Here's something you might be interested in.
Today I spent most of the day in Ocean Beach with one of my daughters . She lives with her Mom in Ramona and she was happy to get out of that heat...very happy. When I got divorced late in 1999 my two daughters and I spent a lot of time in OB. I lived in Mission Hills but really liked OB. I was a bit stressed out at the time and OB was comfortable place for me .
One thing we did today was look over some old photos of her and her older sister .I usually pick out a few albums ahead of time . This was probably more for my enjoyment than hers but she also enjoyed looking at them. Our newer pics are online or on our phones so it does seem a bit nostalgic to actually go through an actual physical photo album . Dare I say it harks back to a seemingly slower and simpler time in the world.
I have also always loved looking at old family photos with my Mom . With my Mom its usually pictures of her childhood spent south of Boston in the 1950's. Family photos with her Mom and Dad (my grandma & grandpa) that my grandma was never smiling in and grandpa usually had an uneasy smirk . During these photo sessions my Mom usually tells me something that I never knew. When I mentioned cousin Richey always seemed liked the black sheep of the family she let on that Aunt Eva (Richie's mom) had an affair and Richie's father was not her husband. What? How did I never know this. Or that my beloved and very funny Uncle Jimmy had an affair but my Aunt Mary-one tough gal- wasn't going to dump him or let him go. And that the woman he had an affair with was over weight. OK - I never knew that either. So my photo sessions with Mom tend to take on quite a bit more than the idle chat-chat of ...oh that's such a nice photo.
The last time my daughters visited OB was August 2010 just prior to my older daughter going back to college . On that day both of my daughters and I spent the day in OB visiting all the spots we use to... just like today. Robb Field and Dusty Rhodes Park where I chased them around the playground playing tag and in our version I was always it . I was in pretty good shape then because this involved a considerable amount of sprinting . I have a photo of them both perched atop a slide at Dusty Rhodes from ten years ago and took another this past August in the exact same position as the previous one and it came out great. A stroll down the pier is part of the routine too. And when hunger hits we always stop at Livingston's . Every time we get their chicken strips and jo-jo's to be dipped in creamy ranch dressing . We loved them then and still love them now .I am no longer sure if their the greatest chicken strips ever but as youngsters it seemed that everywhere we went they only ate chicken strips. So I believe that they are experts .But I think that part of my affection for these chicken strips is the memory of how enjoyable the time spent in OB has always been for us. To wrap up our sentimental stroll through OB we get an ice cream at the end of Newport at the Lighthose ...always . It's just part of the day . It's an amazingly relaxing and immensely enjoyable day . We use to make a stop at the Cow because I was a nut about buying cd's then ...haven't bought a cd in quite awhile but today we did head over to $2 Thrill and I did buy a cd . The soundtrack for Clerks .I hardly neeeded another cd since I have close to 1000 of those things .
Guess I bought that for sentimental reasons too !
Today I spent most of the day in Ocean Beach with one of my daughters . She lives with her Mom in Ramona and she was happy to get out of that heat...very happy. When I got divorced late in 1999 my two daughters and I spent a lot of time in OB. I lived in Mission Hills but really liked OB. I was a bit stressed out at the time and OB was comfortable place for me .
One thing we did today was look over some old photos of her and her older sister .I usually pick out a few albums ahead of time . This was probably more for my enjoyment than hers but she also enjoyed looking at them. Our newer pics are online or on our phones so it does seem a bit nostalgic to actually go through an actual physical photo album . Dare I say it harks back to a seemingly slower and simpler time in the world.
I have also always loved looking at old family photos with my Mom . With my Mom its usually pictures of her childhood spent south of Boston in the 1950's. Family photos with her Mom and Dad (my grandma & grandpa) that my grandma was never smiling in and grandpa usually had an uneasy smirk . During these photo sessions my Mom usually tells me something that I never knew. When I mentioned cousin Richey always seemed liked the black sheep of the family she let on that Aunt Eva (Richie's mom) had an affair and Richie's father was not her husband. What? How did I never know this. Or that my beloved and very funny Uncle Jimmy had an affair but my Aunt Mary-one tough gal- wasn't going to dump him or let him go. And that the woman he had an affair with was over weight. OK - I never knew that either. So my photo sessions with Mom tend to take on quite a bit more than the idle chat-chat of ...oh that's such a nice photo.
The last time my daughters visited OB was August 2010 just prior to my older daughter going back to college . On that day both of my daughters and I spent the day in OB visiting all the spots we use to... just like today. Robb Field and Dusty Rhodes Park where I chased them around the playground playing tag and in our version I was always it . I was in pretty good shape then because this involved a considerable amount of sprinting . I have a photo of them both perched atop a slide at Dusty Rhodes from ten years ago and took another this past August in the exact same position as the previous one and it came out great. A stroll down the pier is part of the routine too. And when hunger hits we always stop at Livingston's . Every time we get their chicken strips and jo-jo's to be dipped in creamy ranch dressing . We loved them then and still love them now .I am no longer sure if their the greatest chicken strips ever but as youngsters it seemed that everywhere we went they only ate chicken strips. So I believe that they are experts .But I think that part of my affection for these chicken strips is the memory of how enjoyable the time spent in OB has always been for us. To wrap up our sentimental stroll through OB we get an ice cream at the end of Newport at the Lighthose ...always . It's just part of the day . It's an amazingly relaxing and immensely enjoyable day . We use to make a stop at the Cow because I was a nut about buying cd's then ...haven't bought a cd in quite awhile but today we did head over to $2 Thrill and I did buy a cd . The soundtrack for Clerks .I hardly neeeded another cd since I have close to 1000 of those things .
Guess I bought that for sentimental reasons too !