On The Beach - Book Update 7/30/24

If you grew up in the eastern sections of Monmouth County, New Jersey, you might consider yourself a beach person. That's mildly true, but the beach people hail from Sea Bright and similar towns along the coast.

My Dad was born and raised in Sea Bright, Mom in Long Branch on the west side of town. They started dating during their high school years and never looked back. She always said," I am not a Sea Brighter," though I am unsure what that meant. As a kid, my Dad worked at Fowlers Hardware and the Post Office (now Tommys Pizza. He was likely involved in any trouble that happened in town between 1945 and 1955 as well. While he was a qualified beach person, he never went to the beach. See, he had his shin removed from his leg from an operation, and it wasn't pretty to look at, so he wore long pants all the time. The beach is not an excellent destination for the long pants, working uniform type, or someone who looks like a shark attack survivor.

Our house was two miles from the beach, but I was neither a Sea Brighter nor a beach person. To us, we were inland too far to be real beach people. Our yard wasn't sand; it was grass. My sister would sit out in the sun in our backyard. I surfed in Sea Bright, and as far as North as Sandy Hook and as far south as Manasquan.

Now, I live 7 miles inland and feel like a satellite to the dwindling numbers of real beach people. As times change, so do people. Today, everybody East of rt35 thinks they are a beach person, which dilutes the quality of real beach people. They will tell you about the shore, waves, and storms like the water was lapping up against their back porch. They were more likely watching the weather on TV than living it by opening the window. Surfing is a possessive activity if you do it.

Real beach people are dwindling as time passes, and these towns change. Get to know one and ask a few questions about the old days and what Sea Bright or a similar village was like before the gold rush.

Peace, Chris

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