There’s something very special about eating fish and chips as you watch the sea lapping against the beach.

We’d left the darkness and rain of home to head to the coast. Everyone needed fresh air and time outdoors. It seems to be the only thing keeping me sane at the moment.

The journey down wasn’t the best. A long queue on the motorway meaning we needed to head across country, testing Martin’s knowledge of the minor roads, before we got back on track and a slow crawl to the beach.

Parking in a side road we walked down to the seaside and then along the sand, stripping off the fleeces we’d all worn fearing it would be as cold and grey as when we left home. As it was almost lunchtime we all wanted to eat and we quickly came across one of the places we’d discounted earlier in the year as it was closed, but not today.

These days outside are, to me, more and more important. Not only is it nice to be away from the desk, laptop and phone it is such a relief to walk away from all the stress and pressure we seem to be under. No deadlines, no juggling multiple aspects of this project with different needs and demands. The most stressful thing was wondering if we’d get tartare sauce and whether or not to have mushy peas. It’s these days, amongst other things, which keep me going for now.

After the meal we set off along the beach, discovering shells and abandoned sandcastles and enjoying an ice cream before the trip home.

I always feel sorry to leave the sea but at least today I left it happier than when I arrived.

The two images here are a little different to my normal shots. The top one is an example of cross processing and the bottom is the latest attempt at HDR