Our dear friends Thomas and Beryl invited us to spend the weekend with them at their vacation home in Brigantine, NJ.
For those not familiar, Brigantine is just north and east of Atlantic City, separated by some inland waterways and located on the Atlantic Ocean.
It's a wonderful place.
Unfortunately, we got off to a rough start. We were supposed to leave to go down on Friday, but Christine was feeling quite poorly.
However, by Saturday morning her bug had passed and it was off to the Shore.
So far as we know, this was also "Billy's" first time going to the Shore as well.
Our friends had told us they would be out when we arrived, but that was no big deal. We let ourselves in, let "Billy" get acclimated, and unpacked.
The most important thing I unpacked was my food processor.
Yes, *sigh*, I took my food processor on a vacation weekend.
Those that know me well know that I absolutely love to cook.
In this case, I wanted to make something for Thomas and Beryl specifically because they are the healthiest eaters I know.
I made a big fresh batch of gazpacho using early Summer vine ripened tomatoes.
Thomas had already told Christine that he was making dinner. I figured a nice Summer soup would go well with whatever Thomas was cooking.
Chef Thomas posing with his display of culinary skills: Fresh grilled Tuna, fresh grilled Mako Shark, fresh South Jersey asparagus with Hollandaise sauce, and Air Traffic Mike's gazpacho.
Thomas' grilled fish was amazing.
After dinner we all decided to take a ride over to the beach. Brigantine has a section of beach where dog owners can take their pets and let them frolic in the water.
I always figured "Billy" was the sort of dog that liked to get into water.
This would be the acid test.
It was off to the beach.
I saw this family and thought to myself, "Self, it doesn't get much more American than this.". Dad fishing, Mom and the kids playing, and the family dog just relishing that he got to come along for the fun.
There's nothing I don't like about the sound of the water moving. The symphony of surf is a healing balm for my brothers and I.
For a few seconds I closed my eyes and I could hear all of our voices as kids playing on the beach.
I hope there's a beach in Heaven where my late brothers Gary and Bruce can play.
"Billy" made a little friend on the beach.
The handsome guy always gets the pretty girls. In this case it's two of the prettiest girls I know.
A few moments later we took "Billy" down to the water. A wave came up and got his paws wet. He didn't seem to mind.
Score one for Air Traffic Mike's instincts.
Pretty soon it was sunset, so we bade "Farewell" to the ocean for the day.
Sunset, high tide, and fishing. How much better could life be for the little girl making a wet sand castle or for her Dad fishing?
One thing I realised early on in life is "going to the beach" is about moments. That picture is without a doubt a "moment".
Sunday, Thomas and Beryl had plans and would be gone for the day. Christine and I figured it would be a good day to take "Billy" back to the beach.
As it turned out, it was a perfect day to go to the beach.
We left "Billy" home and hit the beach for a couple hours.
You know, just long enough for a seasoned beach goer like me to get sunburn.
Someday I'll learn to put sunscreen on during the month of May at the the beach.
Just not this year.
One of the things I like about Christine the most is that she's really easy to cook for.
Hey, it was a holiday weekend, we were at the shore, and what says beach dining more than killing and cleaning one of these?
Before.
After.
The secret?
Cheap Italian salad dressing.
I keeeeeeeeeeeeeed, I keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed!!!!!!!!!
Not about the cheap Italian salad dressing, just the meat. One whole cut up fryer.
It was one of my dad's grilling recipes. He never ate chicken after World War Two, but he sure cooked a lot of it for us boys. We all loved his grilled chicken.
Since chicken takes a while to cook, I took the opportunity to take some pictures off the back deck.
The Atlantic City skyline.
Brigantine skyline.
Monday we decided to take our boy back to the ocean.
I figured it was high time we let him swim.
"Billy" was up for the challenge. It was back to the dog beach for the three of us again.
We got our things set up and decided to take a stroll into the water immediately.
Christine and "Billy" leading the charge into the surf.
For a second it looked like "Billy" was having second thoughts about this ocean thingy.
The first wave came up, didn't faze our boy.
Second wave came up and the tail started wagging like crazy.
After that, he became "Billy the Beach Hound".
Just to show you how far the tide moves here, note the seawall off Christine and "Billy's" left. It's the same seawall from the picture of the Dad fishing above.
We spent a couple of hours at the beach. That was enough. My sunburnt legs could only take so much, even with a great big slathering of "SPF-50" sunscreen.
Thomas and Beryl returned shortly after we got "Billy" home and bathed.
Ya can't be driving around with a salt crusted wiener dog, right?
Anyway we spent our last night like the first. Dining with good friends and enjoying their company.
Seeing as how it was Memorial Day and they're both retired Air Force officers I offered a humble toast thanking them for their service to our country.
Every veteran out there deserves no less, not only on Memorial Day but every day.
Today it was a quiet ride home for the three of us.
Funny how the ride home from the beach is always extra quiet, isn't it?
Take two minutes, hit the play button, and relax.
A little "Zen" moment from this weekend.
Until the next time, all y'all take care of yourselves.
Air Traffic Mike, ret.
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