The beach train takes about an hour (if you can find the right train running at the right time on the right track). I packed too much, two bags of stuff to sit on the beach for a few hours. It was a Saturday and warm, so it really wasn’t a good idea to go. I should have picked a weekday. I don’t know why I didn’t; the weather was supposed to be nice all week. But I wanted to swim and guess I didn’t care about the crowds. Someone told me that sharks don’t live that far north in the Atlantic. I think I made myself believe that. It’s not true and I knew it and I think most people know that. Nobody was really swimming and the water was cold but I was fine. I went out farther than anyone. I ate some ice cream at some point that tasted like Dairy Queen so I was a little disappointed. I expected higher-quality ice cream and who knows why? I rode the Ferris wheel. I bought a puppet from a woman and she gave me a small stuffed thing in the shape of a pile of shit. I asked her about puppet making. She didn’t know anything about it. I bought some red linen pants and some teenagers told me that I’m a hippie. They did a better job at defining my identity that I ever could. They did it so quickly.