A LAKE DAY on the INLAND SEAS?

I'm not the most discerning about where I'm getting my #bluemind. On a warm-ish spring day last week, I walked to a nearby river and dipped my hand in the cold spring and watched it flow into the river. On any given day, I'm dipping in my cold plunge tank. In an ideal scenario, I'm barefoot and sunning on an inland lake pier, strolling a Great Lakes beach, or finding awe near or beneath salty waters. I'm a water girl. 

But there's something about the Great Lakes that give me butterflies. Maybe it's that most of my lifetime to date has been spent living under their influence. The lake effect has never not hit me.

When I've lived in Milwaukee, versus 30 miles west in the Lake Country, there were very few days where I didn't make an effort to go to or stare at Lake Michigan — to admire her beauty, to load up on all the benefits of Blue Mind, and to simply offer my gratitude in return. My LAKE DAY routine at the shore of any Great Lake changes by season and purpose, but my intentions to both give my gratitude and receive the water's generous gifts stands. I've only found that both of those things are amplified when it's a Great Lake — the energy feels bigger, therefore, so does the overall impact and sense of awe. 

But if you've ever taken the Lake Express Ferry or found yourself getting pummeled by larger surf or learned about shipwrecks, or to be honest, LOOKED AT A MAP, you probably took a moment to think, "how is this not a sea?" All five of the Great Lakes, I feel, make up the INLAND SEAS.

By definition through sciencedirect.com, "Inland seas are landlocked seas that are only connected to the ocean through narrow channels. They usually contain many islands, channels, sounds, and straits." ...ok so, these are inland seas then? Glad we agree.

"The Great Lakes of North America’s midsection—Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario—together span nearly 100,000 square miles, with a combined coastline just shy of 10,000 miles. They hold more than a fifth of Earth’s unfrozen fresh water, straddle an international border, and help move more than $15 billion dollars worth of cargo each year. They even have their own U.S. Coast Guard district, the only lakes with such a distinction. And the Guard’s rescue teams stay busy: Superior and its siblings are capable of storm surges, rip currents, tsunamis, rogue waves, unique extreme weather phenomena, and destructive surf. They have claimed more than 6,000 ships, more than the Gulf of Mexico and the Black Sea combined, according to estimates. So should we really be calling them the Great Inland Seas?" via atlasobscura.com 

To that I say yes.

If you're an INLAND SEAS lover like me, and you enjoy inciting conversation about these glorious bodies of water that you love, perhaps you'll love our INLAND SEAS collection.

The design is inspired by a tee that my dad wore nonstop on a family vacation to Sanibel in the 80s, and reimagined by Eliz Welling of Goodfare.co (go work with this woman, for real) who is anchored in Michigan, the Great Lakes State itself.

Shop the options here. Some have the design small at chest and the Water Cycle quote large at back. Pick your size & color and they ship on demand. Options for both eco and conventional fabrics.

What do you think? Are they Great Lakes or Inland Seas?

Maybe it doesn't matter, we'll love 'em nonetheless.