Way Back Wednesday

Ok, usually I do White Trash on Wednesdays, but today, in keeping with the theme on my favorite radio station, and the way I feel at the moment, "Way Back" seemed more appropriate.

I am stressed, and at my limit. There, I said it. I have not had a vacation since my involuntary one last year, and I can't really say I have had a true day off, as the schedule on the weekends is so jam packed that I can't even find time to nap.

So I began today by thinking of my favorite scent. Salty-air. For those of you who live near the beach, salty-air is probably not all that compelling. For me? Heaven.

Let me explain. As a child, our family spent summers at Assageague Island, Maryland. We camped just over the dunes from the ocean. I would fall asleep with the sound of the waves in my rushing in my ears and the foam crackling upon the sand. I would wake to the crush of waves and the not-so-distant call from a seabird.

But the smell . . . the smell filled my nostrils and my mind and made me smile. I looked forward to these vacations more than anything in the world. We would drive from Western, PA. The whole way we would see who could sing the most songs on the radio. I am not musically inclined, but had a knack for words of songs back then. I usually won the contest and could recite the most songs. When a particularly fun song would come on, the whole family would bounce and sing. One such song? "Gimme Three Steps" by Lynyrd Skynyrd. You would see our 76 Malibu bouncing down the road with two giddy girls hanging out the windows screaming the lyric to "Gimme Three Steps" and it was great.

When we would get to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, we'd stop so I could get out of the car. I'd close my eyes and breathe that musty, salty-air in as deeply as I was able. Ahhh, at last. The smell is a mix between musty and salty, the air is unusually heavy there and the breezes whip up the salt laden air. I would hang out the window, breathing in that air, and gazing upon the sun-glistening water. I was at peace.

We would pull into our camp spot, jump out of the car and my sister, my daddy and I would run, not walk, but run to the beach to say hello to the ocean. I spent a good deal of my time just sitting on the beach (before I discovered beach boys) and watching the tide come in or go out.

I remember one day, I got up with the sun and went to the beach. The tide had just gone out and left behind a 7 foot shelf of sand with a sudden drop to the beach. I had never seen it that way before. It was fascinating. I combed around for some shells, and chased a couple sand diggers and birds around. Later in the day the incoming tide leveled off that shelf, but sitting there, high above the water one summer morning is a memory I will always carry with me.

I need a vacation. The summer is quickly leaving me. I haven't been to the beach in 2 years and I want my son to experience that wonderful smell, that musty salty air that fills my mind with memories of summers past.