The earliest memories I have of Ocean City was when I was five years old. My parents would rent an impressive beach house which was right near the beach and the Atlantic Ocean. We would spend most of our mornings and afternoons relaxing on the beach. The three of us kids (Sarah, Tim, and I because Nathaniel was six months old and Stephen, Lydia, and Hannah did not exist yet) would run across the dunes (parents in tow) and shout that we could hear the waves crashing onto the beach. Once we picked our spot, I would jump right in the water. No time for sandcastles and beach critters just yet. I would take the waves head on. As soon as I saw one coming close I would play chicken with it before eventually allowing it to overtake me at it's weakest moment. One time one got the better of me and knocked me off my feet and doused me pretty good. Once I had my fill of the water, I returned to the sand where Grandma helped me construct a cool sand castle that even included a moat. It was built far enough away that the sea couldn't take it, but close enough to fill the moat. Eventually the sand castle lost it's allure and I was back near the water trying to catch starfish (I succeeded once) and I even helped another little boy hunt hermit crabs. The interesting thing with the hermit crabs was the boy's father also dug them up, but would find delight in chucking them into the ocean. I followed his lead a time or two, not knowing the atrocity I was committing.
Another day on the beach we spent flying kites. Well being by the ocean caused for some stronger winds and little 3-year old Sarah's fingers couldn't hold onto the kite. The wind snatched it and fled the scene further down the beach. My dad chased after it and I believe he did eventually recover it.
During the evening we would walk down the famous boardwalk. On one side was the beach and the ocean in all it's grandeur. The other side was small shops, restaurants, vendors, and arcades as far as the eye could see. I remember one night we passed some intricate sand sculptures of the cross, Christ on the cross, and man's interpretation of what Christ looked like. Even the five year old in me was in awe. We wandered further taking in the lights, smells, and sounds. We eventually stopped into a shop to get some new kites, but Dad either didn't like the store or the price so he bought us gumballs instead. Next we headed into a small burger joint for dinner. I don't remember much other than playing with my slammer (think POGS) and enjoying some awesome fries. As the sun was setting, we made one more stop to get a large bag of swedish fish (the multi-colored ones). What we did wasn't necessarily that much, but in the eyes of a five year old, it was everything.
One day it rained a lot. So we headed for a place that had a few indoor mini-golf courses, a bunch of arcade games, and food galore. A few things stand out in my mind from that day. One of the courses was a dinosaur theme. At one point, my mom, my sister and I went through a tunnel where a mechanical dinosaur popped out. My sister was terrified. It took a bit to prove it wouldn't hurt her but she still didn't like it. Another course had an undersea theme. The only hole I remember is one where you had to hit the ball up a hill and underneath a scuba diver into a large sinkhole that sent the ball down a tube and towards the actual hole. I got a hole-in-one on that one. As for my mom...well I was laughing because she kept hitting the diver and had her ball roll all the way back.
The last two memories I'm going to touch on are these. One night my parents gifted me with a kids film camera. I was delighted. I took pictures of anything and everything. Our beach house overlooked the dunes and you could see kites flying in the distance. I tried to take pictures of them, but when we eventually developed the film, you could barely see the kites so it looked like I took a lot of pictures of the dunes...which weren't very good.
I mentioned earlier that I had caught a starfish. I didn't even know they existed here until a man walking down the beach one day gave me a live one to play with. I had filled a bucket with sand and water and placed the little guy inside. He stayed in the beach house for a day or two before we let him go. I was determined to get my own, so one day while playing on the beach, my little five-year old eyes spotted something in the crashing waves. I knew it was a starfish, but no one believed me. I kept scooping my bucket into the waves and eventually shouted in joy because lo and behold, there was a small starfish in my bucket. My mom told me we weren't keeping another one, so after playing with him for a few minutes, I picked him up and tossed him into the sea, only to see a seagull swoop down and attack the water where the starfish had landed. I heard my mom mumble "Uh oh...did that bird eat that starfish?" Some terror washed over me, but I then let it go and thought nothing of it. Today however I'm convinced that bird ate my starfish.
I know Ocean City has changed in the past 20 years, but I still long to go back some day. I hope you enjoyed experiencing this place from the eyes and mind of a five-year old.
One day it rained a lot. So we headed for a place that had a few indoor mini-golf courses, a bunch of arcade games, and food galore. A few things stand out in my mind from that day. One of the courses was a dinosaur theme. At one point, my mom, my sister and I went through a tunnel where a mechanical dinosaur popped out. My sister was terrified. It took a bit to prove it wouldn't hurt her but she still didn't like it. Another course had an undersea theme. The only hole I remember is one where you had to hit the ball up a hill and underneath a scuba diver into a large sinkhole that sent the ball down a tube and towards the actual hole. I got a hole-in-one on that one. As for my mom...well I was laughing because she kept hitting the diver and had her ball roll all the way back.
The last two memories I'm going to touch on are these. One night my parents gifted me with a kids film camera. I was delighted. I took pictures of anything and everything. Our beach house overlooked the dunes and you could see kites flying in the distance. I tried to take pictures of them, but when we eventually developed the film, you could barely see the kites so it looked like I took a lot of pictures of the dunes...which weren't very good.
I mentioned earlier that I had caught a starfish. I didn't even know they existed here until a man walking down the beach one day gave me a live one to play with. I had filled a bucket with sand and water and placed the little guy inside. He stayed in the beach house for a day or two before we let him go. I was determined to get my own, so one day while playing on the beach, my little five-year old eyes spotted something in the crashing waves. I knew it was a starfish, but no one believed me. I kept scooping my bucket into the waves and eventually shouted in joy because lo and behold, there was a small starfish in my bucket. My mom told me we weren't keeping another one, so after playing with him for a few minutes, I picked him up and tossed him into the sea, only to see a seagull swoop down and attack the water where the starfish had landed. I heard my mom mumble "Uh oh...did that bird eat that starfish?" Some terror washed over me, but I then let it go and thought nothing of it. Today however I'm convinced that bird ate my starfish.
I know Ocean City has changed in the past 20 years, but I still long to go back some day. I hope you enjoyed experiencing this place from the eyes and mind of a five-year old.
