Invasions From The Reality Squad

On a screamingly hot, early June day, Jen, Oni and I decided to hole up in a dark, air conditioned movie theater. The deep need for unnaturally cold air and overly salted popcorn dragooned us into a matinee screening of Men In Black III. Afterwards, salty, chilled and entertained, we motored home for an afternoon swim.

We live just off Edgewater Drive, the street that runs along the seawall. There were clumps and bunches of folk, with more dashing out of their houses to join them.

My first thought was ‘oh fuck, I forgot the boat parade AGAIN!’ Our area is lousy with boat owners -- once a year the sailboat, cruiser, bateau and tub owners elaborately decorate and then vogue on down along the seawall at high tide.

Pics? Of course not! I never remember which day this bit of hilarity happens.

 The heavy vibrations of a helicopter or 3 passing by just overhead tipped me off that it wasn’t parade day. That and the fact that no one looked happy.

After pulling into our driveway, Jen joined the seawall throngs to find out the skinny, the scoop. A body had just been found and pulled from the water.

What?! It’s amazing the number of scenarios that can race through my brain when I’ve got little info and the sitch looks ominous. 

Drug smuggling operation gone horribly awry with pirates washing up on shore? Em, this is Hough’s Neck not Gloucester chicita.

A Cape Fear-esque (Robert Mitchum version of course) vengeance play has come to it’s inevitable screenplay end?  

More downed German U-boats have been discovered?

We’re being invaded by Yankees fans bent on retaliation for the last Red Sox drubbing they suffered?

Ah...no. It was much less Hollywood melodrama-y and much more sad, no happy ending and real life-like.

Turns out, on that glorious, blazingly hot, late spring day, some kids, teens, were jumping off the pier down the street, swimming. One of them leapt in and never surfaced.

His friends tried to find and rescue him. Folks from the next door yacht club jumped in, joining the search. 911 had been called. It was the divers who found Lamar’s body.  He was 18 years old

We had crowds again yesterday when a neighbor’s guest slipped and fell off the seawall onto the rocky beach below. This time of year, we all live on our porches so someone saw her fall. 911 was called as friends  and neighbors ran to help. Our molto awesome fire and rescue squad were here in under five minutes.

Word went around the neighborhood as they brought her up on a stretcher -- Robin was conscious and could move her arms and legs. There was reason to be optimistic. This time.

 We live in such a happy place -- how can tragedy and sorrow possibly intrude? Who invited them? I sure as shit didn’t!

What? What was that you said? Something about reality? The yin and yang of all life?

Huh...interesting. Can you finger spell that for me though. I'll have to look it up.