Labor Day Weekend - 2003
Wanted to put down a few lines to remember our Labor Day 2003 family weekend at
the shore. It started and ended a day early to avoid the crowds, yet we
had a fun-filled and very enjoyable time nonetheless!
Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond control, John and Fran were unable
get to LBI until Sunday morning. They did make it in time to oversee
group picture taking (smile and say L'titz') and to enjoy our send-off meal
together at the Bayside Diner.
It started Thursday afternoon as three carloads of Mahoney family members
(Billy-Stella and Mom, Margo-Chris and Brianna, and Sue and Jim) began to
converge on LBI. Cell phone towers were buzzing with calls as we
coordinated our approach, as we managed to arrive within an half-hour of each
other, though coming from all points of the globe, sort of...
Billy's car had arrived first then Sue and I got to the house a couple minutes
later. He and Mom had managed to get the doors unlocked, windows open and
some of the power on but were unable to locate the water valve. Sue and I
got the water going and the other circuit breakers energized. Minutes
later Margo and her group arrived and the party weekend officially began.
We did a quick trunk unload and dump then headed for dinner. Following
the simple guidelines of 'no waiting line and air-conditioned
restaurant', we headed uptown for an eatery. Buckalews was our first
choice, but they had a huge line so we continued driving north.
The Bayside Diner in Spray Beach had been mentioned as a possibility if it was
still open at his hour. However, as we passed by, the diner was empty and
the staff was sitting out front hoping for no customers and an early quit, but
we arrived to spoil their hopes and they welcomed us with open menus
It took them a little while to get the kitchen up to temp, but in no time our
table was full of plates and the conversations were flowing. It had been
some time since Billy had been back east and it was great to see him and his fam.
We entertained ourselves and the waitress as the courses arrived. Their
posted closing time came and went as we finished our dinner, with no prodding
from them for us to hurry. A fine meal was had by all and Mom had
selected the lump crab cake she had enjoyed on her last visit down with us in
early August.
We stopped for a couple groceries on the way back to the house. Once
there Billy and Stella wanted to retire early as they continued to suffer from
jet lag. Margo and Mom also were ready to hit the sack, but Brianna was
ready to party. So Christopher, Sue, Bri and I went up to the beach to
hang out, sip some wine and do a little star gazing. Luckily, the mosquitoes
were scarce and did not annoy us. The stars twinkled above as we looked
for some to fall out of the sky but none happened by, at least when we were
looking.
There was no moon this night, but a very bright Mars (in it's closest approach
to earth in 60,000 years) that cast its glow upon the shore. A lack of
moonlight allowed jellyfish phosphorescence to put on quite the show as Bri and
I dipped our toes in the water. Before long we were all enjoying the fun,
playfully slamming jellyfish on the sand to see their explosions of green
light. After an hour or so of getting glowing green fingers and toes, we
eventually went back to the house to wrap up the night and tuck ourselves into
our respective sleeping spaces.
Billy and his crew had been assigned the ocean room mainly for his love of
sleeping in a hot room and the two beds available. Margo had the bay
room, otherwise known as Margo's room, while Mom got the fold out cot
(considered an upgrade from the couch she normally sleeps on) in the back
room. While Sue and I took the front porch, she on the ocean end couch,
while I took the sleeper sofa at the bay-end. I opted for the
'perpendicular to the bed frame' position which I have perfected over the years
and which my delicate skeleton sincerely appreciates.
Friday morning we crawled out of bed in dribs and drabs, congregating on the
back deck to welcome the first morning together. Breakfast consisted of
coffee and yummy sticky buns that Christopher had acquired on his trek up town
at the crack of dawn in pursuit of bait. Chris was already up at the big
rock pile fishing. Sue and Bri were the next to head to the beach to
check on his progress and cheer him on.
Billy and Stella were the last to show up on the deck as they so enjoyed the
inviting warmth of the ocean room. The fan they had chosen for Bri's
comfort the evening before, had apparently been re-positioned numerous times
throughout the night, not for the meager breeze it provided but rather to get
the molded plastic casing vibrating in perfect harmony with the buzzing bug
wings that were hovering in the warm night air just outside their windows.
Eventually I took a walk up to the big rock pile to check on the fishing and
take a few pictures. Found that Chris was emptying the ocean of skates
and also had hooked a sea robin; but otherwise a fresh seafood meal for the
family was not looking too likely. I didn't stay long then walked back
down the beach heading for the house.
Sue and Brianna soon came back themselves, talking of a sea-robin that Bri had
reeled onto the shore herself. Soon after that we all went up to the
beach for a swim and some sun. Mom stayed behind to guard the fort.
Brianna got a crash course in boogie board riding, more like 'crash and burn',
as she attempted to ride a big wave. The white water consumed her and the board
leaving her high and dry on her belly gasping for air, spitting out sand and
seashells. That slowed her down a bit, however soon after she was back
frolicking in the waves though she didn't venture back into the 'deep-end'
until big and fearless Auntie Chris convinced her she was safe with him and he got
her back in the ocean.
We eventually all came back to the house for a shower and to prepare for an
early dinner and the evening festivities. Margo was starving and just had
to get a bite at the Holiday Snack Bar, while the rest of us showered and
prepared to go out. The sky had been clouding up and rain was in the
forecast but that did not dampen our spirits.
Continuing to adhere to the restaurant choosing guideline from the night
before, we went to Buckalews for dinner, arriving well before the crowd. However
we were so early the room with big tables had not been opened yet, so we
opted to sit at two adjacent tables; one for carnivores, the other for vegans
and a small appetite Mom. A very tasteful dinner was had as our two tables kept
the waitress hopping throughout.
Early into the meal, big brother Jim had decided to pick up the tab, skillfully
thinking that an already 'full of cheeseburgers, appetite-less' Margo and
Chris, plus the low cost of lettuce, would minimize the damages. But much
to his surprise the other table had multiple courses of rabbit food, while
Margo and Chris ordered quality food rather then quantity, plus our table had a
few cocktails all of which enhanced the bill. But have no fear, Jim's
generosity and checking account balance was up to the task, and he really
wasn't thinking that way anyhow. :-)
It had already been decided that Showplace Ice Cream Parlour was the place for
our dessert this night, so from Buckalews we walked up the street to get in
line for the next seating. This would be Stella's first time and she was
excited to see all the fine choices on the menu which we perused as we waited
to be let in. Moments after being escorted to a table our waiter took our
orders and soon various large dishes of tasteful and calorie filled ice cream
arrived and the show began.
By now Stella was aware of the game and somewhat fretful of being picked, yet
as luck would have it she was. While appearing to chicken out at first,
like the folks at the previous table, she took the challenge and performed a
remarkable Show Place serenade and dance of "peanut, peanut butter...ice
cream" all captured on Billy's videocam for posterity sake. After gorging
on ice cream we waited outside for Chris to pay the bill, then we waddled back
to the cars and back to the house to digest it all.
However, still being early in the night a visit to Fantasy Island (historically
known as Hartman's) was next on the agenda. Mom, Sue and I declined to go
along, while the rest headed out the door. "Look out goodie machines,
CK is on the way to empty you out!!!" A couple hours later they came
back home with a bag full of winnings. Another beach party was discussed
but lightning danced in the night sky and all felt it was not a good
idea. So we hung at the house, inside and out, to finish out the
evening... eventually all of us drifted off to bed.
Saturday morning arrived and again Chris was first up and off to the rock pile
to terrorize the fish. As the morning passed the rest of us gathered on
the deck, to enjoy morning bugs and coffee.
Much to Billy's chagrin, the previous night had been somewhat cooler, and the
pedestal fan I suggested was too good at creating a breeze then harmonizing
with the bugs. So after awakening from a good night's sleep he pulled out
his guitar and wowed us with his remarkable playing and singing talents.
His steadily improving abilities were demonstrated as he strummed and sang to
us quite a variety of contemporary song favorites.
This night had big plans, as Margo was holding tickets to see Bruce Springsteen
at Giants Stadium. She had two for her and Chris; and had somehow miraculously
acquired two more for Billy and Stella at the last minute. But as things,
evolved it was determined that Sue and Jim would go to the show instead.
That left Billy, Brianna and Stella to hang with Mom and entertain themselves
after we took off for the concert.
We then suited up and went to the beach for some more swimming. The ocean
temp had taken a dive from the day before and it was indeed a bit nippy.
So after an hour or so on the beach it was decided to head back to the house
for showers and a change of clothes. Then we would have a group lunch at
Chicken or the Egg, or the 'Chegg' for short, before the Springsteen crew took
off for the Meadowlands complex in North Jersey.
We were running slightly behind schedule as we arrived at the Chegg, then had
to wait a few more minutes to get seated. But our waiter was
extraordinary, he took our complicated eat-in & take-out order and had it
all out on the table in record time. As 2:30 approached, Margo paid the
check (thank you), gave her credit card to Billy, then we split into two
groups.
Margo, Sue, Chris and I jumped in the Blazer to go north; while the others went
back to the house. They had plans to see Peter Pan that night, as tickets
had been ordered during lunch, the rest of the day was up to them to fill.
On the drive north we played Springsteen all the way, starting with The Rising,
then having a group sing-along to the entire Born To Run album as well as
selected songs from his other two classic first records. Our contingent got to
Barry's house around 5pm after driving through some heavy rain. The skies
still did not look too inviting for the outside concert we would soon be
attending but the weather channel assured us it would pass. Moments later
Barry's girlfriend Fran arrived, we got back in the cars and headed for the
stadium and the pre-concert tailgate party.
Traffic was heavy as we approached the Meadowlands, with the famous New York
City skyline hazily visible off to our right. It was just about 7pm
when we took two adjacent parking spots and set up amongst thousands of other
fans, food and drink soon appeared to fuel our little party. My sincere
thanks goes out to www.mrjohn.com for
having placed a facility so near our parking spot and supplying it with dry
paper so I could relieve myself prior to going into the show.
Barry had the timing down perfectly, the tickets said 7:30, but we got to our seats about 8:15 and no more then 5 minutes passed when the show began...Brruuuce!
The skies had cleared, the air temperature was perfect. Bruce and the
E-Street band put on a great show for the mostly packed stadium. The
sound was very good considering the venue and the setlist was superb, with much
from his latest release The Rising, plus many old faves as well including Rosalita.
Sue and I had sat in a different section from the others for the concert.
We all met up back at the cars afterwards for a post-show party designed to
avoid the traffic jam that occurred as all the cars emptied from the lot.
We eventually got on our way and arrived back on LBI a bit after 2am. Hats off to Chris for being a superb chauffer (other then that almost chance
meeting on the Jersey Turnpike with an 18-wheeler at the toll booth ). Endless
thanks to Margo (and Billy) for the tix, what a great show!!!
Walking in the house, Bart Simpson was standing by the refrigerator, at least a
blowup version, so we knew the other crew must have had some fun while we were
gone. Chris and Margo went right up to bed as they were tired and seemed
to be coming down with colds. Sue and I took a brief walk to the beach
then went to bed as well.
Sunday morning arrived, a bit grey but the weather man was promising
better. John and Fran were expected to join us this day; though Sue and I
were departing in the early afternoon since she had to be at work by midnight for the night shift.
Chris did not go fishing this morning since he was feeling low, but still went
up town to get us some stinky buns. Apparently he got the last box,
managing to acquire them just ahead of some less then courteous woman who had
stolen his parking spot moments before. Yay Chris!!!
Our weekend was slowly drawing to a close. Margo and Chris were indeed
sickly and said they would likely be heading home this day as well. Yet
we still had some hours to go and a little before noon John and Fran arrived to
complete our gathering. We laughed and joked together for a while and as
our departure time approached we decided to have one more meal together at the
Bayside before splitting up and heading our separate ways. First however,
group pictures had to be taken... so John got his camera stuff together and we
all gathered on the back deck.
In honor of our departed father and husband, James F Mahoney Sr, who had
introduced us all to the lure of Long Beach Island, we included the blow-up
Bart Simpson in the pictures as his stand-in. First a couple of pictures
of the four Mahoney siblings were taken, then we all got together for a family
group shot. A more smiley-faced, mirth-filled, joking group could not
have been found on the island, or anywhere else on earth for that matter, this
afternoon.
As time had passed it was decided all would be departing LBI this day, so we
began to gather our things about the house. The others would come back to
Jacqueline after lunch to shut the place down after the meal. Sue and I
packed our stuff, then we got in our cars and headed for the Bayside and our
closing meal. Small place that it is, and packed as it was when we
arrived, we were still fortunate enough to get two tables across from each
other, to enjoy our lunch.
We enjoyed a fine meal, Johnny picked up the tab, then we said our good byes
and took off down the road for Rochester. Hours later cell phone calls
revealed that Johnny was the last to leave LBI and had closed up the
house. Many thanks to John and Fran, since you both missed out on the
entire weekend, yet took on the final close-out duties!
Jim Mahoney
Sept 1, 2003