Last Dance, from the Target's notebook.

Conclusion of the dance. Close of DST, 65th Street OCMD. 11/1/2018

I'm so glad you came

I'm so glad you remembered

To see how we're ending our last dance together  

-The Cure

   We called for an extra early session this week. There I was, waiting on an empty street as darkness quickly descended. As I had the time, I pondered this year's "Patrol". We had enjoyed the ending of  the Last Waltz, the Last Lecture so to speak, of each previous season. But, tonight is the Last Surf...the Last Dance of the year. I couldn't help but wonder once again, will this be our last session. With each passing year change occurs, and we have ridden each year's wave no matter the length of the ride. Would this be the end or just our annual break? I had little time to examine this question as the Watts finally arrived. It was low tide again and the supply of rideable waves was limited as the darkness quickly surrounded us. LWatt and I sat back, facing into the last light of day as Wattman had to work to gain position in the lineup. Conditions were semi-clean to choppy with winds out of the south joined by a strong northerly current. The waters of the Atlantic had now dipped into the lower 60's forcing the Wattman into the full rubber cover sans gloves. Between paddling, treading the sandy bottom, and several trips down south across the shore fronting us, Wattman managed to chisel himself a nice hitch from a rambling frontside. Even in the dimming light I snapped the ride with multiple pics, albeit grainy, that provided proof of a successful end of year session. Surprising both me and LWatt, Wattman started to call it a night and headed in. However, with this being the last session of the year we sent him back out into the murk for a little more. Eventually, the sheer obscurity of it all brought the jam to an end. It was bittersweet as we listened to the crash of the waves, pivoting west to exit the beach. For Watt, perhaps a few weekend opportunities to get wet before the water drops below 50. For me, the summer had finally ended...the dreaded winter months bearing down upon us. The next four, five months I will suffer. I can only hope that this time passes quickly and I will once again find myself with toes in the water, ass in the sand, surrounded by friends as once again the boys of summer are back in town.

   Watt had chosen an odd restaurant to celebrate the end of the season. Looking for something more upscale, but the Assateague Diner and Westside Bar was our location for tonight.

Formerly the 19th Hole, Wattman and I visited the spot several years ago. An all season local joint, I would bet no fancy pants, out-of-towners even knew the place existed. We pulled up to the bar with about five dudes who seemed to have been there for some time (dollar beer always brings in a certain crowd). An Internet jukebox provided classic rock and a well placed arrangement of TVs had what we needed...plenty of college football. While the selection of beverages was limited, being served in iced glasses got our approval. We started our order with Westside Wings, a spicy BBQ which we all seemed to enjoy. Just the right amount of sauce and steaming hot always made for a great wing.

The Grouper Tacos were about average. The piece of fish was large and well cooked, but the seasonings and fixin's were kind of bland. We finished with our continued burger obsession and got the Big ASSateague Burger which was the house specialty. Let's start by saying it was indeed big. With pepper jack cheese, ham, bacon, and fried pickles on a well cooked burger you would think it would have been the bomb. But with no mustard or ketchup (or onions for me) offered, it was lacking that special something to take it over the top. Regardless, it was well cooked, juicy, with enough of a party for your mouth that it was worth the gamble. Having finished the food and AC/DC on the 'box, we called it a night and paid our very reasonable tab. Good food with great pricing on everything. A surprise overachiever well deserving of another Patrol drive-by. As for the near future, the "Standard Time" Crew Assessments will begin.

THE RATINGS-

Westside Wings: B

Grouper Tacos: C+

Big ASSateague Burger: B

Beer: B-

Atmosphere: C+

Value: B+

Overall Score = 2.75