In the fall of 1997, on Long Beach Island in Jersey, my friends John, Jerome, and Freddy cautiously agreed to let me help them build a porch on Second Street in Beach Heaven. John knew I was mechanically challenged and still years away from memorizing and applying “lefty loosey, righty tighty” when turning a screw.
Early in the affair, one of them foolishly handed me a nail gun that I playfully discharged. The first three-inch nail flew between Freddy’s legs right near his goods, and the next one exploded past John and Jerome’s heads. Jerome said quietly but firmly, “Get the fecking thing out of his hands.” Despite my failure to assist, the guys generously added my name to the porch plaque.
I’m forever known for my lousy mechanical skills and my love for Long Beach Island.
Here are pictures from my trip there last week and one of my favorite beach related songs, “Bell Boy” by The Who.
Thomas Pryor has been featured on A Prairie Home Companion and This American Life, and his work has appeared in the New York Times. He curates City Stories: Stoops to Nuts, a storytelling show at the Cornelia Street Café on the second Tuesday of the month (next one June 12th). Check out his blog Yorkville: Stoops to Nuts.
