At the beach

I remember going to Ponchatrain Beach as a child; the Zephyr and the Tilt-a-Whirl, the Penny Arcade and the free shows on the beach, learning to swim in the lake and walking and walking to get into deep enough water, and falling in love there almost all through high school.

I remember going to Canal Street to shop. We had lunch at D.H. Holmes and looked for records at Werleins. We took the bus everywhere and never felt in danger anywhere. I remember Ramblers, where we swam and rode horses and learned to dance. On some Friday nights we would cover the family dining table with newspaper and pile boiled crabs in the center. We'd eat crabs and drink beer and talk into the night. After church on Sunday we would go to a long lunch at the Friendship Inn on the Gulf Coast, or Brennan's in the quarter, or somewhere uptown.

Later, after high school, I wandered the streets of the French Quarter at night. I drank and walked and watched the nightlife. During the day I'd go to the beach to read and swim and nurse my hangover.

One summer my parents had gone to Europe and I was home alone. I met two guys from Chicago who were sunning themselves on a blanket at the beach. The three of us drove to Chicago that night and I spent a long weekend with them. My parents never found out.

Those were the New Orleans summers of my youth.