Survivor - Rehoboth Beach

Well, we survived another annual excursion to Rehoboth Beach. Truth be told, my disdain for the beach is not directed so much at the beach itself as much as it is at the accommodations we avail ourselves to year after year. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m still not a big fan of the cruddy, murky water of the North Atlantic, and I still hate the coarse, rock and shell riddled sand they call a beach, but that tends to pale in comparison to the almost frightening apartment that we rent annually.

The apartment consists of 4 rooms. A main bedroom that has 2 undersized double beds, another bedroom that has 1 undersized double bed, a kitchenette/dining area with a small single bed in it as well, and a bathroom. The total square footage of all of this would be lucky to top 400 square feet. The beds, as mentioned, are barely able to sleep two people, and are painfully thin and lumpy. The floors are uneven at best. The whole apartment is cooled by two window air conditioners – 1 in the bathroom and the other in the small bedroom. Because there are no thermostats, your options are to blow warm air or freeze yourself out. This year wasn’t too bad given there were only 5 of us in the apartment. But any more than that, and you feel like your standing on top of each other all the time. And the place is, well, less than clean by in large. The main areas are cleaned between renters, but don’t dare to look under the beds or the dressers. One year we found a partially eaten and since spoiled turkey in the oven. Who knows how long it had been in there before we discovered it.

Now, couple that image with the reality that the apartment is one of three in the ‘house’, all of which are typically filled to beyond capacity with families and others who tend to find Wal-Mart the pinnacle of high-class shopping, and, well, you get the picture.

I’m sure you are asking ‘Why don’t you find somewhere else to stay?’ Well, there are two primary reasons. First, the place is cheap (although not nearly as cheap as it should be considering the condition of the dwelling), and thought I do not want to point fingers, this is a very important factor to some in the family. Second, and probably more telling, the family has been staying here for almost 20 years, and to change would be paramount to invoking Armageddon. Realistically, we most likely will not look for new accommodations until these places collapse upon themselves, which may be within the year given the condition they’re currently in.

So, is it the beach I dislike, or the accommodations? Would I like the annual trek more if we had a more livable dwelling to stay in while we were there? Probably. My contempt for the water and the beach probably wouldn’t change, but I would probably dread the trip less.

I did come up with some random thoughts that may interest only me while we were there…
- Fisher’s Carmel Popcorn is, perhaps, the best there is, and is really the only way to enjoy popcorn.
- The shops on the Boardwalk rarely, if ever, change their inventory. The T-Shirts, towels, trinkets and other bric-a-brac is the same year after year after year. This may be comforting to some, but I find it disappointing.
- I have no patience for people who refuse to acknowledge there is a world that exists beyond the 6 inches of personal space that surrounds them. I am constantly amazed and frustrated at the ignorance and rudeness of people who seem to believe that they’re entitled because they’re on vacation.
- I don’t understand the apparent need to deface your body with tattoos of all shapes and sizes. I don’t have a problem with tattoos, but I don’t understand the point of covering one’s whole body with them.
- There are way too many young teenagers dressing and acting like they’re older than they are. I know I’m starting to sound old, but can’t we encourage kids to be kids a little longer?
- Crocs are cute on kids, but really kinda strange looking on adults.
- there are a certain style of swimsuit that should never be worn by most of the people who insist upon wearing it. And that's all I have to say about that.