Else what's a heaven for?

Eventually I made it to Atlantic City. This is my third visit, but my first time at the bus station, which is pretty neat. I had never noticed before that the city is one big mall, but then my long-suffering fiance whisked me back to the rental so I could change for dinner. It was my second time hanging out with his AC cousin and she is a nervous hostess, but extremely kind, like everyone in her family, and we had a lovely evening.

Tuesday we went to the beach. Jon's been going since he was a child and his son had already spent a week there, so they were dialed in, picking up beach toys, chairs, and umbrella at his ex-in-law's. I'd never been bodyboarding before and loved it: now I see why my siblings like surfing. I also read a hundred pages of my book and didn't get sunburned. At lunchtime, the hoagie shop delivered to the beach and there was a man with an ice cream cart who periodically came by. So civilized! Dinner was with Jon's aunt and uncle, who took us to a charming seafood joint that really hit the spot. What I like best about his aunt is that she so clearly loved her sister so much and tells me stories about Jon's mom: I'd always assumed his sense of humor came from his father, but learning that his mother liked corny jokes made everything make sense.

Wednesday was rainy, so bike-riding/learning plans were cancelled. Instead we visited Lucy the Elephant, which was mostly interesting as a relic of what used to pass for wholesome public entertainment. We stopped at Jagielkys Candy for host gifts and played Scrabble for the first time. (Jon trounced me.) We stopped at Cracker Barrel for dinner, where both Lucky and I were forbidden to shop.

When I was Lucky's age, I went through a phase where I was obsessed with Benjamin Franklin, so when my parents asked me where I wanted to go on vacation, I begged them to take me to Philadelphia. My mother claims they've taken me to all the tourist places in Philly, but that's a total lie. I even spent 3.5 weeks there - allegedly studying math, but also with my first Internet connection, where I discovered newsgroups, free porn, and Disney MOOs - but I'd never been to Franklin's house until my fiance took me. It was awesome. The museum about his life was great. We visited the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall and Lucky got trading cards for answering questions. He also got an earful from his libertarian father and I, bc this is the same kid who thinks everyone is a Democrat. He wanted to visit the Mint, so we did: also recommended. At this point, everyone was a bit hungry and Lucky was intrigued by the idea of a "tavern", so we went to Red Owl Dinner for happy hour-dinner.

Friday was another family day. Lunch was across the street from our hotel with the man who turned Jon into the nerd I love so much. D- is an interesting guy and I have a lot in common with him, from loving libraries to the outdoors. I hope we get to visit him regularly. We drove out to Jon's father and step-mother's house and had froyo with them. I hadn't realized froyo by the oz was a thing everywhere, and thoroughly enjoyed it, even if mine was suboptimally chosen. I also liked that we got to see them and it wasn't a formal affair.

Afterward we stopped by REI, which didn't have anything on sale that I needed (although I should buy another pair of the only outdoors pants that fit me). I was hoping to check out the tents but they had to be set up: they only had scale models on display. I believe we decided the REI Half Dome 4 is the tent we should get to go camping with Lucky; the salesman recommend the Arete 2 for our winter backpacking. From there we drove to Allentown. Going to Red Lobster as one of the adults in the family is pretty awesome: I optimized our ordering so we had exactly enough food for minimal cost AND I got a pina colada. Math + alcohol = awesome.

I had been wishing for a water park ever since Lucky's spring break: Dorney Park wasn't quite what I had in mind. The park is laid out extremely confusingly, such that we could not find the entrance to rides for which we could see the line. The map didn't describe the rides, so we couldn't tell our nervous youngster what we would encounter. Their lazy river has RULES, with lifeguards every ten feet to keep you from exiting: said lifeguards also squeak their whistles instead of, you know, telling you why they are upset. Worst of all, it's more family-oriented than Wet 'n Wild, so there few girls running around in bikinis except the ones shepharded by their fathers. I didn't know that Lucky is so scared of heights he can't handle walking up to a water slide and he couldn't communicate this until he melted down at the top of the first one. Combined with all of the above, the day was pretty much spoiled, so after the second or third time we got caught in the rain, we drove home. Well, Jon drove home: I was asleep before we left the parking lot and suddenly we were in Manhattan. Jon dropped me off at my place, bc I was losing it after a week of oversocializing.

I rejoined them on Sunday night, when Jon cooked one of his fabulous London broils. We spent Labor Day at the Queens Hall of Science. I'm glad Jon renewed his premium membership, bc that place is great. They have a camera that guesses your ancestry based on your skin color and demos with liquid nitrogen. Lucky declared he wanted to know more about flight, so we watched the sub-par demo and the 3D movie, which dovetailed nicely with my Museum of Flight visit. I loved watching Jon in the Science of Sport exhibit and I can't wait until our next visit, so we can visit the hall of science games. The next morning, Lucky's nanny picked him up at Jon's place, Jon went to work, and I went home to rest from my vacations.