Memorial Day Weekend 2014

"I think the guy broke my tooth."
"Really, sweetheart, you'd drink your own piss?"
"I would!  It could save your life!"
"We're in Dewey Beach, not on survivor."
"Yeah so the guy's passed out right where the dog takes her shits and he's got a turd stuck to his face."
"Why would you walk around wearing a shirt that says "I Heart BJs?"  I mean, you don't see me walking around in a shirt that says "I Heart Sitting On Your Face."  I think it's implied."
"My worlds are colliding!"  
"See?!  I have friends!  They've got my back!"

"I have decided that my future kids will attend Notre Dame."
"You just flashed me your kitty."
"This doesn't suck."
"Ugh, why did I just post a picture of Bruce the Shark on Philip's Facebook wall?"
"Yeah, I'm a pretty hostile sleeper, sorry about that."
"He just let me grope his junk."
"The devil landed Friday at sunset."
"Look, the people in line are getting pissed that Poppa's making our pizza while we're standing here in the kitchen."

"Girls, girls.  Don't waste your time with boys right now because they have no idea what they're doing.  It gets better, trust me.  It gets wayyyyy better."






I carried the thought that the reason we all are blessed enough to have been there that weekend was only because of the brave men and women who have fought for our country.  Among the camaraderie and the American flags flying high everywhere you looked, there was the somber moment when I got the opportunity to shake the hand of an active member of the United States Army in the middle of the Starboard on Memorial Day.
"This is my friend who got home in February from his second tour in the Middle East."
"Thank you for serving our country."

Don't Try To Do Your Christmas Shopping With A Major Hangover

A few weeks ago my girl friend and I decided to plan a weekend at the beach in order to do our Christmas shopping, and Rehoboth has more outlet stores than I can wrap my head around.  It just so happened that the weekend we chose was when the season-closing parties for The Rusty Rudder and The Starboard were going on.  Perfect!

Needless to say, Christmas shopping when you're hungover as hell is quite a nightmare.  Somehow Friday night, my friend and I ended up wasted at the Rudder.  Damn those shots.  And I got a phone call from my uncle around 10:30 Saturday morning - "Okay, I should be getting down there around 6:00.  I want you two to be at one hundred percent so that I can take you down peg by peg."  The scary thing was that I knew he wasn't joking.  

When we walked into Banana Republic a short time later, the look we exchanged with each other said it all - "This is going to suck."

Meeting back in line at the registers, she said to me, "Someone bumped into me at the rack and I nearly flipped out.  I need food.  And a beer."  It wasn't even noon.

We rallied ourselves and managed to get most of our shopping done with a lunch break at Applebee's somewhere in between.  Even though I still have a few people left to buy for, I'm very proud of myself for getting almost all of it done and sticking (within reason) to my budget.

Once we called it quits we focused on resting up for the evening.  A power nap and a shower, along with a couple slices of pizza, helped speed that process along.  Then it was time for the last hurrah of the season in Dewey Beach - the closing party at The Starboard.  Shots of Fireball whiskey before we head out?  Anyone?
I'll try not to beat a dead horse here.  You all know how much I love Dewey and what I do when I'm down there.  We partied like rock stars.  We drank our faces off and had a great time doing it.  I didn't have to worry about anyone catching me on a walk of shame the next morning - the only perk of it being early November.
So I know I said this when I posted about Labor Day Weekend, but now I can truly say that the season has come to a close, and now it's time to hunker down and pray for spring time.  Specifically, St. Patty's Day and the Starboard opening.

Jenny and I enjoying our last Grapefruit Crush of the season.

Labor Day Weekend - Drunk and Bittersweet

It was a weekend spent rallying one last time before the cold weather sets in and the bathing suits get packed away with the winter clothes.

"Hey, I'm star-6-9-ing my buzz.  You know, the one I've had since June."

"Yeah, I really need to star-6-9 my tan before summer is officially over."

"If you see him tonight are you going to suggest star-6-9-ing what you guys did last night?"

My brother called me while I was still working Friday afternoon to announce that he was going to Dewey for the night after the fucked up week he had at work and I was thrilled.  We hadn't been in Dewey together since my nephew was born, maybe even before that.
We partied hard Friday night with our uncle and various other friends and relatives we ran into along our travels up and down Route 1 - Starboard, Lighthouse, Northbeach...eventually ending up at McShea's for last call and of course getting a pizza from Grotto's on our way back to the house.

"Dane, you sleep like you're dead.  I almost put my finger under your nose to make sure you were still breathing."

The weather, along with my hangover, Saturday wasn't exactly cooperative; the sun didn't come out until around 3 pm and by then my headache was finally starting to fade.  I spent some time on the beach in solitude, reading and reveling in the feeling of sand between my toes.
Saturday night was spent with a bunch of the Weekenders, and I ended up going home with someone completely unexpected.  Nothing like doing your first legitimate walk of shame on the last Sunday morning of the summer.  I tried to be slick and take the back way home, through the alley behind the Bottle & Cork, down back streets through the clusters of beach condos and driveways,  avoiding Route 1 and figuring no one I knew would see me.  I was quite mistaken.
"Helloooo...hey!  Girl in the green!"
I looked up to see one of my aunt and uncle's good friends, a guy who has also known me for over 10 years, and known the guy I went home with for probably over 30, standing on the balcony of one of the beach condos.  Busted.  He's grinning and asking me where I'm coming from.  I mentally ran through the list of people who could have seen me leave with said cause of my little shame-walk and decided he wasn't among them, so I lied through my teeth.  I couldn't make this shit up if I tried.
My dearest friend came down that day, someone else I haven't been in Dewey with in a very long time, and we spent the day on the beach reminiscing about old times - baby sitting my younger cousins and my aunt and uncle teaching us most of what we know today.  We did two happy hours, one at Northbeach and then of course headed over to the Bottle & Cork for the last Jam Session of the year.  I believe we had dinner and then cleaned ourselves up to go back out and do it all over again that night.

This girl has been my lifeline.  Plus, she knows too much.

Dewey Beach is nonstop.  You can either hang tough or go home.  I love it, but there's a reason I only do weekends in the summer.  It's best to take it in small doses, otherwise I think my liver would just quit on me. So now summer is over, everyone has gone back home and all we can do is look forward to next year.

The blue moon, the Starboard shark, and myself.  Life couldn't get any better.

Turns Out This Month I'll Be Okay

I got two separate paychecks last week and was able to pay my bills, right before my cell phone was about to get shut off.  Yeah, yeah, I need to budget my money better.  I thought I had been, but as one of my dear friends said to me, "Holes can appear when you least expect it, and you'll get yourself out, I know you will."  And I did without having to ask anyone for help, thank God.  It was amazing how quickly my depression and anxiety lifted the second I signed on to my bank account and saw the deposits that had been made, one of which was much larger than I had anticipated.
So my plan is to do what every financial adviser tells us - make sure I have at least three months worth of bill payments stashed away, and if I'm really committed, four months with enough in my savings left over to have a comfortable little nest egg.  It sounds simple, but if it was, I wouldn't have been in the position I was two weeks ago.  So let's just take that as another wake-up call.  Then next summer, I can lay around the pool, not work, not worry about collecting unemployment, not worry about my bills being paid, and use the paychecks I do get for the sporadic work I do in the summer to go party down in Dewey Beach.
Sounds like a plan to me.

Did Dewey Beach Save My Sanity?

Out of the past six nights, only one has been spent in my own bed.  It was a whirlwind of a week and I'm exhausted.

I took off for the beach Monday evening on a whim and ended up staying until Wednesday.  I met up with a girl I've been corresponding with via Twitter and other various blog sites.  She is one awesome, lovely woman and we had a great time.  I was honored to show her the ins and outs of Dewey Beach, complete with Devils and Grapefruit Crushes.

While I was down there, a few significant things happened that I never expected.

The first was that I realized my bank account had been overdrawn, twice.  I'm broke.  Again.  I was in a bad place about two years ago and I swore to myself it would never happen, but alas, due to my confusion about the changes the PA Department of Unemployment Compensation has made, my claim was all fucked up this summer.  (I claim unemployment during the summer months because, well, I don't work as much as I do fall, winter, and spring.)  When things like this happen, it messes with my head, bad.  I'm still trying to figure out what I'm going to do.

On Tuesday my aunt and I were sitting on the beach when I notice a man & his daughter stop not too far from our beach chairs, drop their towels & boogie boards then take off for the ocean.  This man was the Dave Grohl.  I didn't believe my eyes at first, but once I heard him speak, I knew it was definitely him.  I had the opportunity to shake the man's hand and thank him for all that he has done for rock & roll, and he couldn't have been nicer.

Wednesday I was sitting on the beach again, this time with my uncle, reading Traveling With Pomegranates.  As I sat there observing the goings-on around me, reading, smoking cigarettes, watching the ocean and bracing myself against the chilly breeze, it dawned on me - I want to be a writer.  I want to write alongside my photography.  How to go about it is another story, (I mean, yes, this blog is a start,) but I since I made the acclamation to myself, I now know I want to make it a reality.
Once the clouds became ominous and the lifeguards starting calling people out of the water, we packed it up and headed back to the beach house.  When the rain started I decided I might as well make the trek home, so I drove through the storm back to Wilmington, tears spilling out of my eyes here and there wondering what the hell I'm going to do about my bills, worrying whether or not I had enough gas in the car to get me home and if my cell phone would be shut off any time soon.
That night was the only one spent in my own bed, and the stories from the second half of my week are pending my next post.  Stay tuned.


     

Dewey Beach - A Way of Life

Ok so my weekend in Dewey Beach?  Awesome.  I don't get to go down there as often in the summer as I used to, so when I am there I make the most of it.  And damn do I.  My girl friend summed it nicely the other night - "I'm surprised the town is still standing."

A brief overview of Dewey Beach - it's a small town that's about a mile long, on one side is the Atlantic, on the other is the bay.  Route 1 runs through this stretch of land and along it are more bars and restaurants than I can remember off the top of my head.  In my experience, the beauty of it all is that everything is in walking distance.  It's also a landmark party town.  (Which of course, makes it my favorite.)  Unfortunately, it has gotten a bad rap over the past couple of years.  The politicians seem to want to squash the camaraderie that Dewey stands for.

My family has been renting/owning beach houses in Dewey for most of my life.  I have nothing but amazing memories of this town, with plenty more to make in the summers to come.  Is it all about drinking?  Pretty much.  Did my liver need a break when I left on Monday morning?  Pretty much.  Let's see how much I can remember of my Dewey Weekend 2012.

Thursday night was a shit show at the Rusty Rudder with my uncle, some of his friends from Pittsburg and a few Weekend Warriors - people who either live down there or rent houses for the entire summer.  I got there around 10:30, and proceeded to slam Bud Light draft, (which yes, I regretted the next morning.)  Next thing I know, I'm covered in glowsticks and on stage with Love Seed Mama Jump.

Friday night I checked out the new club, Ivy, which is a change from the typical beach bar style that rules Dewey.  I liked it, but I can go anywhere and here a DJ play house music.  My uncle, his friend and I, had a few drinks then headed over to Bottle & Cork, the greatest little rock & roll bar in the world, where there was a Michael Jackson tribute band playing.  We ran into more Weekend Warriors, so I took off with them, we went across the street to Woody's for a shot, then over to the Starboard for last call.  My uncle & I hit Mama Maria's for a slice of pizza to soak up some of the alcohol.  Pizza is probably the best drunk food, in my opinion.

This is me, super excited while the siren is blaring.

Saturday my girl friend came down and we headed over to the Bottle & Cork for Jam Session, the infamous happy hour that can either kill you or make you stronger.  The siren blares throughout town at precisely 5 pm, letting everyone know that "United we stand, united we jam."

My view from the wall.

We stayed until about 7, running into old friends and meeting new people, jamming to the bands, and drinking.  All while standing on the wall, my favorite spot because you can see everything and it's less crowded than the floor.






  Saturday night my cousin, my girl friend, my aunt & I all went out on the town starting with the Lighthouse and ending with the Starboard, as usual.  We also scored a bunch of free stuff at Nalu.

My girls and our awesome free stuff.

  We spent all day Sunday on the beach, after eating delicious roast beef sandwiches from the Dewey Bull to soak up any residual alcohol left in our systems.  It was decided to do Sunday Funday at Northbeach, an outside bar located right on the Rehoboth Bay and home of the yummy, refreshing and slushy drink, the Dewey Devil.  (They will knock you on your ass if you're not careful!)  I happened to run into a special friend of mine there who had just gotten down with his friends, which triggered my extra night's stay in Dewey.  I met up with them at Hammerhead's later that night, we scooted over to the Starboard for a Grapefruit Crush, then back again for last call.  Monday morning I was deposited back at my family's beach house, then sadly departed for home, smelling like booze, sweat, sex (maybe?  I won't tell.) and a damn good weekend in Dewey Beach.

My aunt & I enjoying Sunday Funday action.

Hey! What's going on?

Still coming down from an amazing weekend in Dewey Beach, Delaware.  Luckily I did not get arrested.

Gearing up to see 311 at the Festival Pier on Penn's Landing in Philadelphia on Friday with my brother and *hopefully* a special friend of mine.

Baby shower on Saturday, but the Pack 'n Play that my girl friend & I were supposed to buy already got scooped up, so I need to get the creative juices flowing.  I hate sticking to registries.

Next Thursday is 311 in Holmdel, NJ, and my chance to finally meet this band.

Friday is my 29th birthday, and it's looking like no one is going to be in town.

So that's what's going on, trying to keep busy and working long days at the same time.  It's good for me because the department I'm involved in at the moment is moving forward and I'm blessed to be a part of it, not only because it shows the faith my company has in me, but it's rekindling my passion for photography.