On the Way to Cape May

We started off a gloomy morning with breakfast and Garfield and Friends. "China Cat" brings Garfield and Jon out to dinner on Chinese New Year. The owners of the Chinese restaurant they go to for dinner freak out at Garfield on sight, leading them to explain the legend of how a very similar orange cat out-ate a dragon and got chased away by it. Roy wants to be a "Cock-a-Doodle Dandy," but a tired bear keeps attacking him when he plays the morning wake-up bugle. Bo and Orson find a way to put the bear to sleep. Garfield is a "Beach Blanket Bonzo" when he falls for a lovely lady cat during a trip to the beach and have to deal with her well-muscled boyfriend.

Since Jessa texted last night and said she wouldn't be able to take us to the Shore until later, we decided to take advantage of the downtime and check out the Oaklyn Town-Wide Yard Sale. Considering it was starting to shower lightly even as we got out the door, there were quite a few sales around. Lauren found a really nice purple long-sleeved shirt. I bought tasty tart lemonade in pouches with straws for Lauren and me from an enterprising young lady.

We strolled into Collingswood for the Saturday farm market. They were surprisingly busy, even with the ongoing showers. Cherries, peas, radishes, and cucumbers debuted this week. Lauren didn't get anything, but I couldn't resist the first cherries of the season.

My original thought for lunch was Sabrina's Cafe, but they had a long line when we arrived. There was no line - or anyone else - at Paloma Restaurant, the new Mexican place across the street. She had fried potatoes and an omelette with farm-fresh veggies. I had the churro French toast with strawberries, blueberries, and bananas. It was much better than the soggy French toast I had here on Easter. They didn't overdo the syrup this time. 

Since we already explored Collingswood, we headed back towards Oaklyn after lunch, cutting through Newton Lake Park. I was glad to see that the playground equipment is done there, too, even if today was hardly the right weather for using it. The rest of the park is looking pretty good, too. Vibrant emerald green leaves shaded us from the worst of the weather. The mulberry trees are bearing fruit now, too. We passed by several laden with berries as we headed down to the White Horse Pike.

I wanted to go that way because I needed to stop at Dollar General. I got a larger pack of batteries, so I don't run out again, and more of that limeade drink mix. Lauren got an energy drink. Other than a long line, we were in and out.

Jessa texted and said she'd pick us up at 1:30. We had time before we left for the Shore to relax and watch Remember WENN. Hilary is "The Diva Who Wouldn't Die" when Dusty Foxx (Rue McClanahan) drops her character from The Hands of Time in favor of Hilary doing a gossip show, From Hilary's Booth. The show is a failure when all of Hilary's gossip is about her, prompting her to do whatever she can from being killed off on her favorite soap opera!

It was closer to 2 when Jess finally arrived. We were originally going to the Cape May County Park and Zoo in Cape May Court House before heading to Cape May, but first of all, Jess missed the turn-off. Second, even if she hadn't, the zoo closes at 4:30. By the time we made it down there, we would have had a half-hour to walk around a sprawling complex. We ended up going straight to Cape May instead.

Jessa drove us briefly down to Cape May Point to see the lighthouse and World War II watch tower before returning to the Washington Street Mall. She couldn't find anywhere to park in that mess but a spot on West Perry, a block from Swain's Hardware and the big mini-golf course. Every single parking lot was full to capacity, even the ones next to Collier's Liquor Store.

I led the duo past Wilbraham Park, the sliver of greenery where the Gazebo is and the Halloween Parade starts to the Washington Street Mall. Since we were on the Mall, I thought we could eat at the Ugly Mug. This local watering hole is so named for the many, many mugs hanging over its ancient bar. It's narrow and dark in there, with heavy wood paneling and low lighting. Mom worked here as a chef in the mid-80's, and Dad hung out at the bar until we moved to North Cape May in 1994.

There's a reason the place is so popular. The food is genuinely good, and the portions are huge. Jess had a bratwurst and sauerkraut sandwich. I had a massive local fried flounder on a bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, and house-made tartar sauce. Lauren had an enormous Caesar Salad. Lauren's salad was too big to finish, but the rest of us ate all of ours. 

I wasn't going to let us leave the Washington Street Mall without hitting up the Fudge Kitchen for treats. Though the people giving out free fudge samples weren't around today, there were plenty of goodies lined up inside. It's exactly the same as it was when I was a kid, rows and rows of chocolates, coconut macaroons, salt water taffy, Irish potatoes, many different types of fudge, and novelty candies lined up on shelves and a long counter in a narrow room. We even got to see a guy start to make fudge in a big copper kettle in the front window. I ended up with small containers of two favorites, mini coconut macaroons and mini fruit slices. 

We were in and out of stores for the next hour. None of us bought anything at the humor-related store. I mostly just wanted to show the girls the Toy Company and the Zoo Company, where many of my childhood toys came from. I looked over the Cape Atlantic Book Store at the mini-mall, but didn't get anything. I don't know if the girls got anything at Dellas 5 & 10, but I picked up a Cape May t-shirt. We jumped into the bathrooms behind the lingerie shop before heading back. 

At least the weather had suddenly started to cooperate. It showered off and on during the ride down to the Shore. By the time we hit Court House, the sun had started to come out. It fully emerged when we hit Cape May, and stayed out for the rest of the evening. 

It was past 7 when we returned to Jess' car. Wildwood is best at night, anyway. We took the Garden State Parkway up to the turn-off to Wildwood, passing the Snow clams cannery and the marshes where many local families (including mine) go crabbing, before heading over the George Washington Bridge to Rio Grande Avenue. I got to point out the massive pink and turquoise WaWa where I used to meet visitors when I lived in Wildwood. My apartment was behind a building on a one-way street, and it was just easier to meet people who were unfamiliar with the area at a giant pink and turquoise 50's-themed convenience store.

Jess had an even harder time finding a place to park in Wildwood. She drove up and down Atlantic Avenue (allowing me to briefly point out where I used to live on Montgomery in the early 2000's) before finally settling on the lot behind the Gateway 26 Arcade in North Wildwood. I even gave her the money for it. 

There are tons of arcades on the Wildwood Boardwalk, but Gateway 26 is the cheapest, and one of the largest. They're the only arcade left on the boardwalk - and maybe in New Jersey - that still have 25 cent cranes. In addition to the usual array of stuffed animals representing Stitch, Spongebob, Squishmallows, and whatever else is cool this summer, there were a lot of cranes with stuffed seagulls holding fries in their beaks. Someone who makes the stuffies around here has a sense of humor. I kept trying for one, and didn't get a keychain version until I did the five dollar "play until you win" crane. (And eventually gave the keychain seagull to Lauren, who came away with nothing.) I naturally had to play ski ball, too, and they still have the old wooden machines in the back where you roll the blue rubber ball into holes and light up card suites.

Jessa wanted Kohr's Ice Cream back at Cape May, but I pointed out that there's a Kohr's on every block in Wildwood. Lauren didn't want any, but Jess had a vanilla cone with sprinkles, and I ended up with a chocolate-peanut butter swirl with chocolate peanut butter. I thought it would be less messy to have it in a cup...but they gave me so much, it still overflowed and ended up on my hands. Good thing I always bring wet wipes with me. 

Though it was past 9 and we really didn't have the time for rides, we did explore a couple of stores. I found a really nice yellow "Endless Summer" Wildwood t-shirt on the clearance rack at one store for $4. I kept trying to talk the girls into playing water gun games, but they get expensive at night, and I don't think anyone wanted to compete with one another. 

I finally won a larger stuffed seagull at Mariner's Arcade near the entrance to Mariner's Landing. This was a really unique one, a pizza-delivery seagull with a box representing real-life boardwalk pizza parlor Sam's Pizza who was eating his own wares. I did get him, but the box got stuck on the claw! Jess had to go get one of the guys to retrieve him.

We left shortly after that. Jess meant well, but to tell the truth, it was past 10 when we left, and neither Lauren nor I were up to singing Brittany Spears and Christmas carols when the signal for her cell phone (and her music) gave out as we passed through the Pine Barrens. I wasn't really up to arguing over why I don't drive with her, either. (I can't focus well enough to drive. I don't trust myself on the road behind an enormous vehicle that could potentially hurt someone if misused.)

Took a shower when we got in, then finished the night with the last hour or so of tonight's Match Game marathon. The theme tonight was episodes that were either filmed right before or right after the end of a season or a hiatus. I did get to see two nighttime shows that were done as season finales, one of the last with Richard before he left in 1978, and the one with Pat Moriata in 1976. (The latter is apparently set to premiere on Buzzr soon.)

Find out how Match Game went on its own vacation in this hilarious marathon!

Match Game Saturday Classics - The Hiatus Returns & Back from Summer Break

Oh, and here's tonight's Musical Dreams Movie Reviews review!

Animation Celebration Saturday - Cinderella (1994) 

In the Heat of the Day

It was sunny and hot when I finally got up this morning. I ran an episode of Rick Steves' Europe as I ate breakfast. The Scandinavian episodes are some of my favorites. Today, I did the Copenhagen show from 2007. I've been wondering why I feel so at home while watching the Danish episodes. It might be because I grew up among Scandinavian influence. What's now Cape May was originally settled by Danish explorers in the 1600's. One of the bed-and-breakfast inns downtown is called Captain Mey's Inn, after the explorer who discovered the town. Cape May celebrates its Danish heritage every year around April during its Spring Festival. (Originally the Tulip Festival, until it occurred to someone that the tulips rarely came up on schedule and were usually out after the event.) There's even a store on the Washington Street Mall called Swede Things In America.

Headed out around 11:30 to run a few errands. Started at the Oaklyn Library. I'd never seen them so busy! I guess the heat scared everyone indoors. Almost every computer terminal was taken, and there was at least two families reading books. I was able to duck around folks long enough to organized the DVD's and work on the board books. By the time I headed out, so had the families (though some of the people on the computers remained).

Headed across the White Horse Pike to Family Dollar for sugar after leaving the library. I also saw they had their own generic versions of some of the most popular Girl Scouts cookies, including the lemon iced shortbread. I've never seen anyone else try to recreate that. Went back across the Pike to WaWa for a roast beef hoagie and a black cherry Sparkling Ice. Had those at the picnic tables on West Clinton. Other than one worker, I was the only one there. It was too early for Phillies Yummies to be open.

After I ate, I went straight home, put the sugar and cookies away, then went right back out to get the laundry done. I wanted to do it yesterday, but I didn't want to chance it with Willa's bike. They were fairly busy, but not enough that I wasn't able to get a washer and a dryer. I worked on story notes while half-listening to a re-run of The Chew and the families around me.

Spent the rest of the afternoon (and some of tonight) working on fanfiction. Maz gives Leia some exposition as she almost jumps in a trunk. Jabba wrecked her father's ship and stole his gold, leaving the kingdom in difficult financial straits. He uses merfolk, Han among them, to salvage the treasure and lure the humans to their deaths. But now, he wants living human souls, the stronger, the better. He's hoping to become human himself and dominate the trade routes, so no one will be able to get any money back and forth without going to him.

Maz gives Leia a necklace with three shells. She has to come back within twenty-four hours, before the last shell darkens, or she'll drown. (It may expand to two days if I really get into the second half.) She also gives the princess a bracelet with her magic to protect her. Jabba has a huge maze he sends enemies and friends alike into in order to find their heart's desire. None have ever come out alive.

Leia makes her way to the docks. Lando is already there. He waylays her the moment he sees her. Her father is looking for her and the thief from the ball. Leia convinces Lando to help her get out to where Jabba's shipwreck home is, despite Lando's misgivings about it being a ship graveyard.

Put on Patriot Games while making pan-fried salmon cakes with corn on the cob an cucumber-tomato salad for dinner. Jack Ryan (Harrison Ford) is a history professor on vacation with his wife and daughter who gets caught in the middle of a terrorist attack on a lord (James Fox). He's hailed as a hero for saving a member of the Royal Family. One of the terrorists whose brother he killed (Sean Bean) doesn't think he's so wonderful. While the rest of his team trains to kidnap the nobleman, the terrorist goes on a personal vendetta again Ryan, including nearly killing his daughter and pregnant wife. Ryan's angry enough to jump back into his old CIA job, alongside his former boss (James Earl Jones). He's determined to make sure nothing else happens to those he loves, no matter what it takes...

This one has some things in common with Air Force One - terrorists once again hijack Ford's family and makes things personal. I think I enjoyed this a bit more, though. The villains were somewhat more fleshed out (I've read they were even more-so in the book) and the plot makes slightly more sense, even if the finale in the lightning storm was over-the-top.

If you're a fan of the cast or of political thrillers, this is a (mostly) tight tale that's worth checking out.

Down at the Jersey Shore

Actually, I started the day by laying in bed. Mom was taking Skylar to school, and I didn't want to disrupt anything. After he left, I read The Wizard of Oz and wrote in my journal for a while. When he left and Mom came back, I got dressed, then went downstairs and had a bagel and an apple for breakfast.

Mom and I finally decided to explore the Washington Street Mall in Cape May. Once again, it was a gorgeous day for it. It was a little warmer than yesterday, into the lower 70s, and a tad bit breezier. Otherwise, the weather remained as perfect as it's going to get in southern New Jersey in early September.

The Washington Street Mall is three blocks of restored storefronts in downtown Cape May. Traffic isn't allowed for much of the mall, making it a great place for a stroll. Our first stop was the Cape May branch of the Winterwood Christmas Shop. Originally a bank, this imposing building was a gift shop throughout the 80s and 90s until the Cape May Winterwood moved there a couple of years ago. They seemed to be doing very well, with a great selection almost on a par with the larger Winterwood in Rio Grande. Mom and I admired Halloween decorations, prints of drawings of Cape May Victorian homes, and ornaments of all shapes and sizes, for everyone from ballerinas to dog lovers.

Our next stop was a surprise. Standing out amid the pastel or bright-colored buildings was one painted stark black. We entered to find a world of exposed pipes, dark colors, heavy hoodies, and broadcloth shirts in stripes with checked cuffs. Yes, it was a men's store, one of the first on the mall since Barry's shut down in the 90s and was replaced by Frailinger's Candy Store, much to Dad's dismay.

After a quick walk down Liberty Way , an alley with several stores, we hit Dellas 5 & 10. Dellas is Cape May's equivelent of an old-fashioned Woolworth's, complete with a lunch counter. There used to be a lot more "real" clothing (as in, without the Cape May name) and seasonal items there, but it's still your best bet on Cape Island besides the tiny Acme if you want to find things you need that don't have shells on them. (And they still have a decent cheap toy selection. Mom used to let us pick a dollar toy from there during visits when we were very little.) I got nothing here; Mom wanted cough drops.

I had to explore the mall's two toy stores. I can never pass up a good toy store. We first took a look at The Toy Shop of Cape May, a relatively small store that opened in the early 90s, just in time for Keefe to start collecting their selection of Thomas the Tank Engine figures. They also have an excellent selection of board games. Mom says she gets board games for her grandsons from there.

The Washington Street Mall has a mall within a mall. The City Center Mall opened during my early childhood. Their leather store is a little expensive and it looks like their art gallery is gone, but they still have The Zoo Company of Cape May toy store. In fact, the Zoo Company seems to have moved across the main concourse to a larger store that used to be a surf shop. They still have a great stuffed animal collection (I bought a lot of stuffed toys there as a kid), plenty of plastic minature figures, and are the only place in town to buy Sanrio products. (Incidentally, it looks like a cigar store took over their long-time, always rather cramped space.)

When the Atlantic Book Store closed in the old First Fidelity bank (it's now a Stewart's Soda Shop), another book store opened in the City Center Mall, the Cape Atlantic Book Company. They actually took over most of the right side of the second story except for the space that has always belonged to Judy's Jewels. Alas, they weren't anything special and didn't really carry much you couldn't find in a Barnes and Noble besides some local-interest books.

We explored a few gift shops next. Mom liked the hats and scarves at American West, Madame's Port, and Swede Things In America, but all three were expensive. We wound up at Across the Way, a lovely little store at the end of the mall next to an ice cream parlor. It was a jewelry store during the 80s and early 90s, specializing in the huge and cheap. (I bought some of my first dangling earings there...before I realized that my ears couldn't handle huge or cheap. Those earrings were so darn big, I now use a few of them on my Christmas tree as ornaments.) The store still sold some jewelry, but the rest of their offerings were more eceletic, from a variety of stuffed animals made from socks and old sweaters (I liked the polar bear made from a cable-knit sweater) to eccentric clocks. I bought a book-themed journal. (My current one is half-done.)

We made two more quick stops on the way back to the car. Love the Cook specializes in gourmet cookware and cooking items and is owned by the family that runs the Washington Inn, one of the fanciest restaraunts on the island. I bought the same two chai mixes I picked up there the last time I visited in 2011. Mom said she needed a new wooden spoon and a really nice vegetable brush. Though Bath Time is a lovely little shop that specializes in fancy soaps, lotions, and other toiletry items, once again, most of them were beyond our budget.

Cape May eateries tend to be overpriced, even the ones that really shouldn't be, like Dellas' lunch counter. We had our lunch off the island in North Cape May. El Portal was a nice little Mexican place comfortably situated in what used to be the Burger King across from WaWa on Bayshore Road. It made ample use of both the building's unusual architecture (including their exposed ceiling beams) and the grill Burger King left behind. I had a Chicken Quesadilla. Mom had a Chicken Fajita, which she'd had before and said was delicious. My quesadilla was yummy, warm and soft with wonderful grilled chicken. Mom loved her fajitas, too. It's a shame she says they don't get more business. They weren't very busy when we were there. They don't even have a sign on the road - the old Burger King sign was broken and rusted and looked like it had never been replaced.

After lunch, we took the back way through West Cape May onto the island, this time to check out one of the antique/thrift stores just off the mall area. Whiskers has been there for as long as I can remember, but I don't recall it being that big before. Although it was only one story, like the Barrington Antique Center, it was room after room of wonderful old things - books, sports memorabilla, linens, clothing, records, china, glassware, toys. I saw two Donna Parker books I wanted, but they cost three times as much as the ones I got from that yard sale! I opted for a much smaller tea caddy instead. I talked Mom into buying a beautiful tapestry tote bag for ten dollars. It was heavy and well-made, and I'm sure my practical Mom will think of something to use it for.

After spending over an hour in Whiskers, we decided we were both tired and just headed home. We spent the rest of the afternoon chatting together, in the kitchen and on Mom's sun-filled porch. We mainly discussed family problems, and I told her what Mrs. Stahl had told me about going on more trips now that I have the money to do so.

Mom made us a simple but tasty meal of sauteed chicken breast, steamed broccoli, Carolina mushroom and wild rice mix, and tomatoes fresh from her neighbor's garden. After dinner, we switched on the NFL Network and watched pre-game coverage of the Chiefs-Eagles game.

That may have been more interesting than the game. Despite a lot of pre-game hype, thanks to former quarterback Donovan McNabb's jersey being retired and former coach Andy Reid returning to play his old team, the game was a washout. The Eagles played poorly, especially in the first half. Reid knew how to get around their fast offense with a lot of fake injuries that kept the offense off the field. The Eagles finally lost 26-16.

Tomorrow, I'll be spending the morning with Mom, then heading home later in the afternoon to start the second half of my vacation.

Beach Babies and Pool Partiers

Boy, have I had a long day. It all started early this morning. Keefe joined Craig, Rose, Khai, and I for our trip to the beach (after a quick stop at Dollar Depot in Erma for toys for Khai, sunblock for Keefe, and containers to bring food home later). We eventually ended up at the end of the boardwalk near the Cove Restaurant. It's on the southern end of Cape Island, and it has a gorgeous view of Cape May Point and the Lighthouse.

We timed everything just right. We hit the beach at 9:30. It wasn't crowded then; the lifeguards hadn't even arrived yet. Craig easily found a parking spot at the boardwalk. We set up Craig and Rose's sky blue and lemon yellow umbrella and their mustard-y blanket between the closest lifeguard stands. The sand wasn't even hot then.

We all had a lot of fun. Craig and Keefe built Khai his own sand-submarine. Khai just wanted to load sand into a water-filled bucket and make mud. Keefe made a sand fort on his own. I dozed under the umbrella and went for a stroll to take in the view and watch kids surf on the other side of the boardwalk, near the restaurant.

Rose took Khai into the ocean for the first time a bit later. He wasn't sure of it at first. The waves were high close to shore, and the terrain was rocky...until you got past a slope, and the rocks and waves subsided and became spongy sand. It was chilly, but not as cold as it probably was earlier in the month. Khai seemed to have fun once he got used to it. He got to show off his swimming skills to Unc!

The beach brought back a lot of memories. My siblings and I spent our entire summers doing what we did this morning. We'd pack up and be on the beach by 9:30-10, go swimming for a while, go digging or exploring, then go home for lunch around noon. We'd be back by one or two, then home by 4-4:30.

We had lunch around 11. While most visitors to the beach probably bring sandwiches or salads, I doubt many dine on fresh seafood and fruit! Mom had packed shrimp and crab claws leftover from yesterday's party, along with fruit she cut up for breakfast this morning. As soon as lunch was over, we packed up, raced off the hot sand, and headed to the outdoor showers by the Lifeguards' Station a few blocks down to wash most of the sand off.

Once again, we hit things right. The beach was just filling up with people coming out of the Cape May restaurants as we were packing up Craig's van to head home. We took the West Cape May Bridge and Sandman Road to get home, dodging the traffic going to see the free Kenny Chesney concert in Wildwood.

We left less than an hour later, around 1:30. Craig had to be at work at the Haddon Heights restaurant where he and Rose are waiters by 4:30. We were all dead tired; Khai was so gone, he passed out as soon as he got in the car. The trip home was mostly uneventful until we hit the highway. Craig somehow took the wrong ramp, but Rose got him turned around. Khai got upset when we stopped at a WaWa and both his parents went to get drinks and use the bathroom. He probably thought they were leaving him! I read to him to calm him down.

It was past 3 when we rolled into Craig, Rose, and Khai's apartment in Audubon. They needed to walk their dogs Toby and Kelsey, put their things upstairs, and put away their share of the food from the party yesterday. Craig stayed there; it was just about time for him to get ready for work. Rose grabbed Khai's bathing suit and her own, and we headed out again. Rose stopped quickly at my place so I could bring my bags and my share of the food upstairs, then rode us over to Dad and Uncle Ken's.

Dad and Jodie had the place to themselves. Uncle Ken is in the hospital again for his heart. There were several neighbors in the pool when we arrived. Rose got Khai back in his bathing suit and took him in the pool. Jodie joined them. I didn't feel like climbing back into my sandy bathing suit, so I settled on sticking my legs in.

Rose, Khai, and I were all exausted after our long, long day. Khai enjoyed the pool, but as soon as he was dry, he started nodding off. I nearly fell asleep on the couch watching Team Umazoomi. Rose finally took me back to my apartment around 5:30. I had some of the many party leftovers for dinner and watched Three Stooges shorts.

The Tourist's Life

Keefe had to be at work at the Lobster House Restaurant in Cape May by 10:30, and then he'd need the car to go to Atlantic County for a meeting with his Navy recruiting officer. Mom and I decided we'd just visit downtown Cape May in the morning and spend the afternoon at home.

Besides, the weather was horrible this morning. It was cloudy, cool, and very humid. It poured when we started out to Cape May, but by the time Keefe was jumping onto the Lobster House's gravel parking lot, the rain had softened into a mist...and it stopped even doing that as we drove into West Cape May.

Mom wanted to take a look at an antique/collectibles store, West End Garage, that had replaced the old Perry Street Video Store in West Cape May. The place was HUGE. I don't remember the store being anywhere near that big when it was one of our favorite places to rent movies. Every artist and collectibles store on the island and in the South Jersey area (and some as far away as Pennsylvania) had a section in West End Garage. There were jewelry makers of all types, landscapes from local artists, antique sellers, t-shirt printers, glass blowers, sculptors, doll clothes, hand-made and/or dyed clothes, hand-knit or crocheted items, and hand-made furniture or antique furniture that was repainted. We would have been in the store for longer than an hour if it wasn't so busy.

I found a nice little real leather change purse made by an old friend of Mom's who used to own a leather store in Cape May, a beautiful purplish-red autumn leaf sun-catcher, and the book Simple Abundance that was such a help when I took it out of the Haddon Township Library last year. I convinced Mom to buy a gorgeous hand-dyed blue and green linen scarf that was absolutely perfect for her. She loved it and said later that she was very glad I talked her into it!

We put our things away in the car (which was parked a few blocks from West End Garage near the Flying Fish Art Studio), then strolled down Perry and Sunset to the smaller of two Cape May Wicker stores. In addition to wicker furniture of every stripe, they also sell seasonal decorations and beach-related gift items. I bought a magnetic grocery list notebook for my refrigerator in a pretty poppy pattern (the yellow-patterned one I have on the fridge at home now is almost done). Mom didn't see anything she liked.

We both needed to use the bathroom, and there's only one place in Cape May that has a public restroom that's open year-round - the Comfort Station at the Washington Street Mall. After we hit there (with no line, rare on a cloudy day), we browsed in Love the Cook, a gourmet cooking store on the mall. You can tell its owned by the same people who own the Washington Inn, one of the fanciest restaurants in town where almost every place to eat is black-tie, or at least really expensive. There's lots of gourmet cookbooks and elaborate kitchen gadgets, and the prices are crazy. I did buy two Chai mixes there. (Where else am I going to find Chocolate and Raspberry Chai?)

Keefe was supposed to be done by 2:15. Like half my family, Keefe is NEVER on time. For anything. Mom says he's always doing one more thing for someone else. We walked around the Lobster House Restaurant complex until 2PM, after which we spent another half-hour sitting and listening to people ooh and ahh over the huge lobster framed in the lobby. The Lobster House is a not only a restaurant, but an actual working marina. Yes, that means the catch of the day is as fresh as you can get! They have a raw bar, a bar on a genuine boat (the Schooner American), and a tiny gift shop. The main dining area is one of the most popular in town, with some wonderful views of the wharfs on the north end of the island.

Mom and I spent the rest of the day at home. I paged through Mom's old Christmas craft books. The Christmas is Coming books from the 80s and 90s had some really wonderful crafts for kids and adults that Mom used to make with us girls and Keefe. I still have a few of the items we made. Mom said she'd only just gotten rid of others.

Mom made a delicious dinner of roast chicken, sauteed zucchini, Brussels sprouts cooked with tomatoes, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and her divine biscuits. Anny brought Skylar over, and Dad and Keefe literally came home just as we were sitting down to eat.

(Dad apparently went to Wildwood for their fall "Roar to the Shore" motorcycle convention. Awesome. The motorcycle conventions every fall and spring were some of my favorites when I lived at the Shore. The bikers were the nicest customers at the Acme, and they were a lot of fun on the boardwalk.)

We chatted after dinner and watched Skylar and Keefe play with Sky's cool new Lego police boat. It has lots of little details, like a working hatch and a ski boat and even a criminal to catch! Once again, when Sky started getting too excited and climbing on people (including me), Anny decided it was time for them to go home.

Tomorrow, we're going to go out to breakfast before I head back to Camden County.

Before the Parade Passes By

I got a LOT done today. Started off a lovely day in late fall with a walk to the bank. The sky was blue. The air was chilly, but not bitter cold. It was windy, but the houses blocked the worst of it. I deposited my very large check in the bank, then headed home.

My original plan was to go to the Acme first, then rake the side path. I decided when I got back that I really wanted to get the side path done. I'm glad I changed my mind. I think there were even more leaves on the side path than in the front yard, thanks to the wind between the neighbors' house and ours. It only took about 20 minutes, but there was still a lot of struggling.

Collected my pay from Miss Ellie next. Poor darling! She sounded terrible. Apparently, she had a bad cold. I saw her nephew later - he said he was going to spend the day with her.

Next on my list was grocery shopping. Had to restock the fruit today - I picked up grapefruit, bananas, apples, and the pears that were on sale. Had a coupon for toothpaste and for Teriyaki sauce, and flour is on a really big sale for the holidays. They finally had the Nestle Dark Chocolate and Mint Chips bags again, too. I intend to use the first bag to make cookies for a friend, but I bought two more bags for myself for after the holidays. I love mint anything.

Rose had called right before I left. Kelsey the dog was ok - she'd gotten some medicine for her leg at the vet's that morning. We were on for the West Cape May Christmas Parade! She picked me up around 2. I spent the time before that having leftover meatloaf for lunch and sweeping the porch.

Rose and I drove down there with Khai, stopping at WaWa for hot drinks. We met Mom, Dad, Anny, and Skylar at Mom and Dad's house. (Keefe had already gone on ahead to West Cape May - he's in Lower Cape May Regional High School's marching band in the drum section.) We chatted there for a bit while Dad and Sky played Mario Galaxy 2 and Rose fed Khai and got him dressed in warmer clothes.

We finally headed for Cape May around quarter after 4. It might have been better to leave earlier. We hit traffic at least a mile before the West Cape May Bridge. We ended up going over the Cape May Bridge instead...and we still hit traffic near the Lobster House on Schellinger's Landing. We finally went down Texas Avenue and up to the beachfront instead.

(And a sad note - it would appear they finally demolished the old Cape May Convention Center. I know the place wasn't in great shape even when we were kids, but so many events used to happen there. We used to go roller skating there on weekend afternoons in the winter and spring. We went to birthday parties there. The summer parades were judged there. They held craft fairs there. Lots of fond memories. I wonder what's going to replace it? Another convention center, or maybe a new restaurant or a group of shops?)

We parked on Grant Street in West Cape May and walked down to Broadway, where the Parade passes through. It was well past 5 by the time we finally found Anny, Sky, and Anny's friend Jeff in front of the 7-11 on Broadway, across from the park where the Lima Bean Festival is held every fall. We got very lucky. The parade was almost a half-hour late. It started just ten minutes after we arrived. Mom and Dad joined us 20 minutes later after doing some shopping at the Washington Street Mall.

The West Cape May Christmas Parade is a huge deal. Towns as far away as the Philly area compete for cash prizes. Every town in Cape May County, some of them barely large enough for one fire truck, submits at least one fire-fighting apparatus. There's beauty queens. There's dance groups. We got to see one, JoAnne Regan's, do a number to "All I Want For Christmas Is You" dressed in sparkling white-and-silver flapper costumes. There's floats for churches and local businesses. There's Mummers, which they never had when I was a kid. (I saw the same farmer group who were in the Collingswood Parade, complete with cow and very yellow chicken.) There's string bands.

Skylar was having the time of his life, chasing candy and blowing on the long blue plastic horn his mother bought him. Khai just seemed dazed, even after Rose gave him a juice bottle. It was very cold and cloudy by then, too, though the park blocked the worst of the wind. Needless to say, we didn't stay for the whole parade. I don't think we were even there for an hour. That's ok. Khai's still little. There will be other years, and I did get to see the full Collingswood Parade. I'm just glad we were able to get down there at all.

We stopped at the big WaWa in the Villas to use the bathroom and get warm drinks and snacks, then head home. This time, we only hit traffic by the Deptford Mall. We spent the ride home talking about Christmas presents and the parade and our family while Khai slept the whole way home.

By the Beautiful Sea

The morning started cloudy and fairly quiet. Keefe and Anny came over to pick up Skylar for an appointment with doctors at Cooper River Hospital in Camden. Dad went to work. Mom went out for a hair appointment (and came back with a very cute and short new do). I hung around here, played Super Mario Wii, read Mom's craft books, and watched cartoons.

Mom came home around quarter of 11. She first chatted with my sister Rose. Anny and Keefe were supposed to be meeting Rose after Sky's appointment, but they weren't sure how long they were going to be there or if they were going to have the time to go to the Please Touch Museum in Philly. We chatted on the porch about my sibligns for a little while after she got off with Rose.

Our next stop was the Peebles and JcPenny in Rio Grande. Mom had good-naturedly fussed that my shorts were too tight and too short. Well, of course they are! I'd just gained weight, and really hadn't planned on buying new clothes until I'd lost weight. I wasn't going to argue with her, though. So, I ended up with two pairs of capris (I don't care what Mom says, they're too long for shorts) and a new shirt in a nice brown/black pattern.

(And while I appreciated the clothes, I'm still really embarrassed. I'm still at a large/1X in shirts...but I've gone back up to 18s again in pants. That means I'm back to plus sizes. I'm so upset! I was so, so proud of being able to lose so much weight and get out of plus sizes. Mom says I look better than I did at Christmas, and my pants have been a little looser at home. At least all the walking and swimming I've been doing lately does seem to have paid off, even just a little.)

Mom had a cell phone call from Dad even before we made it back to the house. He was at home. He'd postponed his fishing trip again when he was overwhelmed by paint fumes and had heart papatations. He was at home, resting. We decided to let him rest and head into Cape May for lunch and a walk after I dropped off my clothes.

It took longer to get to lunch and a walk than we planned. First of all, the lady at the counter at Peebles forgot to take the ink-thing off my pants, and we had to go back there. Then we were chatting and Mom lost track of where we were going and kept going straight instead of turning off to the Garden State Parkway. We ended up taking the "scenic route" through Wildwood Crest to get into Cape May. That was cool, too. I got to see the outside of the rebuilt Wildwood Acme (which looks GREAT, BTW - Doo Wop without being as overdone as some of the other newer 50s-style buildings in the area).


While I did enjoy the drive through Wildwood Crest and seeing some of my old haunts, I was very happy that the drawbridge from Wildwood Crest to the boat docks in Lower Township was just going down when we pulled up there. (Mom did have to scramble for $1.50 for the toll, though. Apparently, it used to be a dollar, and she wasn't prepared for the rise in price.) We went past the boat docks, across the marshes, around the country club marinas, and over the big Cape May Bridge and into town.

Mom parked next to the water tower in central Cape May, a few blocks from the former Madison and Blue Amber Motels. (The Madison, at least, is now a condo-hotel, and both had elaborate remodels that make them fit in far better with the tony neighborhood than they did when I was a kid.) We strolled up to the Boardwalk first, past lovely old bed-and-breakfasts and condo buildings with gorgeous gardens, along with the Chalfonte, one of the oldest hotels in Cape May.

We ended up at the Promenade, Cape May's concrete boardwalk, and had lunch at Henry's By the Beach. Henry's is literally by the beach; we ate on a porch area that looked out onto a picture-perfect day. It was a day out of a Cape May postcard - clear blue sky, bright-colored umbrellas dotting the white beach, cooling breeze. The clouds and humidity had disappeared by the time we were in Rio Grande. It was 2:30 by then, so we both had the "mini meals." I had a crab cake and salad. Mom had a small cut of blackened salmon, salad, and a tomato-seafood soup. We enjoyed our lunch tremendously.

After we ate, we walked a couple of blocks to downtown Cape May and the Washington Street Mall. The Mall is three blocks of restored Victorian buildings filled with cute shops and literally some of the best restaurants in New Jersey. We visited some of my favorite stores there, in many cases since childhood.

We walked through Carpenter's Square Mall. We browsed in the Whale's Tale, a wonderful gift shop. (Mom bought Keefe a dragon card for his room - he collects dragon items. I didn't get anything. I was disappointed they only had a few AG things. In the early and mid 90s, the were the only place in Cape May to buy anything American Girl.) We went through a shop that had really cute hats. We went to Bath Time, a bath store. Mom got a lotion she really likes. I a coconut-lime bar of soap. Good Scents mostly specializes in scented items like candles, but they have other gift-items, too. I bought a journal with real dried flowers in the cover. We went across the street to the mall where the Cape May Acme is. Mom browsed in the yarn store; I browsed in Oma's Doll Shop. We admired the adorable Japanese-girl sign in front of Cape Orient. (It looked so much like a life-sized Japanese doll, I wondered if someone at Oma's Doll Shop next door made it.)

We strolled back to the car after leaving the mall, past more older homes, the post office, and Alexander's Restaurant. Mom used to live in that area, in an apartment behind a long-gone leather store; she had some great stories about living in Cape May in the mid-70s, and I told her mine about when I would visit a friend of mine who lived near the post office in high school.

Unlike getting to Cape May, we had no trouble whatsoever getting home. Dad called Mom while we were in Cape May. He was feeling much better and was up for joining us for a stroll on the Boardwalk in Wildwood. Mom wanted coffee, and we both needed to sit down for a while after our walk. Mom and Dad watched an antique show downstairs, while I browsed through Mom's old Christmas With Southern Living books. I've always loved the heck out of those. Not only do they have awesome recipies, but the first chapters talks about Christmas both in the old and new Southern US. This may be where at least some of my love of Christmas traditions in other parts of the US stemmed from.

(Oh, and Mom answered my question as to why I walk so fast. She does, too. We've spent most of our lives walking against the sea winds and blowing sands, not to mention the tides of tourists. You either walk fast...or get blown back several feet or carried off by the throngs.)

Dad, Mom, and I took Dad's truck into Wildwood around 6:30. There were no problems getting there this time. Dad parked in the big lot next to the Wildwood Convention Center and the cool, cute beach ball sculptures.

The boardwalk was busy at 6:30, but it wasn't packed. There was a lovely, fresh breeze coming off the beach. We browsed in the Boardwalk Mall (where I got a Wildwood T-shirt), then had dinner at the Original Hot Spot next to Mariner's Landing. I had a tasty mushroom cheesesteak that wasn't too stuffed, like some of the ones up north tend to be. It was just the perfect size. Mom and Dad had gyros. We had the funniest waitress, too. She was a tall, cute Russian girl with an adorable accent and a great sense of humor. She handled Dad's good-natured teasing very well, and even gave him two high-fives.

Everyone wanted some candy to go with dinner. I suggested Douglass Fudge, the most elegant of all Wildwood candy stores, and one just a few doors down from the Original Hot Spot. I found my favorite candy of all, the fruit slices. Mom bought her favorite candy, Almond Butter Crunch, and peanut butter fudge. Dad got raspberry jelly squares.

Mom wanted to check out a kitchen store on the Boardwalk between Mariner's and Morey's. It's a larger version of a tiny kitchen store in Collingswood. They sell gourmet mixes and cute and kooky kitchen gadgets of all kinds. I bought a buckwheat pancake mix as a special Sunday treat for me next weekend and a new address book. Dad got a piece of metal that's supposed to make your hands smell better. Poor Dad always gets fussed at about the way his hands smell after work; one of the hazards of being a fisherman.

Dad wanted soft-serve ice cream, so we next took a look at several ice cream booths. It was around 8:30 by this point. The boardwalk was filling up fast, and getting busier and busier by the minute. It was getting colder, too. The nice breeze from earlier was quickly becoming a chilly wind. We walked back to the car, stopping at the Kohr Brothers stand at Wild Wheels for soft-serve cups. Mom had Peanut Butter-Chocolate. Dad had Orange-Vanilla. I had Mint Julep. We enjoyed our treat while watching people play games. I also tried a Care Bear crane machine that had larger Care Bears in it than usual; didn't win anything.

There was a little bit of traffic on Rio Avenue in downtown Wildwood when we went home, but once we got off the bridge, it was smooth sailing. Dad's downstairs, probably watching action movies. Mom is in her room, watching Guys and Dolls. I'm about to take a shower. Tomorrow, I'll be on my way home; everyone here has to work. I'm glad I came up here. I had a wonderful day. I don't get to spend nearly enough time with my parents, and I rarely got them to myself as a kid. This was really lovely of both of them.

Unchained

Slept in and spent most of the morning hanging out. I called Mom after I had Buttermilk Dark Chocolate Chip Pancakes and an orange for breakfast. Mom herself was fine. She was cleaning up the house and waiting for Dad and Keefe to come home from the dock. I told her about my sinus problems last week, about not getting a hold of Rose, and about my savings account and mall trip. I tried to steer her clear of discussing the economy - she's really worried about it, probably because she and Dad don't have a lot of money and Cape May County's been economically depressed since I was a kid, thanks to its "summer resort" status and the lack of people living there year-round who aren't ancient millionaires.

I can't believe they're gonna demolish the Beach Theater, too! The Beach Theater is Cape May's only movie theater. I saw my first movies there. WHY? WHY? I thought Cape May was supposed to be dedicated to PRESERVING history, not destroying it. Didn't Wildwood just get this bug out of its system? Did they give the disease to Cape May, too? Seriously, does everything HAVE to be a condo...especially now, when no one's buying housing? Can't they just rebuild the theater, or build shops or schools or something that isn't a dumb, stupid, worthless, useless, idiotic CONDO?

I hate condos, and I hate ancient millionaires. X(

I got a hold of Rose, too. We're going to try to get together and do Yogawood on Wednesday. Mom says she's having trouble with her medication - she's forgetting things and not eating. I hope she remembers this time.

Work was boring. It was steady when I came in, dead when I left, and it took FOREVER. On my way home, the chain came loose on my blue stationary bike again, for the second time in less than a week. I don't know why it's suddenly doing this. I haven't had this problem with it before. I hope my neighbor's around tomorrow to check it out. I really wish I knew how to do it myself, though.

Hot Day, Cold Pleasures

Today was extremely hot and humid. Weather or no weather, though, I had to go to counseling and to the thrift shop. I dropped my donations and broused around the store. Despite the fact that I didn't have much money, I still managed to score two Banana Republic Large tank tops for a $1.00 each and an unused, cloth-bound journal with a pretty sunflower print for $.75. God, I love thrift shops.

I had a quick lunch of sparkling juice and quesedilas at the GrooveGround Cafe two blocks from Genesis Counseling, then headed down the street for this week's session. Mostly told Scott about my past two weeks, including Mom's frustration with Keefe and Anny, Skylar's seizure, Rose going to Costa Rica, and my weight loss.

It was too hot to do much of anything after I got out of counseling, and really, I was too broke. I went straight home, stopping only at the mailbox to get my bus tickets for New England in September before heading over to Uncle Ken's for this week's laundry and swim session. It was pretty busy over there today. Jodie's father and one of her nieces were in the pool, and Mark's daughter Faith and her fiancee and his toddler daughter came by, too. No wonder. The pool felt great, at least 85 degrees.

After small eye round steaks and a pasta salad for dinner, I decided I felt like ice cream for dessert. I dredged up enough money to head down the block to Leo's Yum-Yms for Only 8 Banana Soft-Serve Yogurt. I'm not a big ice cream fan and I don't often buy ice cream from a grocery store or an ice cream parlor, but the rare times I do bring back a lot of memories. As I walked past kids playing catch in their front yards and couples strolling down the block, I found myself recalling my own childhood.

When my family lived on Maryland Avenue on the northern end of Cape May near the Coast Guard Base in the mid-80s, Mom and Dad would occasionally take us three girls down Texas Avenue to DryDock for a summer treat. DryDock is this big, barn-shaped ice cream parlor on the end of Texas Avenue, next to the WaWa and a few blocks from the C-View Inn. While the view was far from the best in Cape May (Texas Avenue in front, reeds and swamp to the right, WaWa to the left), the prices were reasonable and the portions were amazing. We'd sit at the plastic tables, eating sundaes the size of buckets and gulping massive milkshakes three times bigger than a movie theater soda. Even to this day, no milkshake has ever matched the Colossal DryDock Chocolate Shake. There's a picture of my sisters and I from the time period right after a trip to DryDock. I'm about 8 and Rose is maybe 7, and we're on either side of 2 or 3-year-old Anny, slurping normal-sized milkshakes. Anny is in the middle, trying to take gulps of Dad's chocolate shake, which is easily as big as our shakes put together both up and around.

(As far as I know, DryDock is still on Texas Avenue in Cape May next to the WaWa, though I haven't been to that part of Cape May in ages. No word on whether or not they still have those massive shakes, though. And incidentally, I ended up with a far smaller Banana Soft-Serve Frozen Yogurt cup. A 95-degree-day is no time for cones.)