Beach Observations

1.  There really is no better place to people watch than the beach. Get yourself settled in and watch the show.  Observe the newly arriving folks selecting a spot- most often they chose their spot based on how tired they are from lugging their stuff from the parking lot.  Watch them set up camp. Exactly how much stuff did they bring? Chairs, towels, umbrellas, sun shelters, water toys and wet suits? What's in their cooler? Are they spray on or lotion sunscreen people? It's amazing how much spray on sunscreen is lost in the breeze. Swimmers or sunbathers? Are they here for the duration or just a quick stop? I'm surprised how many people haul tons of gear to the beach, only to leave an hour later and the whole process starts all over again. It never gets old.

2.  Since when are beach umbrellas a requirement? I'm not complaining, in fact, I'm a fan of beach umbrellas. We spent a lot of time at the beach as kids and there were no umbrellas anywhere in sight. We sat there and baked for hours each day with no relief from the sun.  When we began hitting the beach as adults, the first thing I noticed was that everyone had an umbrella. We picked one up and haven't looked back- it's become a necessity.

3. It's really quiet at the beach.  In the past, one of the key factors that determined where you'd plant yourself for the day was based on who your neighbors were. You didn't want to sit next to the people with the giant radio because odds were they'd be blaring music you hate. Then the guy behind you would try to drown out that music by cranking up his own boom box. Earbuds have eliminated the dueling radios. Teens and adults are listening to iPods and the only sound you hear is the occasional crying baby, laughing child, murmurs of conversations depending on how the wind is blowing, the waves and seagulls.

Funny thing happened to me last weekend while walking the beach by myself. I am passing by a family group- most members sitting down chatting but the Dad and a walking but not talking toddler were  playing with sand toys.  The toddler, a boy, makes eye contact and then he makes a bee line for me. He is grabbing my leg and indicating he wants me to pick him up and get the sand off his hands. Dad is 3 feet away and he and I are laughing at how the child thinks he knows me. He calls to his wife and says, " look at your son.." Everyone in his family laughs but this kid really doesn't want me to leave. He is desperate for me to pick him up and is about to start crying. I manage to break away and resume my walk. He chases after me until his Dad scoops him up and returns him to his toys. The whole thing was extremely cute and then I noticed the little guy was wearing a Yankees t-shirt. Maybe he wanted to be adopted into a Red Sox household???? :)