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Kay Manning (Elrod)
Yes, it's hot! Just got back from the beach and it is hot there too. The only relief was sitting on the screened porch and catching a breeze, which was what I did most days. Funny! We have had guests at the beach from time to time who rush out to the porch, grab a rocker and say they have waited a long time to catch up on their porch-sitting. We eat out there, drink our wine out there, talk, watch the neighbors, and watch the wild life (birds, snakes, and a coyote from time to time). It was more comfortable than sitting in the air-conditioned comfort of the living room! I think the contrast in temperatures can be uncomfortable once you get used to one thing. It reminds me of trips to the beach when I was young and most houses were not air-conditioned except for a window unit in the living room, but that was rare. Everyone wanted the bedroom that faced the ocean so they could catch a breeze at night. Our little beach house is very much like the ones we used to rent at OD back in the 60's - great room, 3 bed/2 baths. The most valuable feature is the wrap-around screen porch with a small deck in the back. I tried to sit on the deck one day to get my UVR therapy, but the sun was so hot it stung my skin after only 10 minutes, very uncomfortable, so I retreated to the porch and got a "screen tan".
As I recall those simple vacations, I wondered what you guys did at the beach with your families. There was a family very close to ours from Durham and we used to meet at the beach every summer. They shared the expenses and the parenting duties. We played cards, Monopoly, rode the rides at the pavillion, played putt-putt. We never went out to eat. I don't recall any restaurants at the beach in the early years, or at least my parents hid them from us. We ate a lot of tomatoe sandwiches and cooked burgers and dogs on the grill. A lot of Kool-Aid was consumed and we even drank that stinkin' water. If it was boiled and we put a tea bag in it, it wasn't so bad. It has improved over the years. We wore rubber flip-flops that cost less than a dollar at the drug store. When one blew out, it was easily replaced. I never had a good hair day at the beach and never will. We spent all day on the beach playing softball, shellin' and floating on the rubber raft. My little brother met a friend one day, a dead shark, and drug it around until it smelled so bad Daddy made him bury it. The little guy never had a problem making friends and still has that colorful imagination.
Don't you miss the "good old days"?
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Around 1954 or 55. Got sunburned and had to wear a shirt with the bathing suit! Before sunscreen.
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This is a great photo! Daddy took it with his right hand while catching the ball with his left and he managed to get a great picture of the approaching storm as well as the pitcher, the batter, and the outfielder. 1965. Is that a girl-throw, or what?
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1965
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