Hitting the Water with Pete, Jane, Julianna & Valerie

Since Dana and I made our visit with my brother & his family last week, every Australian I have spoken to has had the same reaction: surprise. "The beach? Near New York?"

Yep, there are a number of beaches near New York, and you can even swim at some of them! Actually, some of them are very nice. They are a bit different from Australian beaches... a bit more crowded, maybe five or six more people, but the extra humans add comic value. "My wife's bustin' my shoes, 'Coming to the beach every day!' I gotta recharge my batteries! Whayagonnado?" Real New Yorkers here, people. Even in New Jersey, there are real New Yorkers... even more fun when they are wet and covered in sand!

Jane's brother owns some jet skis, and we took them out a few times. Crazy fun, but they definitely do not feel safe. I alternated between screaming with fun and crying in fear. Pete and I got ours up to 58 miles per hour, and Pete's little girl, Valerie, wanted to take one out by herself to go "Super-fast!" Wisely, Pete didn't let her.

Back at Pete & Jane's, Julianna tried to teach me how to hula-hoop, which I have never been able to do, and still can't. We also enjoyed a few episodes of Full House. Cut. It. Out! It's not as bad as you think it would be. Except the clothes. And the same catch phrases being used every episode. Really though, even fifteen years ago, was Bullwinkle still popular?

Pictures of said visit.