Saturday, February 26, 2005
Boardwalk & 7th
My first trip to anywhere
Was to Boardwalk & 7th.
A whole ‘nother world.
Where nine year old eyes
And imagination
Could stretch even beyond
The Atlantic horizon.
Arrival in the back parking lot
Of the old wooden Admiral,
A resort apartment.
A building probably no longer standing,
A building with no elevator
Where you could watch guys with muscles
Attach your luggage to a thick-roped pulley
And slowly raise it up to the the floor where you would be staying.
There were about 4 inches between the Admiral
And what ever stood next to it.
A little girl could look between.
The ocean!
The ocean!
I’ve seen the ocean!
Or so I thought.
A long 4 inch wide sliver of shadowed sand,
A little chunk of boardwalk,
More sand, much brighter,
Then some grayish blue water,
A long sliver of blue sky.
And a breezy whiff of fish smell.
A taste to heighten anticipation.
Upstairs the balcony faced the beach.
Oh my!!!!!!!
Downstairs I only thought I had seen the ocean.
Expanded beyond belief,
It left me in awe!
How could any water be so big?
How could any sky be so big?
Or any stretch of land?
No trees to block the view of anything!
Now I’ve seen the ocean!
But there was more to learn about the ocean:
Jumping waves
And getting knocked down by them.
Clam shells and smooth rocks,
But no fancy shells like the kind they sold in stores.
Beach towels and beach umbrellas.
Sand castles,
Sand crabs,
And sand in your bathing suit.
Sunburn!
Sitting on the balcony in the late afternoon
Watching kites fly,
And imagining you could see all the way across the ocean
To Europe or Africa.
Was that the Pope out for a walk?
Lying in bed and feeling like the waves were still moving you.
Drifting to sleep to their rhythmic roar.
And of course resort stuff:
Glass blowers,
Fudge makers,
Salt water taffy,
French fries and snowballs,
Kiddie rides
The “laughing lady” in front of the Fun House
(She stands silently in a museum now.)
The Boardwalk 5 & 10,
Confusing babble from the auction house,
Artists doing caricatures,
A concert at the band shell,
The fishing pier,
And the dock where I saw a 500 lb. tuna!
Now I understood why Boardwalk
Was the most expensive property
In Monopoly!
I had seen the ocean!
Was to Boardwalk & 7th.
A whole ‘nother world.
Where nine year old eyes
And imagination
Could stretch even beyond
The Atlantic horizon.
Arrival in the back parking lot
Of the old wooden Admiral,
A resort apartment.
A building probably no longer standing,
A building with no elevator
Where you could watch guys with muscles
Attach your luggage to a thick-roped pulley
And slowly raise it up to the the floor where you would be staying.
There were about 4 inches between the Admiral
And what ever stood next to it.
A little girl could look between.
The ocean!
The ocean!
I’ve seen the ocean!
Or so I thought.
A long 4 inch wide sliver of shadowed sand,
A little chunk of boardwalk,
More sand, much brighter,
Then some grayish blue water,
A long sliver of blue sky.
And a breezy whiff of fish smell.
A taste to heighten anticipation.
Upstairs the balcony faced the beach.
Oh my!!!!!!!
Downstairs I only thought I had seen the ocean.
Expanded beyond belief,
It left me in awe!
How could any water be so big?
How could any sky be so big?
Or any stretch of land?
No trees to block the view of anything!
Now I’ve seen the ocean!
But there was more to learn about the ocean:
Jumping waves
And getting knocked down by them.
Clam shells and smooth rocks,
But no fancy shells like the kind they sold in stores.
Beach towels and beach umbrellas.
Sand castles,
Sand crabs,
And sand in your bathing suit.
Sunburn!
Sitting on the balcony in the late afternoon
Watching kites fly,
And imagining you could see all the way across the ocean
To Europe or Africa.
Was that the Pope out for a walk?
Lying in bed and feeling like the waves were still moving you.
Drifting to sleep to their rhythmic roar.
And of course resort stuff:
Glass blowers,
Fudge makers,
Salt water taffy,
French fries and snowballs,
Kiddie rides
The “laughing lady” in front of the Fun House
(She stands silently in a museum now.)
The Boardwalk 5 & 10,
Confusing babble from the auction house,
Artists doing caricatures,
A concert at the band shell,
The fishing pier,
And the dock where I saw a 500 lb. tuna!
Now I understood why Boardwalk
Was the most expensive property
In Monopoly!
I had seen the ocean!
