Dull Ideas
Whose idea was it to take over the Rockaway Times in January? Rockaway is an amazing place. January in Rockaway is… interesting. We’re a beach town! And while the beach is beautiful 365 days a year, there is no question that it’s harder to appreciate its beauty in the winter months. Days are shorter, darker, and duller. The Rockaway Times exists because there’s so much going on all over this peninsula but in the dog days of winter, things seem to freeze up a bit.
Don’t get me wrong, there are still few places I would rather be. I mean, doesn’t everyone feel this way? January can’t be all that great in other places like Arizona or Puerto Rico or San Diego or Aruba or wait…
My fiancé is from Arizona. She is all Rockaway, all the time now, but those first few winters were a shell shock. “Why would anyone choose to live like this?” My only answer for that question was a truthful and empathetic, “I don’t know.” Why did people choose to make places that aren’t paradise their homes? Why have places like London and New York been the centers of the world of the past few centuries? Was it not knowing what else was out there? If the King of England knew he could have ruled from *insert beautiful tropical island here* wouldn’t he have? England even went so far as to claim these beautiful places as their own and still chose to stay in damp, cold London. New York is no better! New Yorkers are free to live anywhere in the US they want! Businesses are free to call sunny San Diego or phenomenal weather Phoenix their home whenever they so choose. It seems like people are starting to realize that now. Maybe it’s just natural for us to be a little north of Eden, but I digress.
On top everything going on (or lack thereof) in January, you have the “Dry January” crowd. Let me say loud and clear for the people in the back to hear, I am not a fan of that crowd. What is not drinking one month of the year going to do for you? And if you are going to not drink for one month, why January? Are you a masochist? Do it in July when there are a million other things to do instead. And if you do it in July, I will be sure to tell you to stop killing everyone’s vibe and do it in January when it won’t bother me!
Luckily, this is Rockaway, it does not take much looking to find a good time (only a glance at the Rockaway Good Times section in The Rockaway Times, in fact). There is nothing dull about this place regardless of the month. I don’t care how much snow we do or do not get each winter; Rockaway is Rockaway! Before you know it, Johnny strikes up the band, you have a cold beer in your hand, and it’s Memorial Day Weekend once again.
