dinos44yap

@@@@@ So of course I struck off again the following afternoonNo set goal; no New Year's resolution; no Numbers GameJust a guy strolling on the beach, sometimes veering close enough to the mild run of the waves to scatter the peeps aloft in a smutchy cloudSometimes I'd pick up a shell and put it in my pocket (in a week I'd be carrying a plastic bag to store my treasures in)When I got close enough to make out the heavyset guy in some detail - today wearing a blue shirt and khakis, almost 184 certainly barefoot - I once again turned and headed back to Big PinkBut not before giving him a wave, which he returned That was the real beginning of my Great Beach WalksEvery afternoon they got a little longer, and I saw the heavyset man in his striped beach chair a little more clearlyIt seemed obvious to me that he had his own routine; in the mornings he came out with the old lady, pushing her down a wooden tongue of decking that I hadn't been able to see from Big PinkIn the afternoons he came out on his ownHe never took off his shirt, but his arms and face were as dark as old furniture in a formal homeBeside him, on his table, were a tall glass and a pitcher that might have held ice water, lemonade, or gin and tonicHe always waved; I always waved back One day in late January, when I had closed the distance between us to not much more than an eighth of a mile, a second striped chair appeared on the sandA second glass, empty (but tall and terribly inviting), appeared on the tableWhen I waved, he first waved back and then pointed at the empty chair 185 "Thanks, but not yet!" I called "Hell, come on down!" he called back"I'll give you a ride back in the golf cart!" I smiled at thatIlse had been all in favor of a golf cart, so I could go racing up and down the beach, scaring the peeps"Not in the game-plan," I yelled, "but I'll get there in time! Whatever's in that pitcher - keep it on ice for me!" "You know best, muchacho!" He sketched a little salute"Meantime, do the day and let the day do you!" I remember all sorts of things Wireman said, but I believe that's the one I associate with him the most strongly, maybe because I heard him say it before I knew his name or had even shaken his hand: Do the day and let the day do you iii Walking wasn't all Freemantle was about that winter; Freemantle started to be about living againAnd that felt fucking greatI came to a decision one windy night when the waves were pounding and the shells were arguing instead of 186 just conversing: When I knew this new way of feeling was for real, I was going to take Reba the Anger-Management Doll down to the beach, douse her with charcoal lighter-fluid, and set her ablaz