Some Weirdness Going On Here .......

Long Beach Washington is full of oddities.  Mostly the people who vacation here every summer, including me!!  There are other oddities as well, including Jake.  I remember hearing about the Alligator Boy from Florida when I was a kid.  I even saw pictures, but it was a stretch, even for a little kid to believe.

He's a world renown celebrity here in Long Beach, being the star of the Summer Festival which coincidentally is on his birthday around August 6th.  Several bands play in the park and there's a fun run on the beach, followed by a cake parade.  What could be better?

Jake didn't live in Florida long before he took up residence here at Marsh's Free Museum in 1967 for a nominal $750.  Full of the weird, cheesy and fascinating, Marsh's is a MUST stop.  Bring a pocket full of change ... you won't be sorry!

Made by high school student Zhuang Zi Zhao for his senior project, the largest pair of chopsticks in the world also reside here.  There's a carousel for the kids and bumper cars for the adults.  As I walked down the narrow street, I could imagine people here in the early 1900's enjoying the shops selling trinkets and the beautiful beach.

Even the natives come to Marsh's.  This Ford Banger race car came for a visit.  There really are lots of antiques inside, many of which are for sale, or maybe this was the owner of Marsh's ... who knows.  

The Ford made a lovely racket when he started her up to leave.  I imagine the springs ... if there even are any ... are pretty stiff.  I saw a nice big pillow on the drivers seat!!

If you're in the market, Sasquatch is up for adoption for a reduced price of $1,800.00.  I wouldn't put him in your back yard, he'd probably be full of bullet holes in no time.

Here's where the change comes into play.  These old machines still work and there are dozens of them.  For ten cents, you can play this music box which resided in a bordello in LaCrosse Wisconsin for over 50 years.  Yes I played it ...... Beautiful Dreamer came out loud and clear.  

They will tell you your weight and your fortune, or you can listen to the music played on a paddlewheel boat floating on the Mississippi River.  This one is a 1937 World Series Baseball game.  Some cost a nickel, some a dime and the expensive ones a quarter.  If you play it right, you can even swipe a knife through a hole with a crane and into your very own pocket.  I watched a few quarters go into that one before someone finally won.

Right next door is Capt. Bob's Chowder, rated pretty highly on Yelp.  Apparently whoever ate there before me has never been to San Francisco (or South to Bay City) and had REAL chowder.  

I got a large bowl and a bread stick for $7.00.  Even though it was full of clams, it was pretty tasteless.  I'd pass on this one.  

As I walked around the park, I spotted another couple of oddities.  This is the REAL Chupacabra!!  Lucky guy travels around in an Airstream trailer.  I didn't pay to see this one.  The thought of some poor mangy dog in a cage didn't sit well.

On the other hand, the Unipiper was pretty odd.  He wore a kilt, rode a unicycle, wore a Darth Vader helmet and played the bagpipes as he cycled around town.  Now tell me where you've seen THAT before!!  He was collecting money for a new Star Trooper uniform, which I suspect really goes to pay his rent.

The bands playing weren't really to my taste.  All that screaming at the top of their lungs to a drummer with no sense of beat, didn't quite sound like music ... and I LIKE loud crazy bands, like the Red Hot Chili Peppers.  The kids around were suitably dressed for the occasion with blue hair, short hair and no hair.  I was a little out of place as I wandered around getting pictures.

Since everyone else was revved up, I figured to do the same.  Everyone has their own poison ... mine is sweets.  A nice variety, don't you think?  A cherry turnover, a cherry purse, a cherry jelly donut, a very plain jane glazed donut and the coup de gras ... a Tiger Paw.  If you don't know what that is, just stop in at the Cottage Bakery and ask for one.  It's a cinnamon roll, dipped in chocolate glaze and then in maple glaze.  I'm in heaven!!!  

I won't eat them all at once, although I COULD!!!  I'm doling them out one a day ... kind of like my Xanax in order to tolerate the kids running wild though the park with no parental supervision!!   I especially like the one that screamed at the top of her lungs at the back of my rig for about 10 minutes before an adult finally noticed.  Funny, she came from the same site where the dog bite occurred.  

It's Sunday Astoria Market day (and raining), so I'm off for some veggies to counteract the indigestion from the donuts.  I'm also on a quest for Iams canned dog food.  I think I see Fred Harvey in my near future.