By Georgia Osten
With the BIGGEST holiday coming up, I reminisce back when we first began coming to Crystal Beach. Now, those were the days! We had a little bungalow over on the canal side, life was easy, things were simple. That house is still there, it looks a little different, but I still get those vibes when I look at it. It was barely a two bedroom, it had only one bathroom. It had a winding iron staircase to the ground level. We had Zig-Zag posters on the walls. Don’t ask me why?
We drove a VW Camper, blue & white with a pop up roof, it was a classic! When we came back from the beach, we’d shower off in the back yard with the garden hose. We had a garden in the front yard and our little girl’s birthday party was in the front yard under the big oak tree.
Our next house at the beach was on the beach side. It was our weekend home, we still had jobs in the city so we would go back home first thing Monday morning to go back to work. This little house didn’t make it through Ike, but we painted our post-Ike house the same color. It was a fine little house, 3 bedrooms, 3 baths. Our Golden Retriever at the time, Ruby, and I couldn’t wait for Friday to pack up and head down to the beach. I’ll never forget the welcoming smell of this old house. We wouldn’t even unpack; we’d just go jump in the golf cart and head down to the beach. Back then, even on a Friday afternoon, the beach would be empty!
July 4th, we would sit on our deck and watch the fireworks all weekend long. We became immune to the popping. We’d sleep right through them. Still do as a matter of fact! Ruby didn’t mind the noise and neither does Maezy.
Nowadays, I only enjoy the beach in the fall and wintertime. I miss the old days when our beach was quieter, and life moved a little slower. I’m not sure we’ll ever see those days again. But it’s nice to reminisce.
Have a safe 4th, hang out with family and friends, be sensible.
[GO: Jun-27-2023]
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Dear Georgia,
Way to go! “Those were the days, my friend.”
Linda C Elissalde