(Author Note: This is the twelfth story in a series. The characters and situations were introduced in the episode:
Camp Torowa Falls 1964 - 01: A Fair To Remember
Read that episode first!) Then read episodes 2 thru 11 before reading this one.
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It was raining hard and steadily on Friday morning. A storm had come through late Thursday night and showed no signs of abating soon. As the two friends prepared to go downstairs for breakfast, Jerry expressed a certainty that his tent would have been able to stand up to the storm if the camp out had concluded as scheduled. Corey agreed, but was grateful that they didn't have to break camp and trudge home through the steady rain carrying all their gear.

"Can you imagine all the whining Arnold would have done?" said Corey.

"Quite easily," said Jerry. He continued in an imitation of Arnold's whiny voice, "I'm wet! This is heavy!"

The two friends shared a laugh. Corey said, "I would purely love to have been a fly on the wall when Arnold was getting it last night."

"Me too!" said Jerry. "I still can't believe that the parade that came through here last night was gonna visit Dave, Dale and Clint's families too. Those guys already got spanked by us."

"I dunno," said Corey. "Maybe they were just gonna talk to their families."

"Sure, Corey. How often does that happen?"

"You're probably right," said Corey. "At least Mrs. Serfass realized that the whole mess wasn't entirely the fault of the fort defenders."

"True," said Jerry, as he rubbed the seat of his khaki shorts, "I'm just glad we didn't get that third paddling."

"Me too!" said Corey, rubbing his still-sore bottom through the seat of his shorts.

Although Jerry and Corey had not been grounded, the rain kept all three kids inside on Friday morning. They were all scheduled for doctor appointments Friday afternoon starting at 2 PM. Corey's Mom and Dad were both working Friday morning, but would be coming home at lunch time. At breakfast the kids had been informed there would be a family meeting immediately after lunch.

"I wonder what the meeting will be about?" said Jerry.

"I dunno," said Corey. The two boys were laying side by side on their bellies on the living room floor watching television. A Philadelphia station was playing the somewhat less than classic movie sequel Son of Kong.

"Duh!" said Becky, who was seated on the sofa reading the latest issue of 16 Magazine, which featured The Beatles on the cover. "We're obviously gonna be discussing the camping schedule."

"What's to discuss?" said Jerry. "We leave for camp next Wednesday."

"You bozos leave for camp next Wednesday," said Becky in her most infuriatingly superior tone of voice, "My camping session starts on Sunday."

"Since when?" said Corey.

"Since always!" said Becky. "You guys never bothered to ask when I was leaving."

"But last year your camp session started and ended the day before mine," said Corey.

"That was last year," said Becky, still sounding smug.

"So what are we gonna do between Sunday and Wednesday?" said Jerry.

"I guess we'll all find out after lunch," said Becky.

"I guess," said Corey. Becky went back to reading her magazine, and the boys went back to watching the movie.

A few minutes later the title character of Son of Kong appeared on the screen for the first time.

"Wow!" said Jerry," He's a big one!"

"Not nearly as big as his daddy!" said Corey. "And he's... blonde?"

"Blonde? Are you telling me that came out of Fay Wray?" said Jerry. "All I can say is - 'ouch'!"

Corey started laughing uncontrollably, but Becky said, "Jerry, you are incredibly disgusting!" She stormed out of the room in a huff and Corey heard her running up the back stairs.

When Corey finally stopped laughing hysterically and got his breath back he said, "Thanks for getting rid of her, buddy. That was a good one."

Corey hated waiting rooms. It always meant you were about to see the doctor or the dentist, which were never pleasant experiences. But as bad as the dentist was, at least his waiting room had magazines for adults. Old magazines, to be sure, but you could always find Sports Illustrated, or some kind of car magazine.

Despite being a teenager Corey had still not graduated to the regular doctor his parents saw. So he and Jerry found themselves sitting in the crowded waiting room of Northampton Pediatric Associates with Becky and Mom. Most of the reading material was along the lines of Highlights for Children and other magazines for little kids, along with half-completed coloring books. Becky was thumbing through one of the dog-earred coloring books, while Mom and Jerry were huddled over some forms that needed to be filled out for Jerry, who had never been a patient there before.

Left with nothing to read, Corey let his mind wander. The family meeting after lunch had been interesting. A small riot had broken out when he and Jerry had been informed that they would be staying with Walt Eckert and his family while Mom and Dad took Becky up to her camp on Sunday. The chaos ended only after the boys had been assured that Arnold would be heading home Saturday morning - they wouldn't have to see him again that year. Corey prayed that he'd never lay eyes on the little creep ever again. He didn't think he could stay out of jail for murder if he did.

As Becky was called in for her examination, Corey contemplated the fact that he liked Walt's parents - Uncle Jim and Aunt Claire. He often stayed with the Eckerts when his own parents went away for a weekend on their own. So normally the idea of him and Jerry staying over at Walt's house for a couple of nights would seem quite routine.

The really weird part about this situation was that the Eckerts were leaving for their weeklong summer vacation in Wildwood, New Jersey on Saturday afternoon. And yes, Corey and Jerry were going with them. This news caused another minor riot until the boys were assured that Corey's parents would be picking them up in Wildwood and driving them up to Camp Torowa Falls on Wednesday as scheduled.

So Corey sat there and thought about this ridculous turn of events and the insanity of adults in general until he was called in for his examination. A nurse routinely measured Corey's height, weight, blood pressure, pulse and temperature. Then he was left to wait for a doctor to give him the main examination.

As he undressed in a private examination room, Corey wondered which doctor he would get. Northampton Pediatric Associates had three physicians on staff: Phillip Ackerman, MD., Michael Delany, MD. and Regina Gerbasitz, MD. All three doctors were fully qualified pediatricians and for routine matters like camp, sports or school physicals, you got whichever doctor became available next to take your case.

Corey liked Dr. Gerbasitz. She was the youngest of the doctors on staff and fairly attractive, at least as far as Corey was concerned. He didn't mind being examined by her when he had a cold or something. But when it came time to "turn his head and cough" like it would today, Corey found it slightly less embarrassing to have a male doctor grabbing him by the balls.

There was no clock in the examination room and Corey had forgotten his watch at home, so he had no idea how long he sat on the paper-covered examination table in his briefs before the door opened and Dr. Ackerman walked in.

"Hello, Corey," said Dr. Ackerman. A tall, dark haired but greying man, Phillip Ackerman, MD. was the founder of Northampton Pediatric Associates. Dr. Ackerman had been Corey's pediatrician since the Lane family moved to Northampton when Corey was four years old. Dr. Ackerman's rapidly expanding practice - caused by the "Baby Boom" of the 1940s and 50s - forced him to add Dr. Delany to the staff six years ago and Dr. Gerbasitz two years ago.

"What's up, doc?" said Corey. Dr. Ackerman chuckled, despite the fact that Corey had used that joke on him nearly every time they had met in the past nine years. Corey got along well with Dr. Ackerman, and the two still chatted a bit whenever the opportunity presented itself.

But the clinic was extremely busy that day, so Dr. Ackerman moved right along with the examination. Corey's eyes, ears, mouth and throat were quickly examined. His nose, broken by Joey Graham at camp the previous summer, had healed up long ago. As Doc Moseley had predicted, Corey did not look like a boxer with a losing record.

Corey winced at the coldness of the stethoscope on his bare skin as his heart and lungs were checked. The room seemed fairly warm - how could the stethoscope be so cold? Eventually there was only one part of the examination left. "Okay, Corey," said Dr. Ackerman, "let's get your undies off."

"Oh, boy!" said Corey unenthusiastically as he hopped down off the table and stripped off his underwear.

"Let's just get this over with," said Dr. Ackerman as he slipped on a rubber glove. "You know it has to be done." Soon he had grabbed Corey at the appropriate place. "Turn your head and cough."

Corey complied, not able to believe how casual Dr. Ackerman was about having another guy's balls in his hands. Corey wondered how often Dr. Ackerman did this in a day. Probably fairly often, particularly when sports seasons or summer camping sessions were getting under way.

Corey always remembered how stunned he had been the first time Dr. Ackerman asked him to "turn his head and cough" - probably when Corey was around the age of five or six. Doctor or not, Corey couldn't believe the man was touching him "down there", and the request sounded totally insane. What did turning your head and coughing have to do with your balls? But even at that tender age Corey instinctively realized that it was a bad idea to argue with a crazy person who had you by the balls, so he quickly complied, as he had every time since.

"Are you okay, Jerry?" said Becky as they drove home from the doctor's office.

"I'm fine," said Jerry. Despite this reassurance, it was clear to everyone in the car that he had been upset by something. Whatever it was must have happened at the doctor's office.

Corey decided to let it rest and try to get Jerry to talk about whatever was bothering him later. The rain had ended, although the sun had yet to come out. Corey wondered if they would be able to go to the municipal pool one more time - apparently they were leaving for Wildwood in less than 24 hours.

Alas, it was not to be. Although Jerry and Corey were not officially grounded for the Fort Hockendaqua fiasco, they were kept too busy packing the remainder of Friday to go swimming or visit their friends.

At one point Corey tried to phone Doug Kleckner, but he was told by Doug's mother that Doug wasn't allowed to speak to him until Corey returned from camp in August. So much for finding out how the others made out when the Driesbachs and the Serfasses visited the previous night. When Corey related this conversation to Jerry, his friend pointed out that it didn't take much imagination to figure out what had happened at the other homes the previous night - sore asses all around.

Corey did eventually manage to coax the reason for Jerry's grumpy attitude out of his friend as they packed the camping equipment out in the garage. Jerry had lost the doctor lottery and drew Dr. Gerbasitz for his camp physical. Not only had the young female doctor given Jerry the old "turn your head and cough" treatment, but when his briefs were down she had noticed the bruises on his backside from Thursday night's double paddling.

Dr. Gerbasitz asked Jerry a lot of detailed questions about the paddling, as well as what he had done to deserve to be beaten so badly. All this while Jerry stood there naked and blushing.

Corey could see where that kind of thing would embarrass anyone, but somehow he could tell that his friend was holding something back - something even more embarrassing. The only thing Corey could think of was... "Jerry... you weren't 'at attention' down there while all this was going on, were you?"

Jerry's face turned cherry red and he turned away from Corey in shame. "Yes!" he hissed angrily. "How did you know?"

"Just a lucky guess," said Corey. "You'd never had that kind of exam from a woman before, had you?"

"I never had any kind of medical exam from a woman before!"

"Not even a school nurse?"

"Nothing like that!" said Jerry. "I've only seen the school nurse for minor bruises from gym class - stuff like that."

"Oh, right," said Corey. He suddenly remembered that Jerry always got a boner when the subject of spankings came up. He decided to let it drop.

Corey couldn't believe how quickly he and Jerry went from wondering how they were going to spend their last weekend together in Northampton to being packed and climbing into the Eckert family vehicle - a 1963 Chevy Impala station wagon - for the trip to the Jersey shore. At least Arnold had been returned to his own family, so it was Uncle Jim and Aunt Claire (who insisted that Jerry use those names) along with Walt, Jerry and Corey who piled into the station wagon with all their luggage just after lunchtime on Saturday and drove off down 7th Street with Corey's parents waving goodbye.

Corey almost said something when Uncle Jim drove past the Route 309 cloverleaf on Route 22. Corey's Dad always took Route 309 south to Philadelphia. In fact Uncle Jim took the next exit - the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. As they pulled away from the toll booth, Corey finally spoke up, "Do you always take the turnpike to Philadelphia, Uncle Jim?"

"Of course, Corey," said Uncle Jim, "It's the fastest way. How does your Dad do it?"

"He always takes Route 309," said Corey. "Of course, we usually stop in Philadelphia to visit some of my Dad's family, even when we're heading down to the Jersey shore."

"I see," said Uncle Jim. "Do any of your Dad's relatives live north of Philly?"

"Yeah," said Corey. "Some of them live as far north as Ardmore."

"That makes sense, then," said Uncle Jim.

"Is Ardmore along the Main Line?" said Aunt Claire.

"Yep," said Corey.

"What's the Main Line?" said Jerry.

"The Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad," said Corey. "It runs from Philadelphia to Harrisburg."

"Your Dad's relatives live right along the railroad tracks?" said Jerry.

"No, Jerry," said Aunt Claire. "The Main Line also refers to a group of communities that were built along the railroad main line. Some of Corey's relatives live in those communities."

"Kind of like the upper class suburbs of Philadelphia," said Walt.

"Basically, yes," said Aunt Claire.

"I knew your family was rich, Corey," said Jerry.

"Well, yes and no," said Corey. "My parents aren't rich, but some of my Dad's relatives are doing pretty well."

"Right," said Jerry, in a disbelieving tone of voice. Corey just shrugged his shoulders - it wasn't worth arguing about.

Corey certainly wasn't going to tell Jerry about a few facts he had worked out for himself over the years of visiting with his father's relatives. Corey figured out that his father had some kind of falling out with his family - probably when he was a teenager. This helped explain why William Lane - the youngest child in his family - went to Penn State - a public university - through the ROTC program while all of his older siblings got free rides to places like Princeton, Yale, or the University of Pennsylvania.

Whatever the reason for the rift, Corey knew that his mother's family treated his father better than most of his father's own family did. Corey had never figured out why his father insisted on visiting his relatives so often despite the cool reception he received from them.

Nearly two hours later they were stuck in slow traffic southbound on the Schuylkyll Expressway - a major raised highway that ran along the west bank of the Schuylkyll River north of Philadelphia.

Jerry stared at the river flowing next to the highway. "How do you pronounce the name of this river again?"

"The locals pronounce it 'SKOO-kull'," said Corey. "I think the name is Dutch for 'hidden river'."

"I thought the English settled Philadelphia originally before the Dutch and Germans started arriving?" said Jerry.

"The English settled Philadelphia," said Corey, "but the Schuylkyll River was first discovered by a Dutch explorer. I forget his name."

Soon the southbound traffic was stop and go, while cars roared by at highway speeds on the northbound side of the highway. "The traffic along here is always terrible," said Aunt Claire.

Corey chuckled and said, "My Dad says this is one of the most dangerous stretches of highway in the whole country."

"Did he get that from insurance industry sources?" said Aunt Claire.

"Partly," said Corey. "But everybody in Philadelphia knows it. The locals call it the 'Sure-Kill Expressway'."

Jerry and Walt laughed at that. Walt said, "really?"

"Yep," said Corey.

"That's fairly graphic," said Uncle Jim.

"But true," said Corey. "That the locals call it that, I mean. I don't really think that many people die on this road. I do know that my Dad refuses to drive on it unless absolutely necessary."

"But your father grew up in Philadelphia, right?" said Uncle Jim. "So he knows all the roads around here really well."

"True," said Corey. "It's probably more to do with the terrible traffic on this road than the danger."

"Except that all this traffic is probably what makes it dangerous," said Walt.

"That's true, too," said Uncle Jim.

"I don't think anybody could get hurt badly at these speeds," said Aunt Claire as the car inched along in the stop and go traffic.

Their slow progress along the raised expressway allowed Corey to play tour guide and point out interesting sights to Jerry - and the Eckerts, who didn't know anyone who lived in Philadelphia and were basically tourists there as well.

Corey pointed out the Philadelphia Zoo,the oldest zoo in the United States. Corey had visited the Philadelphia Zoo on several occasions. He pointed out Boathouse Row, a curious collection of small structures on the eastern shore of the Schuylkyll River that housed racing shells - long narrow boats belonging to rowing teams. The Schuylkyll River played host to several major rowing competitions every year. Corey had never gone out rowing in a shell, but he had a cousin who hoped to row for the University of Pennsylvania crew team some day.

The final landmark Corey pointed out before the highway entered the city proper was the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Corey had visited the museum on more than one occasion, but he left little doubt in anyone's mind that every visit after the first had been against his will. Corey was not into art.

Corey did not tell the others the true reason he didn't care for the Philadelphia Museum of Art - it held some bad memories for him. When Corey was seven years old and making his first visit to the museum, he had decided to throw a temper tantrum because he was bored silly. He quickly found himself inverted over his father's knee while the big man's hand painted his bottom bright red. The thin trousers and underpants Corey had been wearing provided no real protection and he was quickly howling and promising to be good. It had been the most public spanking Corey had received up until that time and he always tried to avoid visiting the museum thereafter.

As they drove on the raised highway through Philadelphia on the way to the Walt Whitman Bridge and New Jersey, Corey told Jerry about the one museum in the city he was really fond of - the Franklin Institute Science Museum. This museum was named, of course, for Benjamin Franklin, the inventor, writer and statesman. Walt joined in Corey's enthusiasm for this museum as well - he had been there a couple of times, including once with Corey and his family.

Jerry was sorry that he wouldn't be able to see the Franklin Institute on this trip. Corey said he'd try to arrange for a visit next year if Jerry stayed with the Lanes for part of the summer again.

Everybody in the car cheered as they left the ramp from the Walt Whitman Bridge and saw the "Welcome to New Jersey" sign. The trip was halfway over, and the traffic would probably be a lot better the rest of the way to Wildwood.

It was well after 4 o'clock on Saturday afternoon when Uncle Jim pulled into the parking lot of the Caribbean Motel on Ocean Avenue in Wildwood Crest. Jerry learned during the drive through south Jersey all about how the resort known as "Wildwood by the Sea" was really three distinct towns located on one long, narrow barrier island. Wildwood Crest was at the south end of the island, Wildwood was in the middle, and Jerry had been able to guess where North Wildwood was located geographically. As they checked in to the motel it was obvious that the desk clerk knew the Eckerts - they had been staying at the Caribbean every summer for years.

The Caribbean was a two story motel, with a long, sweeping curved ramp that ran from the second floor down to the ground floor by the main office. The ramp looked like something out of the Jetsons. The boys were tired from the trip, but the adrenaline from being on vacation kept them going as they helped lug all the family's luggage up to their second floor room. Of course the boys insisted on dragging the luggage up the ramp, despite the fact that it was a much longer distance than the boring old stairs.

Their room was an efficiency unit with two double beds, one bathroom, and a tiny kitchen. A palm tree had been painted on the wallpaper behind each bed. These cheesy paintings were a strange echo of the obviously fake palm trees that decorated the pool area. From the second floor balcony it could be clearly seen that the Caribbean Motel pool was semi-circular, and kind of shaped like a horseshoe. Corey had absolutely no idea what a horseshoe-shaped pool had to do with the Caribbean theme of the motel.

Of course the boys were anxious to hit the beach - and the water - immediately. There were moans of disappointment when they were informed that they couldn't go swimming - in the ocean or the pool - until morning. "Look boys," said Aunt Claire, "you have many days ahead to burn yourselves to a crisp out on that beach. Tonight we have to get unpacked, go grocery shopping, and then go to dinner."

This news was met with more groans of disappointment. "Tell you what, boys," said Uncle Jim. "You help us get unpacked here. Then while we go and lay in supplies for the week, you guys can take a short stroll on the beach."

This news caused the boys to attempt to set a new land speed record for unpacking. By 5 o'clock the three friends were walking down the side street towards the beach - with strict orders to be back at the motel by 5:45. As they walked Jerry said, "I'm glad I don't live here."

"How can you say that, Jerry?" said Walt. "You just got to Wildwood - give the place a chance."

"I don't mean Wildwood," said Jerry. "I mean this street we're walking on. How would you like to have to tell your friends that you live on Buttercup Road?"

"Oh yeah," said Corey. "I can see where that might be embarrassing." They shared a chuckle as they left the end of Buttercup Road and crossed the dunes that guarded the inland side of the white sand beach. There were scattered clumps of people dotting the beach. Corey knew that the beaches of Wildwood were most crowded during the mornings and early afternoons. By this late in the afternoon most families with children had headed back to their rooms to get ready for dinner.

"So this is the Atlantic Ocean," said Jerry in a strangely subdued voice as they strolled across the wide beach towards the waterline.

"Yeah," said Walt, looking at Jerry suspiciously. "Are you trying to say you've never seen the Atlantic Ocean before?"

"Yes, Walt," said Jerry. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

"But you live in New York!" said Walt.

"I live in Elmira, New York," said Jerry. "Look at a map, Walt - it's a lot further from the Atlantic Ocean than Northampton."

"Fair enough," said Walt, "but where does your family go on vacation?"

"The last couple of years my only vacation has been at Camp Torowa Falls," said Jerry. "Before that we used to stay at a cabin up on Lake Ontario or one of the finger lakes in upstate New York - it depended on where my Uncle Owen could find the best deal."

"So you've never seen an ocean before," said Corey.

"I didn't say that!" said Jerry. "I just said I haven't seen the Atlantic Ocean before. I saw the Pacific Ocean when I was little."

"Oh, that's right!" said Corey, slapping his forehead lightly. "You were born in a Naval Hospital in California, just like me."

"That's right," said Jerry. "I have 'salt water in my veins', as they say. I was born at Camp Pendleton on October 15, 1950."

"And then your Dad died in Korea a few months later," said Walt.

"No," said Jerry, his voice a little tight, "my Dad was killed in action when I was two years, five months, and eleven days old - on March 26, 1953. He died at a place called Outpost Carson, in a battle that was part of the Nevada Cities Campaign." Jerry then proceeded to recite the dry, objective description of his father's heroic death - direct from First Lieutenant Richard Farnham's Silver Star Citation, which Jerry had memorized.

Corey had heard that part of the story before, but he had never been able to get Jerry to say what happened to his mother. What the heck! While they were on the subject anyway... after Jerry finished the Silver Star recitation, Corey asked, "How long did your Mom live after your Dad died?"

"My Mom died in Oceanside, California on June 1, 1954."

"Was it an accident, or something?" said Walt.

"Something... yeah." Jerry had stopped walking, and the others stopped to listen.

Jerry seemed to gather himself, like he was about to make a tremendous physical leap, then he said, "Mom was really depressed after Dad died. She had to take sleeping pills just to be able to sleep at night. I guess as time went by she had to take more and more of them to get to sleep. Trouble was, to kill the pain when she was awake she started drinking. One night she had too much booze and too many sleeping pills, and she never woke up in the morning."

"I'm sorry," said Corey, trying to fight back tears. He reached out and touched his friend on the shoulder.

Jerry acknowledged his friend's comforting touch, then he sighed deeply and continued in a strained voice, "I didn't realize she was dead - I was only three and a half years old. When I couldn't get her to wake up I just layed down next to her, put my arm around her, and went to sleep. When she didn't show up for work the police - or somebody - busted down the door of our apartment. And then they sent me to live with Uncle Owen and Aunt Betty in New York. I haven't seen the ocean since that day."

Corey hugged Jerry, who had started crying. Corey could feel his own tears flow down his cheeks, and could see the tears in Walt's eyes, as his cousin put a hand on the shoulder of his best friend. Thinking about it later, Corey had no idea what other people thought of three thirteen-year-old boys standing in the middle of the Wildwood Crest beach, hugging each other and crying. But at that moment he couldn't have cared less.

"Are you boys alright?" asked Aunt Claire almost immediately when they got back to the motel room.

The three boys had tried to cover up the fact that they had been crying, but it appeared that they had been less than successful. Of course Aunt Claire was a registered nurse, so it was hard to fool her about things like that. Corey was trying to think of something to say when Jerry said, "We're okay, Aunt Claire. I just told Walt how my parents died and we all got a little emotional."

"Oh, Jerry!" said Aunt Claire, rushing over to him. "I'm so sorry, dear boy." She put a hand on Jerry's shoulder to comfort him.

"Thanks, Aunt Claire," said Jerry. "But I'm okay - that all happened a long time ago."

"I know, dear," said Aunt Claire, "but still... are you sure you're alright?"

"Yes, ma'am, I'm fine," said Jerry. Aunt Claire looked closely at Jerry, but finally decided to let the matter drop.

For dinner the family walked to the Apollo Restaurant. The half-mile walk was welcomed by everyone after being stuck in the car for the long drive from Pennsylvania. As they walked Corey's curiosity finally got the best of him and he asked why they had bought groceries for the motel room if they were going to eat out.

Aunt Claire told him that they always ate breakfast in the room before going to the beach in the morning. They often ate lunch at the picnic area next to the pool. But they went out to a restaurant for dinner every night.

After dinner the family went for a stroll on the boardwalk. Jerry was forced to admit that he had never seen anything quite like it before. All the neon, all the people, all the sights, all the sounds, all the smells - it truly was a feast for the senses. The boys tried a few of the amusements and games along the south end of the boardwalk, and the entire family got some frozen custard for a snack.

As the group walked back to the motel well after dark, Jerry and Corey learned that the Caribbean Motel was about two blocks south of the southern end of the boardwalk, which ended at the border between Wildwood and Wildwood Crest. As they walked down Ocean Avenue, the row of blazing neon signs for the various motels reminded Corey a little bit of the opening sequence of Viva Las Vegas. Of course the names were different, the "Sandcastle" instead of the "Sands", but the visual effect was much the same.

The Caribbean Motel had one of the largest signs of all, the word "Caribbean" spelled out in red neon script more than 20 feet wide across the roof. And that wasn't all - wherever other motels might use white lights to illuminate corridors, balconies, or the grounds - the Caribbean used lights of various colors. These multi-colored lights cast strange color combinations across the pool and the surrounding fake palm trees.

With five people and two double beds in their room, one of the boys would have to sleep in a sleeping bag on the floor each night. Corey volunteered to do it every night, but Jerry and Walt insisted on taking turns. In fact Walt insisted on using the sleeping bag Saturday and Tuesday nights, since he would have the second bed to himself after Jerry and Corey left for camp on Wednesday morning. The other two boys were too tired to argue, so they got into bed while Walt climbed into Corey's sleeping bag.