Salt and the end of a season

Salt and the end of a season I hear you say, she has lost her marbles.  No this is true, though I did get some funny looks at the checkout the other day when all I had in my basket was 6 drums of salt, milk and two Danish pastries.

The closing up of the mobile home by the sea at the end of the season can be  very emotional time for some people.  I am one of those people.  Some  may find this strange but this process every year always leaves me a bit sad.  Even though it is only for 4 months and a bit till the season opens again it seems like I am saying goodbye to a good friend for a while.  The pleasure of having a place where you can go to escape city life whenever you wish is better than any tonic the doctor can prescribe. 

First thing I do when I get there and last thing before I leave is go for a walk on the beach.  Whatever mood you are in when you step on the sand you can always be sure that  by the time you leave your footprints behind you feel great.  You will  have left any worries you have behind there in the sand as well and they are always washed away by  the tide.

We took a trip this week in glorious sunshine to the sunny south East to ‘close up’.  The salt is needed to place in bowls around the mobile home or caravan as some people refer to it in order to soak up the moisture over the winter months and prevent dampness and mildew.  It works, the more salt you have the better, when we come back in four months to open up there are bowls of water and no salt left.  Everything was sorted and packed away.  Time for a coffee and a Danish and we were ready to go. 

Just one last thing to do before we head back to Dublin, yes a walk on the beach.  Just to say goodbye for a while.  Footprints left behind.