Back To The Playground

...Continued from yesterday:

      The next morning, Sunday, November 18, the day of my 50th high school reunion, Tom and I began the day by seeking out breakfast at a homey-looking diner we'd passed about a block down the Boulevard from our hotel,

...that had  the neatest parking lot art,

...the most gorgeous pastries in the display case that greeted one at the entry,

...and a cute interior.

    Along with the menu selections Andy's also offered a vast buffet,

...which included the creamiest-looking bread pudding, my personal weakness,

...and an omelet bar manned by a friendly chef.

     We opted for the buffet and split an enormous omelet.

      The food was fresh and fantastic, including the creamy bread pudding.

        As we left we vowed that before the day's end we'd return to Andy's to  snag ourselves some slices of those to-die-for-looking pastries.

    As my reunion didn't start until 1 pm, giving us several hours to kill, we opted to return to my old Somerton neighborhood to have a look at my elementary school, St. Christopher's,

...as well as old St. Christopher's Church, where Tom and I were married, which was no longer the church but now utilized as the parish hall.

     On a whim, I wanted to see if the playground where I spent at least part of every summer day after we moved to the New House in Somerton (See previous post) was still where it always was, on Kelvin Street behind St. Christopher's school and also behind Comely School, the public school at the corner of Byberry Road and Kelvin Street. The two schools and the playground formed three points of a geographic triangle, thus the playground was within walking distance for almost every school kid in Somerton. And walk there we all did.
         The playground was still there and in good repair,

...as were the old basketball and tennis courts,

...and the baseball diamond,

...as well as the modern art mosaic on the office building, which  I always loved  and thought made our  playground fancier than other playgrounds.

    But, alas, the playground was no longer meant for the big kids, such as I was back when the playground was my turf,

...the swings and climbing structures appearing to have been designed for young children.

    And the field and woods behind St. Christopher's through which we used to walk to the playground was gone, having been replaced by streets and houses.

Things change.