Lakeside

Lakeside



Summer vacation, blistering summer spray of sun over tanned skin, spreading stifling heat in an unairconditioned car, windows down, feeling the scorching breeze. It's not so relaxing sitting in the back seat when your legs have touched the steaming Corinthian leather that had been baking in the fiery sun. It was one of those smoldering, humid summer days! Ad we were o a adventure.

My best friend Rick and I were being escorted to Lakeside Amusement Park, the park that boasted that they had the world's tallest roller coaster. Really? Like when? 1947? It didn't appear to be so monstrous until after I had been securely fastened into our seats, and the cart began to move slowly up that treacherous hill. Who was laughing now? When we reached the top, I closed my eyes, threw my hands up in the air, and screamed as loud as I could. And I could scream loud! Rick screamed too, as we whooshed down one hill and began our ascent of the second hill, and repeat the whole ride again.

Afterwards, we saw two little old ladies with their blue starched hair bristling and tsk-tsking us for our dirty knees, as we ordered cotton candy, a tribute to their hairstyles. The sugar melted before I even had our first bite. After all, it is pure sugar, and now my hands were sticky to match my the knees.

We then climb aboard the ferris wheel, my least favorite, and the scariest ride, as there appears to be little to no support, and the seat just rocks, rocks, rocks, creaking, and threatening to spill us over the top so that we plunge to our certain deaths. It never happens though, and my fear is just pure adrenaline borrowed from an afternoon of joy. He begins the rocking motion until I beg him to stop. I feel weaker in his presence, my being two inches shorter. Rick and I celebrate our birthdays at Lakeside. We both were born in summer months, and the park is open until ten o' clock, with the lights illuminating the rides, and lightning bugs filling the steep warm air.

Summer. It's summer, the best time for best friends to hang out, to celebrate their tenth birthdays, eat foot long hot dogs with chili, talk about girls, how gross I think they are, how beautiful Rick now finds them. I secretly remain silent. It's a time to reminisce, a time to visit, a time to revisit.