Ocean City Labor Day

How I wish I was In Ocean City. Labor Day would be hot and steamy. The boardwalk would be crowded with people jostling each other as they tried to walk whatever distance they chose, be it from 12th street to 4th Street or from 7th Street to 10th St. The smells of Johnson’s popcorn, Mack and Manco’s pizza and the creosote of the boardwalk would mingle all together as they strolled.

And there I would be behind a shiny aluminum counter. Wearing a T-shirt that said Zap, I would be dispensing Coca-Cola or soft serve ice cream, or hot J & J pretzels or frozen novelty treats. All day up until about 430 the business would be steady. Large twin twist chocolate ice cream cones would be dispensed covered with nuts and sprinkles to begging seven-year-olds.

Come 430 the summer would be over. Summer rental on those cottages had then expired. Cars would be packed everything from pots and pans to bathing suits and the pillowcases. Dads in sweaty short sleeve brown shirts would be piloting a big assed Chevrolet back up to Upper Darby and points west. As the evening wore on the foot traffic would thin out on the boards. Kurly Kustard would close early because Ocean City would be a ghost town by 9 pm.

With very few people stopping by, I could get about cleaning up and closing up the store. Between emptying out the salt tray beneath the pretzel baking machine, tearing down the soft serve units and sanitizing them, I would look out on the Atlantic. The mighty Atlantic so impressive even when it was calm.

I so loved the salt air. I so loved lying in the sun reading cheap paperback copies of classic literature. I so loved the girls in their skimpy bathing suits. I so loved the humidity that would turn a feather pillow into a rock over the course of three months. Kind of liked the beer in Somers Point late at night, too.

The summer of youth is fast fleeting. I would advise the young to do what I would do if I were young again. Drink some beer, read some Shakespeare,get to know a romantic partner, maybe smoke some weed, and watch the sun go down over the ocean. Feel the warmth of the day and then feel it fade away as night comes on.