{Avalon, NJ – June 1985}
Early the next morning, Lisa again headed off to work on her bike. The sun was rising as she crossed over Ocean Drive, the main thoroughfare that ran the island's entire length. This historic roadway, with its numerous bridges, was part of a fifty-mile span that connected the coastal islands scattered between Atlantic City, located to the north of Seven Mile Island, and Cape May, located at the southernmost point of New Jersey.
After zigzagging past the recreational park on 8th Street, Lisa turned right onto Avalon Avenue and headed toward the Community Hall located on 30th Street. She then locked her bicycle to the public bike rack outside the popular gathering place. From there, she walked a short distance on the town’s oceanfront boardwalk and arrived at the Fishin’ Pier Grille just as the front door opened. This small eatery was very popular with the local residents, as it offered delicious food, amazing views of the beach, and an ever-present island breeze that provided refreshing relief on hot summer days.
“Good morning, Lisa. Grab an apron and take care of those two customers,” said the grille’s owner. Much to Lisa’s surprise, her two brothers stood by the front service counter with huge grins on their faces.
Wayne greeted his sister by saying, “Excuse me, ma’am, can we have a table with a good breeze?”
“Wow, what a surprise! I can’t believe that you two got up this early.” Johnny explained that Grandpa dropped them off since he was heading down town for a Lions Club breakfast meeting that morning.
“Well, I’m happy to see you,” said Lisa. “You are definitely my first customers today!” After introducing her brothers to her coworkers, Lisa walked the boys to a small table by an open window and took their orders.
“We’ll have two large colas, two egg and cheese sandwiches, and two sticky buns, please!” said Wayne.
“Yeah, and if you’re nice to us, we’ll even give you a big tip,” added Johnny.
With that, the three siblings laughed at the joke, then Lisa moved on to assist the other customers.
The boys not only loved their tasty breakfast but also enjoyed watching dozens of early risers walking and jogging along the boardwalk. When they finished eating, the boys said goodbye to their sister and started back to the house. As Lisa cleaned off their table, she could not help but think how impressive and surprising it was that her younger brothers had left her a tip. Reflecting for a moment, Lisa thought, “They’re really not so bad.”
When the boys arrived at their grandparents’ house, they immediately put on their swimsuits and grabbed their water polo ball and caps, then headed to the large lagoon, where they placed the floating goals into the calm water.
The lagoon was protected on three sides by the bulkhead and dock. This formation unintentionally created a perfect saltwater playing field for the boys to practice their beloved aquatic sport without interference from the strong bay currents and waves.
At the Jersey Shore, the coastal waters rise and fall approximately every twelve hours, resulting in two high tides and two low tides each day. The changing water depth means that tidal waters are always on the move.
Over the next hour, the boys practiced passing and shooting the ball. They used their legs to perform the important eggbeater-style kicking motion, which enabled them to stay afloat and keep their heads high above the water's surface. They had learned the proper treading and throwing techniques at their spring practices back at home.
Recently, their water polo coach informed Mark and Liz that the boys had really improved throughout the season. He recommended that Wayne and Johnny continue training over the summer. “I’ll be counting on the boys to help us win the league championship next season!”
While in the lagoon, Wayne said, “This sure beats homework!” He then swam using a modified front crawl stroke toward the floating goal, where Johnny was waiting to defend the net. As Wayne stroked, the ball floated between his arms and just in front of his chin. He quickly moved along the surface toward his target. When he was five yards in front of the goal, Wayne shouted, “Here it comes.” He then scooped up the ball with his right hand and kicked simultaneously with his legs. This motion helped to raise his body well above the water's surface, enabling him to throw the ball with great speed at the net.
In response, Johnny reached to his left to try to block the rocketing ball. He was relieved when the ball hit the goalpost instead of his hand.
The yellow ball then deflected toward the bulkhead, and the boys raced after it before suddenly stopping.
“Check it out,” said Wayne as he pointed at a large turtle that was swimming next to the ball.
“Cool,” said Johnny.
As the boys continued toward the ball, Wayne looked up and said, “Wow, look at the big gap in the wood,” gesturing to the damaged bulkhead. “I guess this is what Mr. Bloomfield and Grandpa were talking about the other day. It looks like an entrance to a cave! I bet I can squeeze inside.”
As Wayne tried to cram his body through the nine-inch-wide gap, Johnny opined, “You’re too big, Wayne. We’re gonna need Grandpa’s crowbar to widen the entrance. Can you see anything inside?”
Wayne responded, “No, it’s too dark, and the tide is too high. We can come back later when it’s low tide. We’ll need to bring the crowbar and a flashlight. Then we can really check out this cool cave!”
A short time later, Mark called out to the boys. “Let’s go pick up the motor at the Avalon Anchorage Marina. We can be there and back in no time. It’s at the end of 21st Street on the bay.”
Within minutes, the boys and their dad drove to the marina. After parking on the side of the road, Mark asked his boys to look across the bay to a landmass located four hundred yards away.
“For over fifty years, there was a bridge that crossed the bay at this location,” said Mark.
Johnny asked, “Where did it go?”
“About twenty years ago, the town leaders decided to dismantle the old 21st Street bridge since it was too small to handle the large volume of traffic. But not before the causeway was redirected and a new bridge was built at 30th Street.”
Wayne responded, “Wow, Dad. You sure know a lot of stuff about the island. Uh, can we please get the trolling motor now?”
Mark and the boys then headed to the marina store, where they purchased the boat motor, first aid kit, and emergency flare.
After returning back to their grandparents’ home, the excited brothers expressed their sincere appreciation to their dad, who responded, “No problem. Now, you’re ready to start crabbing. And if you do a good job, you can start your own crab charter business. But remember, the maximum capacity of the dinghy is three occupants. So only one paying customer at a time!”
The boys didn’t think their dad’s joke was funny. To them, this was serious business. Their goal was not to take any other passengers on the boat; rather, they aimed to catch as many crabs as possible so that they could sell them to Mr. Sharp.
Addressing his dad, Johnny said, “After we pay you back, we plan to put our earnings into the bank.”
Wayne added, “And we’re gonna use a little for having fun too!”
“OK, boys, that’s great. I wish you all the best in your new crabbing business this summer.”
The brothers truly believed that they were going to be successful crabbers even before their first crabbing venture. Fortunately, Grandma and Grandpa sat down with the boys and provided some important tips to ensure that their maiden voyage would be productive.
Grandpa instructed, “OK, boys. To be successful crabbers, you will need two basket traps, a large plastic bucket, crabbing nets, and hand lines with weighted clips.”
Grandma added, with a secretive expression, “I’m also giving you two our top-secret bait recipe. We guarantee that this bait will attract many blue crabs into your nets.” She then handed the boys a small plastic container filled with small chunks of chicken meat, hot dogs, and cat food!
After seeing the boys’ looks of surprise, Grandma said, “Don’t worry, your grandpa and I have been using this bait recipe for many years, and it has never failed!”
Grandpa continued, “The crabs generally like to hang out in the shallow dark bay waters and near the muddy bottoms of the marshlands. After you catch the crabs, make certain to place them inside the empty bucket and lay a wet towel on top of the bucket to keep them cool and moist.
They will still have ample air. Remember, Mr. Sharp won’t purchase the crabs unless they are healthy and alive.”
Johnny asked, “Shouldn’t we fill the bucket with water so that the crabs can swim?”
Grandpa explained that if they did that, the crabs would quickly use up the oxygen in the water and would suffocate. The boys trusted their grandpa’s advice and assured him that they would follow his instructions.
“Don’t worry, Grandpa. We’ve got this under total control,” said Wayne with a mischievous grin.
After a quick boat trip to a secluded area of marshland situated between Dylan’s property and the Townsends Inlet Bridge, the boys entered a narrow channel that meandered into the marsh and began crabbing. Within two hours, the boys had successfully enticed fifteen large crabs to visit their bucket!
The excited boys returned to the house with their bucket of crabs. After thanking Grandma and Grandpa for their help, the boys asked their dad if he would drive them to Sharp’s Fruits & Vegetables so they could sell their catch.
After greeting the boys and inspecting their crabs, Frank Sharp said, “Not bad, boys. At thirty cents per crab, I owe you $4.50.”
Before departing, Mark commented, “Wait here, boys. I’ll be just a minute. Your grandma asked me to pick up a few items for tonight’s dinner.” Mark then selected a dozen ears of fresh Jersey corn and several large tomatoes.
The brothers stood a few yards from the stand and talked about how they wanted to continue exploring the cave. Unknown to the boys, Frank Sharp was standing behind the nearby checkout table and overheard some of their comments.
This did not sit well with longtime customer Prudie Graystone, who wanted to pay for her selections. Noticing that Mr. Sharp was seemingly daydreaming, the elderly woman coughed loudly in an effort to get his attention. When he turned toward her, she quickly shoved her basket of fruits and vegetables into Frank’s arms and said, “Well, it’s about time, Mr. Sharp. I’m in a hurry!”
After returning to the Jeep, the boys gave their dad the money they earned, and Johnny said, “According to my calculations, we still owe you $24.50.”
Mark thanked the boys for being responsible and added, “Nice job, guys.”
Unfortunately for the boys, by the time they returned to the house, it was too late to go back into the water. Knowing that crabbing and swimming were done for the day, the boys decided to get things ready for exploring the cave the next day. After gathering their snorkel gear, waterproof flashlights, and two crowbars, Wayne said, “I’m starving. Let’s see if dinner is ready.”
Later, while in their bedroom, the boys discussed their plans for exploring the cave. After agreeing that they were prepared, the two exhausted brothers quickly fell asleep.