is sure to be popular. The cost of the dinner is great value at only $25 a head, which includes shared entrees, and a selection of mains to choose from (including a vegetarian option). Glasses of beer or wine and desserts are also available at the special price of only $5 each. Numbers are limited, so bookings are essential:  To avoid disappointment and secure your spot please book at www.boldandbeautifulmanly.com.au/bb-bluewater-monthly-dinner.html .  

Josh Cunningham of The Waifs wrote this lovely tribute to him Mum when he was only 18. I've seen The Waifs quite a few times and this is one of the songs that gets very enthusiastic audience participation. The oedipal ending tends to make me a tad uncomfortable but I can only assume it's artistic licence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74_neRbhX-c

Enjoy the rest of this lovely day

What a beautiful day

I thought it was forecast to be a big swell and windy today but it couldn’t have been more different. A lovely low tide, walk to the point, flat as a pancake and lots of people despite the cool air. 

Some new swimmers 

Some regular swimmers

Jenny with two of her daughters- they look like twins but aren’t -  Alex and Georgia

More people looking forward to their swim 

Emma’s birthday yesterday and gill Akers , here’s Emma with Georgina and alex - happy belated birthday to both ladies 

Fellow blogger Elaine heading in with friends 

Plenty of fish on show  today 

I bumped into Fiona having a snack mid long swim - note the stretched arm. Helps with movement through water . 

The wobbegongs were around 

Leisa and Ben were celebrating mother’s day early today in the swim 

This lovely lady saw the cuttlefish at the point which I missed , she’s overshadowed by the light here unfortunately 

Ian and pauline are having a break in Japan , happy holidays 

Midge was at the swim with coco , what a gorgeous dog 💖

 

Don’t forget tomorrow is a cake stall for my work next February volunteering in Nepal with nurses in action . Dr Ray Hodgson is also here selling his book based on his work in Nepal too, 

stats- temp 19.9, newbies -about 8, hundreds of swimmers . 

The swim dinner for this Tuesday features Peter Anthony , I cant paste the link on my phone , please see yesterday’s blog for the link.

Note: someone swam over me today in a white cap, surrounded by the A team mostly , naughty man! Next time I’m pulling your budgies off . Please be patient with people who may be  in your way . 

have a great weekend everyone, edwina