Growing up in Long Island, New York, I enjoyed the benefit of living no more than a half hour from the beach. There were times that I could bike ride to Center Island beach and loll around on the beach at Long Island Sound. No trip to the north shore beaches was complete, without a visit to the Bonanza ices stand, where the lemon ices were homemade and had pits.
To the south shore were Jones Beach and Robert Moses State Parks where you could enjoy the waves of the Atlantic. The goal was always to get there early, avoiding the traffic on the causeway bridges and always head for West End lot 2. A good day would always involve deli sandwiches enjoyed on the beach and for a treat, ice cream delivered to your blanket by the many college students who would troll the beach selling "Fudgie Wudgie" bars (fudgsicles), "Creamy Weamy" bars (creamsicles), and of course, Italian Ices.
As a result of my childhood, I developed a love of the ocean and live for the opportunity to spend time with sand between my toes, dealing with skin hot and red as I eschewed sunscreen yet again, and pruned fingers from too much time in the ocean waves.
Earlier this year, my wife and I had the opportunity to spend a long weekend in Savannah, Georgia, specifically Tybee Island, to celebrate the 40th birthday of our great friend. This was gravy on top of the mashed potatoes as we already had plans for the five of us (me, my wife, our son, and our two great friends) to spend a week at a rental house in Rehoboth Beach, DE. That week finally arrived today, although it arrived on Sunday for my wife and son, and Monday for the great friends.
I had the disadvantage of having started a new job in June, had little leave to spend on a vacation and training that I needed to attend Monday through Wednesday. So I have escaped to the beach and will spend the next two and a half days soaking up as much sun and sand as I can.
The shore in the offseason is an interesting place. After arriving tonight and having a nice dinner at the rental house, my wife and I headed down the boardwalk for the essential beach staple, soft serve. I am sure that tomorrow will feature Thrasher's fries and other essential beach culinary delights. The boardwalk was very quiet and the waves crashed off in the darkness. My wife and I walked on the beach after ice cream and quickly determined that summer is rapidly receding from the area. Nonetheless, sand between my toes always feels good. And as my wife will always avow, a cloudy/cold/rainy day at the beach is always better than a day at the office. Now I will have the opportunity to enjoy the remaining days of summer with the best people I know.
On a related note, tonight's Powerball drawing is $179 million dollars. Much of the conversation around the dinner table tonight revolved around how to spend the money we haven't won yet and on what beach we would be living and approximately how long we would spend at work before starting our "early retirement."
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