Long Beach Island Redux

Weekend at the shore with my FAPC peeps. I woke up at 4 a.m. Saturday morning, which was not part of the plan. (The plan was to relax, catch up on sleep, etc.) So after lying awake for a bit, I went outside and looked at the stars. That was very cool. Love a starry night. Also it was chilly. Luckily I'd propped the door open, so I went back inside and set my iPod on the playlist entitled "Sleep" and listened to it for 1.5 hours until it was over. Then I gave in, got up, and headed off to the beach.

I love the pines growing right at the edge of the sand:

And the open expanse of sand, sea, and sky:

I walked up the beach for a little over an hour, hoping to reach the north end of the island. I passed a few pairs of fishermen. But ultimately it was further than I imagined. I made it to the border of Barnegat Light, where a sign announced that I needed a beach badge. (Really? Even totally out of season??) But if I wanted to make it back in time for breakfast at Harvey Cedars, I needed to start heading back. I decided to return on the road since it would be faster.

There were some interesting place names. Ladybug Lane was decked out with images of ladybugs - very cute.

I also liked this one, maybe it was a case of buyer's remorse or a close encounter with a home improvement contractor:

There were also some cool mailbox decorations. I really liked the submarine one. And the shark. Most had a somewhat nautical or beachy theme. But not this one:

The cat was also rather unusual - and the paw prints were a nice touch:

I liked the Lee street signs, both east and west. They're not exactly long streets, since they cut across the narrow part of the island (perpendicular to Long Beach Blvd.), but they're still given the dignified appellation of "Avenue". Just like Fifth Ave or Park Ave, so they're in good company.

The town of Harvey Cedars hosts two tempting cafes (the Black-Eyed Susan looked particularly charming) and two ice cream parlors. It also turns out that Harvey Cedars hosts two Christian retreat centers -- one Catholic (Maris Stella Retreat and Conference Center) and one Protestant (Harvey Cedars Bible Conference). Or maybe I should say "at least two" - there could potentially be others I missed. I guess you can say Harvey Cedars doesn't do things by halves!

Back at the ranch, there were Biblical looking rays of sun coming down through the clouds:

We had time for a rousing volleyball game where we played as seriously as we could with our skill level (and without keeping score).

There was also time for quiet meditation:

And a campfire with smores:

After we ran out of chocolate, we sat around singing for a while. We started with somewhat annoying Sunday School songs (maybe it would have been less annoying and more nostalgic for me if these songs had actually been part of my childhood), but moved on to a variety of tunes. For the most part, I didn't know the TV theme songs (surprise, surprise), but the pop songs were good.

Sunday morning, with the seagulls guarding the bayside dock:

The gang, serious photo:

The gang, hamming it up (much more natural, IMHO):

A last look back and a fond farewell:

It was a good retreat. We laughed, we cried, we played volleyball and Catch-Phrase, we sang, danced, and worshiped, we moseyed on the beach and splashed around in the icy water. And we didn't even get sandblasted in the process.