Memories of Tybee...  Guest Columnist:  Aunt Mitzie's sister,  Miriam (Max's mom)

Postcard from the collection of Max D. Movsovitz

I remember when I was a child, Mother, Dad, Mitzie and I would go to the beach many Sundays during the summer. I would always get excited about going because I loved to go to the beach. The drive always seemed to take forever because I was always so anxious to get there.

I loved playing on the beach; we would make big "drip castles" using the wet sand. And I loved being in the ocean water--I liked swimming underwater with my eyes open; once in a while I would see a fish swim by--and what a thrill that was! Mother used to sort of fuss at me for staying underwater so much because she would look for me and couldn't find me. She would say I was underwater more than I was above the water.

I really liked to body surf, too. I used to catch a wave and ride it almost to the shore. What fun!

My dad taught me how to catch minnows (very tiny fish). I would get behind them and scoop them onto the beach with my hand. I would put them in my beach bucket that was filled with water.

When we got hungry, we would eat the picnic lunch Mother had made--usually fried chicken which was delicious.

I forgot to mention we would go to the 14th Street beach. This was the beach that a lot of my parents' friends would go to. The ladies would sit together and chat about homes, clothes, children, the hot weather, cooking, etc.

A lot of the men would play "half-rubber". This was a game played like baseball, only they would take a small rubber ball and cut it in half, and the bat was a broom handle. They would form teams and have a great time. They would buy the balls from a store called T.S. Chu's. It seemed to me like this store sold almost everything in the world. The store was a beach "landmark". Don't know if it's still there or not. (Editor's note: Yes, Mom, it was there the last time I went to Tybee. It still has that great smell, and it still had that scary-cool lady fortune-teller robot in the glass booth...)

Going to the boardwalk was a lot of fun. I would always get cotton candy there. And I would always ride the merry-go-round, too. There was a bowling alley there, too. That's where I learned to bowl.

And there was the "Brass Rail"--a night club. The grown-ups would go there and dance. I can't remember if they served food there.

Going to Tybee Island was great fun. I remember staying at the Tides Motel with my parents and my sister Mitzie for two weeks. That motel was there for years and years. I wonder if it's still there.

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