By Bill Quain
It’s an interesting life to be a blind runner on the Ocean City Boardwalk. As many of my readers know, I train for the annual Ocean City Half Marathon (13.1 miles) by running with either a human guide or with my guide dog Trudy. And my favorite place to run is on the boardwalk. In the summer, it’s often too hot for Trudy to run with me (and too crowded on the “boards.”) While I sometimes run with a sighted runner to guide me, my favorite guide is my wife, Jeanne, who rides a bike, wearing a bright, fluorescent “Guide” vest.
I can hear you all saying, “But Bill, if you are blind, how does a bright vest help you?”
Good question! Very few people are totally blind. Most of us have a little sight. If I’m right off the rear wheel of Jeanne’s bike, and we work as a finely tuned team, we can do it.
But how we do the running isn’t the subject of this week’s column. I wanted to talk about the things we hear – because they are so interesting. And anyone who is up on the boards can enjoy the same experience.
Have you ever heard these things?
Jeanne and I created a list of our “Top 10” favorites. Here they are, with commentary.
Note: These aren’t six-word conversations, and I didn’t want to change them. They are presented just as we heard them as we passed by the people saying them on the Boardwalk.
- “We have enough beer to get through today.”
We heard this in passing today. The guy who said it sounded quite concerned. Did anyone get his address?
- “I have a sixth-grade prep to do…”
We heard this at almost the same time as the beer guy, but you’ll be happy to learn it was another person who said it. (Although, teaching sixth grade could drive a person to drink!)
- “There’s not a lot of people who live that kind of life…”
Okay, we have a few questions about this one. Are you talking about people who live a fantastic life, a life of crime, or who have become a hermit? If you were the person who said this, please email me! I want to know who you know.
- “What’s going to happen to the kids if something happens to me?”
They’ll probably be fine. But, from all the television commercials we’ve seen lately, you can get life insurance for as little as $9.95/month. Oh, and one more piece of advice: Don’t go swimming after eating a heavy lunch.
- “So many memories…”
Jeanne told me that this was spoken by an older person as she looked out at the beach. Whoever you are… God bless you! We hope all those memories are good ones. We hope you make more of them!
- “These chicken tenders are the best chicken tenders I’ve ever had.”
This was said by a young surfer to no one in particular as he was grabbing a bite next to his board. And I’m going to sneak in another quote here since it’s also food-related: “It’s ice cream!” This was gleefully said by a 3-year-old holding a large Kohr Brothers vanilla cone with sprinkles. (Actually, it was hard to understand either of these two remarks, because the chicken finger eater’s mouth was full, and the ice-cream eater’s brain was frozen.) You gotta love the “Boardwalk Diet.” We hope they washed it down with some pizza!
- “I told them I was going to put my money…”
Where? We heard this as we were heading north, and the person speaking was headed south. I guess we’ll never know.
- “Are you a musician? You have the hair for it.”
Jeanne heard this as we passed the 7th Street Surf Shop, where a group of kids had gathered for lessons. It was asked by the surf instructor Matt, who is a great musician himself. You can catch him at The Point in Somers Point on Sunday evenings.
- “I dropped the coffee…”
Okay, I’ve heard of people spilling the coffee, but you dropped the coffee? On whom?
- “You guys are doing great. Keep it up.”
People will say things like this to Jeanne and me all the time. As they run past us, we often hear, “You are so inspirational.”
I do appreciate their encouragement, but I often think to myself, “I wonder if I would be so inspirational if I was passing you!”
Three years ago, in the O.C. Half Marathon, I actually passed a group of runners, and one of them said, “Oh no! Even the blind guy is passing me.” I got a lot of satisfaction out of that one!
Okay, now it is your turn!
Here is your assignment, Shore Local readers. Get up on the Boardwalk and keep your ear to the ground! (Actually, that would be kind of dangerous up there. If you do, wear a helmet!)
Start listening to what is going on around you. There are thousands of people all living their own lives, but you can get a small peek into their personal moments just by listening. Send your snippets to bill@quain.com. I’ll share them with the readers, and we’ll have a laugh, a cry, or a memory together.
As I say each week, “I’ll see ya in the papers!”
Bill is a Professor in Stockton University’s Hospitality Management Program. He is the author of 27 books, and a highly-respected speaker. Even though he is almost totally blind, Bill is a long-distance runner and runs the Ocean City Half Marathon each year. He lives in Ocean City with his wife Jeanne, and his Guide Dog Trudy. Visit www.billquain.com or email him at bill@quain.com.
