Night Drives…

When the day is long, work is stressful, life is piling up, and while you can vent to friends about the chaos…or drink tea and journal…

There is something so serene about taking a night drive.

When I was in college, I was juggling work, classes, projects, relationships, and my social life. I didn’t make a lot of money, but I never let it stop me from enjoying the night lights grazing the sides of the freeways on a midnight solo ride…

My car barely ran, gas wasn’t cheap, but I’d still make an effort to explore. 210, 57, to the 10, to the 605 and back again.

Sometimes, I’d head to the 5, the 110, LAX, and back again… Just wondering alone.. hoping to not make a wrong turn..

A giant loop at 2 am, 3 am… just me and the big rigs… and sometimes… it was just me.

It’s such an eerie yet, peaceful moment to be the only head lights on the road.

I think my favorite nights are the autumn nights when the fog rolls in, when it’s hard to see but you can still see far enough ahead to go 60, pushing 70

Those night are the best.

Crisp, but warm enough to roll down the window, and smell the sweet air of nostalgia in the wind blowing on my face…

Random playlist, full of memories, or sometimes a simple piano mix … Even silence.

Tonight was one of those nights. A late night drive, barely anyone on the road.. From OC to LA, and back to OC.

Tonight the fog was thick. It reminded me of time I climbed walls in front of some corporate buildings with some old friends at 3 am.. We were young, the air was cold, it was different territory… OC … The buildings were clean, but empty. The light fixtures were hot… and we just climbed to the top and sat on the edge of the highest wall… and just talked, laughed.. created memories.

Eventually we headed back to our hotel, before the chaperones noticed we were gone.

It was peaceful.

It’s nice living in OC. I never thought this is where I would be.  It may be temporary or it may be my new forever place. There’s no way to tell just yet… But this “new”ish home is really growing on me more and more everyday.

There’s peace here. Peace I never felt growing up in LA; peace I never found in my time spent in San Diego.

It’s different.

Untouched.

New but familiar..

A place I only visited but never thought to live.

It’s far away from all the events, and far from family, but it’s my new home. I’m grateful for the peace it’s brought to my life.

I never thought I’d be a “beach city” girl…And now that I’m here, I don’t think I want to leave.

So, I thank this beach, for the gifts it offers. And will enjoy every minute of the time I spend here.

Thank you, night time drive for clarity and joy…

Thank you, OC-Beach City, for peace…

And thank you, life, for another day/night…

‘Til next time…

-Lund3on