Camp Mama 2012 Week Nine: Cycloned

I'm a little worried that Jude is such a believable and enthusiastic liar.

After many years of talk, Jimmy and I finally decided it was high time that Jude experienced Coney Island. For years and years, Jimmy has entertained the kid with his many childhood Coney Island adventures, and Jude was dying to experience it himself.

When Jimmy was a kid, a trip from his grandparents home in Brooklyn to the excitement of Coney Island was the ultimate adventure. The Cyclone roller coaster, the Steeplechase, the parachute drop - all were huge and important for him, and his tales of the place, which he's told Jude, are epic. One of Jimmy's earliest memories is of being taken by Mommy into the ladies changing room at the beach by the boardwalk there. He was about 4-years old, and was surrounded by a sea of ladies in various stages of undress. Equally titillating and scarring.

For years now, everybody's been telling us that Coney Island had gone too far downhill to visit - gangs and a bad element had taken over, so we have never been for a visit. But lately, I kept hearing that they'd fixed the place up quite a bit, and it was much, much safer, so we decided to chance it.

But of course, we could not tell Mommy this. If we'd told her we were taking Jude to Coney Island, she would have spent the entire day on her knees, clasping her rosary and downing a bottle of medicinal blackberry brandy. So we told Jude that we had to lie to Grandma, and tell her we were going to the much closer and less horrifying Adventureland. We explained that this was not a real lie, it was simply a "little white lie" to spare Grandma unnecessarily insanity, and that we would tell her the truth as soon as we got home.

The child took to this "little white lie" thing with abandon. He proceeded to tell Grandma all of the things he most loved about Adventureland, and how much he was looking forward to the trip. Then, when Mommy turned her head, he would give me a conspiratorial wink. He was really disconcertingly believable.

So the other morning, the three of us climbed in Aunt Grace's car, and headed down the Belt Parkway  to "Adventureland".

Brooklyn, here we come...

Boardwalk

World's Greatest Hot Dogs

Wonder Wheel!

 

Tilt-A-Whirl: No one actually vomited

Spook-A-Rama

 

Up in the Wonder Wheel - Please don't tell Jimmy I showed you a picture of his hair looking like this. He's very sensitive about his hair.

 

Zoltar Speaks. Zoltar says "You are destined to be very happy indeed. You've had some trouble mostly caused by inconsideration of others. But fate will be kind to you and you can expect your life to run on a smoother pattern."

 

Holy crap. The Cyclone was THE scariest roller coaster I've EVERY ridden. Wooden, rickety. Absolutely lived up to the build-up Jimmy gave it. We loved it.

 

Ruby's Bar. Yes, we took our child to a bar. Do not judge. After The Cyclone we needed to steady our nerves. And Brooklyn Brewery Lager is damned good.

So that's it. A successful family outing to Coney Island. Jimmy reveled in taking his son to a place that meant so much to him as a child. We bought Jude a Cyclone t-shirt, which he wore into the house when we got back, thus revealing the true nature of our trip to "Adventureland".

Everyone in the family was incredibly glad that we had lied to them, and spared Mommy all that medicinal blackberry brandy and Pop the headache of listening to her panic for 5 hours.

Comments

[Lynn]

I have to think Mommy would have enjoyed a little of the medicinal brandy and praying (mostly the brandy) but I'm glad you all played it smart and took Coney Island by storm. Enjoy!

[Arnebya]

Hm. Being able to lie well does come in handy in some instances. Perhaps we should commission Mommy with medicinal brandy to pray for the mama of teen Jude, though?

[Michele]

It is so great that Jimmy could share a terrific memory with Jude and that it was still terrific.

[Elizabeth Aquino]

I love the vintage-look photos -- and I'm impressed yo
u went on the Cyclone! The last time I went to Coney Island was January 1995 - I was eighteen months pregnant with Sophie and needed to see the beach!

[Jan's Sushi Bar]

Don't you dare call that sweet boy a liar - he is the child of ACTORS, and just using the talent he's inherited from his marvelously gifted parents.

Perspective, my friend, is everything.

[Kendra]

How fun! And the pictures look awesome!

[mommylisa]

Awww. I was worried there for a minute. So cute.