Ocean Beach (OB) is a San Diego community on the coast, about seven miles northwest of downtown. The community occupies approximately one square mile north of Point Loma. It’s bordered on the north by the San Diego River estuary, separating it from Mission Beach. The Pacific Ocean borders the west. Interstate 8 starts (or ends) near the coast at Sunset Cliffs Boulevard in Ocean Beach and runs to Casa Grande, Arizona where it joins Interstate 10.

The history of OB goes back to the 1880s. Plans for development were made, but they stalled due to the difficult travel from downtown San Diego. When the Point Loma Railroad was built in 1909, development of OB became viable. By 1910, there were about 100 houses there.

In 1966, OB hosted the World Surfing Championship. It’s still a favorite beach for surfers. Also in 1966, the Ocean Beach Municipal Pier was built. It’s the longest concrete pier on the west coast at 1,971 feet. The pier is open to the public 24 hours a day. There’s a bait shop and restaurant on the pier. We like the restaurant. It’s a fun place to eat with a great view. I posted photos I took from the pier here.

By the early 70s, when I first started going to OB, it was known as a hippie counter-culture hangout. The main drag was Newport Avenue which was home to many small businesses and restaurants. One of the shops there was called The Black. It was one of the first “head shops.” The Strand Theater was located there. In the late 70s, the Strand had midnight showings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Fridays and Saturdays. To this day, the community supports local small business and opposes chain stores and restaurants.

OB still hangs on to its counter-culture reputation. There are a number of festivals held there, including a jazz festival at the foot of Newport Avenue in September and a kite festival in March. On Wednesday afternoons, two blocks of Newport Avenue are closed to traffic for a farmer’s market. The north end of the OB waterfront is known as Dog Beach. It is open 24 hours a day for dogs free of leashes.

On Mondays, I scooter Donna to her piano lessons in Ocean Beach. After I drop her off, I walk along Newport Avenue and check out the shops. Last Monday, I bought a book for two dollars at a shop that sells used books, CDs, DVDs and clothing. I also stopped at Chase Bank to make a deposit.

The bank was busy and I had to wait in line for a teller. The customers in the bank were quite diverse – from the young hippie looking girl with ripped jeans at the front of the line to the businessman in a suit to the older man directly in front of me.

The guy in front of me had that hippie burn-out look. This may not be a fair characterization, but he reminded me of Tommy Chong as Leo in That 70s Show. When his turn came at the teller, he was standing about three feet in front of me. I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop, but I couldn’t help overhearing him.

He asked the teller to give him his account balances. She printed a ticket for him. He looked at it and said, “This only shows one account.” She told him that  she wrote the other balance at the bottom. He looked at the ticket and said, “What is this? It says one-one-nine, is that a dollar nineteen?’ She told him it was one hundred nineteen. Then he asked, “What is this six oh four in front of it?” She told him it was 604 thousand. He said, “Oh…so the balance is $604,119 then.”  She said, “Yes.” He said, “Okay…good…thank you.”

It was the most improbable exchange. First of all, the guy didn’t look like he had any money. Then, he seemed completely unaware of how much money he had in the bank. He shifted from a dollar nineteen to $604,119 without any reaction. He turned and walked out of the bank.

It proves the adage “don’t judge a book by its cover.” Judging someone by their appearance can be very misleading.

Later this afternoon, we’ll be going to the San Diego Brew Project at Mission Brewery with our neighbors, Bob and Sini. They’re from Edmonds, Washington and are full-time RVers. Their son, Beau, is co-owner of the Brew Project which is a pub with over 30 local brews on tap. The Mission Brewery building overlooks the airport and San Diego Bay. We plan to be there in time to view the sunset, sample a couple of beers and have dinner.