Why it’s Not Called “Day in Venice”
Thanks to organizers of the Christmas in July boat parade held recently in the Wildwoods, I was reminded why, on bright December afternoons, I never see people driving around to look at Christmas lights. IT’S BECAUSE YOU CAN’T SEE THE LIGHTS DURING THE DAYTIME! Okay, technically, you can see the lights, but even if they were turned on, the lighting effect would be virtually unnoticeable.
Yes, after predicting an event that would possibly eclipse Ocean City’s Night in Venice (which, strangely enough, is held mostly at nighttime), the six or so decorated boats cruised past our house in bright sunlight, just a few minutes after 7:00 p.m. It may as well have been 7:00 a.m., what’s the difference? At least the glare on the water would have been diminished. The guests on our porch, some of whom had traveled 40 miles or so, thought that we had obviously seen the “non-lighted” division, if there were such a thing. There wasn’t, we confirmed, when the fireworks began in the Crest at 9:30. The kids next door started crying, after being promised the spectacle of boats decorated with Christmas lights. They apparently had watched 2007’s event.
Organizers apparently reasoned that in December, around the time of the real Christmas, it gets dark at about five o’clock or so, therefore surmising that a seven o’clock start would occur during total darkness. Someone apparently forgot to explain to them about the birds and the bees and the equinox.
This now leads to concerns about other events scheduled for the Wildwoods. Will a crowd turn out for the Around the Island Row on August 19th , only to see lifeguards racing along in power boats? Will the Fabulous 50’s Weekend feature songs from the 70.s? Will they start having the Friday Night Fireworks at noon? I suppose, in Wildwood, almost anything is possible, with the exception of streets somewhat better than the roads in the Baja 500. The only way Wildwood will finally get decent streets will be if they start paving them with concrete. Maybe then they can stop the talk about the stupid high rise hotels.