Lighthouse, originally uploaded by 4L4N M4K.

I went out to East Hampton again this past weekend. Unfortunately it was a bit chilly this weekend so we didn't make it out to the beach. I really wish I did though since when I was in the elevator this evening I noticed how different I look now that I am tan - in a good way. All I know is that I tend to lose my tan coloration relatively rapidly, so I need to make it a point to bake a bit more before the summer is over. Hopefully the weather is nice during the Labor Day weekend since we'll be heading out to East Hampton again.

While we didn't go to the beach, we did actually go out to Montauk. When I was a kid we used to go to Montauk all the time...Really fun times - beach, seafood, and relaxation. I kept on talking about the cat and the black lab in Montauk that I used to play with while I was a kid. I remembered all the fun times playing with that stripped cat at Gosman's Dock!

While in Montauk we had the pleasure of going to Gosman's for a quick snack at the Topsiders Cafe. I never really noticed this place when I was younger - maybe it didn't exist. When I was a kid we'd always go to the lower level where the big benches and picnic tables were. I'm so glad that we went here for our afternoon snack after visiting the harbor and the lighthouse. I had a nice big plate of steamers as my snack; and boy were they good - super sweet and the perfect size - not too small so that there was no meat and not too large that the body was overwhelming. So perfect.

After our awesome snack we went back to the house and had dinner...HAHAHA...As you can see, I love eating. I ate so much that night! After the steamers I had 4 ribs and 3 drumsticks! Huzzah!

Summer Out of the City, originally uploaded by 4L4N M4K.

Wow, has it been this long?!?

Living in New York City there are a lot of things that you miss. Sunsets at the beach, the sound of the ocean, salty water crashing into your face, and the relaxation of the pace of Long Island.

When I was a kid we used to go out to the Hamptons for day trips. These days, now that I no longer live out on Long Island, those day trips are no more. My last time in the Hamptons was for Super Saturday - a designer clothing fund raiser that raised money for ovarian cancer research - a few years ago.

This weekend I traveled out to the eastern edge of East Hampton. I left the City at about 8PM and eventually made my way out to the house. Unfortunately I have a habit of inventing my own ways of getting to the places I need to go and sometimes that isn't the smartest thing. This was one of those cases and I ended up too far north and had to stumble my way back down south before I had gone too far east to do so. Luckily the guys at the gas station were helpful and pointed me in the right direction.

After hauling some ass to make up for lost time I made it onto the dark roads of East Hampton and was able to find my way to the house.

DAY 1

The next morning I kayaked for the first time - SO much fun! Those things are so much faster than the canoes that we rented during our trip last year to Whistler, British Columbia. After a leisurely ride out to this little island and scaring away the local birds with my silly duck calls I paddled back to the house and got ready to go to the beach - Oh how I miss the beach.

The beach was awesome - perfect water and tons of fun waves. I slapped on the SPF 15 and tanned for the second time this summer. I got a bit golden - like I was dipped in some light soy sauce - I'm like a "see yaw gai" now, by the way.

After a few hours of tanning and boogie boarding we left to go pick up our dinner. On the menu tonight were lobster, clams, mussels, and some veggies. We went to the most weird and obscure of seafood places to get our stuff - the place sounded like they sold more pool supplies and water filtration systems rather than seafood. Whoever thought of this name must have been aching to not have any customers - the place was called Multi Aquaculture Systems - WTF, who names a seafood market that?!? Even more weird were these gigantic dogs in cages hanging out by the fish pools. I wasn't really sure if they were breeding fish or fighting dogs!

Once we got in we inquired about the price of the clams and the lady said they were $5.50 a "douzen"...Huh, $5.50 a thousand? Yes, $5.50 a "douzen"...Hahaha...she meant "dozen". Of course I was the only one that understood...Otherwise that would have been one SlickDeal! Awesome dinner - we grilled up the clams and steamed our lobsters to perfection. I had the big momma lobster and it had a ton of bright red roe in it - so much so that I unfortunately couldn't even eat all of it.

After dinner we headed out to Scoop Du Jour for some yummies. I had my fave - strawberry ice cream - yes, I know I am boring with ice cream. After the ice cream we headed back to the house and went to bed.

DAY 2

We slept in this morning and missed the early morning kayaking but rushed to get out of the house to head to the beach before all the parking was filled up.

Once again the water was perfect - this time a bit less of a current and smaller waves but a touch more undertow. Unfortunately this day at the beach I managed to sink my vintage Ray Ban Aviators - so sad - mostly because of the sentimental value as those glasses were my dads. So dumb of me. I am usually so careful but this time a biggie wave hit me on the back and swept my Ray Bans away when I turned my head for a brief moment.

After another nice afternoon tanning and getting even more golden, we headed back for a quick dinner before I headed back out to the City.

Driving back was OK as I didn't hit much traffic. I actually managed to follow the directions for most of the way through the short cut - but I'm still not certain the road names are right. Luckily the car in front of me was from Port Washington (where I grew up) and I was able to follow him most of the way. I finally got onto Route 27 anticipating a quick drive to the LIE...Yeah, fat chance. I hit a major jam shortly before the exit for Route 104...Once again the explorer in me set out to find a new way...and I new way was found...I got onto the LIE and it was smooth sailing from there...After about 2 hours and 45 minutes I was back in Manhattan and so concluded my Hamptons weekend.

This coming weekend I'll be out there again. Hopefully by then I'll have a new pair of Ray Bans and some nicely pre-tanned skin ready for some additional color. Huzzah.

Geisha-a-go-go, originally uploaded by 4L4N M4K.

I was lucky enough to capture this unpainted nape during our recent stay in Kyoto. Taken during the days leading up to the Gion Matsuri, many Japanese girls dresses as maiko and geishas during these days.

Camera: Canon SD800IS | ISO: 1600