So Long, Summer 2021

Where I live, here at the NJ shore, it's currently summer frenzy time. 

 

What that means is that the tourists (we affectionately call them Bennys) have checked the calendar and have become aware that the summer shore season is dwindling down.  
And while summer does not officially end until 9/22, around here it unofficially ends on Labor Day 9/6 - a mere week away. 

This incites full on panic on their part as they frantically eke out whatever is left of summer.
Traffic will be go from hellish to nightmare-ish and the crowds will somehow get bigger which doesn't seem possible but is.

Also, as summer winds down the tourists will not care one iota what the weather forecast says; they will get in the last of their summer fun, weather be damned. The other day I saw a family of many schlepping their way to the beach despite the dark clouds and light rain happening that day. You definitely do not want to be on the beach when the weather is acting up and you should still check the weather on what seems like a nice day before even stepping foot onto the sand. There are way too many stories with bad endings.

What this means for (some of) us locals is that we are well-advised to shelter in place until after Labor Day when the place we live becomes (mostly) ours again. September is known as Local's Summer around here for good reason - the weather is divine, the water is still warm, and the tourists have mostly left. I don't feel bad for being glad at their departure because, afterall, they had it all for the past 3+ months.

That being said, I am very much looking forward to the next phase of our life when we...

well, I'll wait to explain that in a future post.