Is there really a better time to get away than a holiday?
Pick one, any one. Christmas, Fourth of July, Boxing Day. Well, I chose Easter.
Easter is a perfect time to get away, as the weather can generally be nice, and
introverts generally don’t have to deal with hordes of vacationers. You know
what’s even better? When you pick a shore town that is usually deserted this
far ahead of Memorial Day. So that’s what I did, Friday through Monday. And it
was glorious.
It wasn’t totally deserted, as many of these beach towns
will hold events to draw folks down during the off season. At my place of
choice, they were holding a wrestling tournament on Friday and Saturday. Like
the high school amateur type. Not the cool “hit ‘em with chairs when the
referee is distracted” type. Sadly, there were no little Daniel Bryans or
Undertakers running around. Turns out this sort of thing actually draws a lot
of kids. And the rest of their families. In my hotel. When I arrived, there
were tons of little toe heads running about, dribbling basketballs of all
things. Under sized but still just as loud basketballs.
I can generally deal with all these families, they hardly
get in my way. Until I’m hungry, and they’re clogging up every open restaurant.
I will even go so far as to say it is generally OK to hear kids playing and
running at the hotel. I would like to tell them, this is the golden era. You
will most likely look back at these young, innocent time with much envy. Of
course, I won’t actually tell them that because that entails actually talking to them.
As someone who fancies themselves as a future beach bum in
training, what’s better than being at the beach? Being at the beach when (pretty
much) NO ONE ELSE is there. Shore towns take on an intoxicating emptiness in
the chill of the offseason. Many buildings are still in hibernation; lights
turned off, blinds drawn; an eerie stillness. It’s almost like there are
zombies waiting to attack. The zombies would be more social than me.
That is one of the things I like best at the shore in the
off season. There’s not waves of people to wash you by some pretty cool sights.
It’s almost like these buildings are abandoned. Some will open come May, some
stand with For Sale signs in their weathered windows. All of them have a story.
You can peek in some windows and try to figure out the story; how long have
those chairs been piled up like that? When is the last time an actual person
was inside? Will the name be different next year? If the walls could talk…
That’s the thing being an introvert, the feeling that with a
group of people, time will move faster and you will miss these cool moments. An
almost empty town is a haven for the introvert. So much to see and never the
feeling of “let’s go somewhere else.” No, let’s just be. This is pretty cool.
In the quiet, you can hear the waves from blocks away. The buzz from a busted
neon sign.
I’m social. I go to bars, restaurants, boardwalk, bike
riding. I use sunscreen. I feel responsible. But I know, the main event, the
time I am looking forward to is Sunday into Monday. Many of these people will
be leaving, and this town will be mine.
The ebb of people leaving on Sunday morning is apparent
early. Most of the vans in the motel parking lot are consuming luggage and
children like me at the seafood buffet Saturday night. Breakfast isn’t as
crowded. People are getting in their last bit of salt air, then heading to
their full cars for their trek home. Suckers. Nope, not me, these next few
hours will be awesome for an introvert. My favorite place minus my least
favorite thing; other people.
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