There were a lot of random toys on the beach this past week

Due to storms brewing out in the Atlantic Ocean, it’s been a bad time for weeklong renters in the Cape Region. However, it’s been a good week for beachcombers. Strong winds and rough waves mean you never know what’s going to wash up on shore.

My family falls into that beachcomber category, which is why my wife took the kids down to Rehoboth Beach around low tide on Tuesday while I was at work. They didn’t find anything too interesting, but they did come back with dozens of beach toys, even though the beach was generally empty. There was a little bit of everything — shovels, buckets, an action figure, sand shifters and molds for sandcastles.

At breakfast the next day, we spent a few minutes trying to figure out why there were so many toys on the beach. We came up with two reasons – the toys are in the sand and being exposed, or the toys are out in the surf zone, churning away, until a storm brings them back to shore.

I reached out to Ed Hale, an assistant professor at the University of Delaware’s School of Marine Science and Policy, to see if he could help answer the question.

He said he suspected it was a combination of things — folks abandoning debris this summer and enhanced sea level rise as a function of storm activity versus sediment erosion.

Based on the data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s probe at the ferry terminal, it looks like the prevailing wind direction for Aug. 19 was east, said Hale. However, on Aug. 18, there was a lot of wind from east-northeast, which coupled with high tide, would send water up the beach with floating debris, he said.

“I wish folks would carry their toys home,” said Hale. “But it looks like your wife and kids have a good haul.”

Yes, it was a good haul, but more beach toys like these are about the last thing we need at our house.

Dewey Beach parking tag celebrates boards and dogs

A few weeks ago I was in Dewey Beach and noticed the hanging parking tag being used by the town this season is in the shape of a skimboard, and it has paw prints all over it. I stored it away in the memory bank for later use, because it’s a new take on an old policy.

Well, here I am with an explanation. I ran into Mayor Bill Stevens and his wife Janine on one of their walks around town while I was trying to get a photo of the tag hanging in the vehicle with the town’s big water tower in the background. Stevens credited Town Manager Bill Zolper with the switch.

When contacted on this pressing issue, Zolper said Dewey Beach is unique for two reasons — it’s known as the skimboarding capital of the world and as a dog-loving town. This was a new way to educate people about the town and a way for them to have a positive association with the town, he said.

Prior to being town manager, Zolper, who grew up in Dewey, worked for the FBI and as a government contractor. He said he used this association technique while stationed overseas when working with Afghans or Somalis. It’s a learning exercise, and it can be extremely helpful, he said.

The shape of the tag also makes the job easier for the parking ambassadors, said Zolper. Many vehicles can have a number of hanging tags on the mirror, but the unique board shape of Dewey’s tag means it can be identified quickly and the ambassador can move on, he said.

Let them eat cake

Last week at the Rehoboth city council meeting, something happened that I’ve never seen before, and I thought it was notable — a constituent brought in a cake for everyone to share at the end of the meeting.

Standing at the microphone during public comment, holding a yellow-frosted limoncello cake from Pasqualini’s Bakery, resident Nancy Doyle said the treat was a way for her and her husband to say, “Thank you,” to all the commissioners for their hard work and dedication to the city.

I’ve been covering small-town municipal governments for more than 20 years, and I do not remember that ever happening one time.

Joke of the Week

Apparently, Saturday, Aug. 30, is National Beach Day. According to multiple websites that curate holiday lists, it was started in 2014. I’ve never heard of it, but we’ve got a lot of beaches around here, so I thought this was appropriate. As always, send jokes to cflood@capegazette.com.

Q: Why did the beach turn red?

A: Because the seaweed.