Quite the red letter day in England on Monday 17 th of May.

Hugging was allowed!!!! The Monday morning bob took on quite a different turn when our usual single file entry into the water broke out into serial hugging. Close bodily contact in Neoprene had a scintilla of Punk about it but in broad daylight, by the sea, we probably looked less intimidating than Punks and more like over enthusiastic seals. There are no photographs of this spontaneous eruption of hugging, that is often the problem with sponteneity, no evidence. Instead I can offer an image of recently disguarded swim wear.

Not only was hugging a first for today but getting drenched post swim was a first. Weve been bobbing for about 6 months and have never experienced such a downpour as we did today while we attempted to dry and dress post swim. With the relaxation of indoor regulations we could all make a dash for the concrete shelter that houses a couple of benches for people to enjoy the view, protected from the worst of the weather. An old chap was perched on one of the benches watching the rain cascade all around him. He cannot have imagined that his morning constitutional walk was going to be enlivened by 5 woman invading his space to dress and natter. He stoically focussed on the distant horizon, while we tried to accommodate our damp bits into reluctant, but dry, underwear  followed by outer clothes that wouldn’t go on easily because the rain had soaked them. As a brief break in the clouds allowed a shaft of sunlight to hit the tarmac he was off. The wheels on his zimmer frame sparking and carving trails in the puddles, so wide and frothy that a jet ski driver would have been proud of them. So intense and speedy was his need to escape and and put all that poorly concealed naked flesh behind him.

The brief sunlight made things look quite gorgeous but the lack of swimmers is evidence of how disgusting the weather really was.