Stopping by my old stomping grounds of Lake Ronkonkoma for a little stroll.
First stop is a small new park area where the public can stop and park their car for a view of the lake. There is a sign dedicating the area to Larry Holzapfel, father of my late Best friend Kevin. Larry ran a used bookstore at this very spot.
The sign is in the shape of an opened book with the lake as the background. When the county took over the private property, they let the book store stay opened for years, until they didn't.
Mr Holzapfel was a popular figure in the town, being the town crier as well as a real estate agent.
In the early part of the twentieth century this part of the lake was populated with up-scale homes. The little book store was originally a beach house or shed used by the wealthy home owner who lived across the street.
A short stroll away is a new sculpture of a Indian Princess (Lady of the Lake) carved into a 200 year old European Copper Beech tree.
A lot has changed since I was a kid at the lake. There use to be a dozen public and private beaches to enjoy in the summer time. Now I think there is only one where swimming is allowed. The county has bought up most of the vacant land bordering the lake to help preserve it from pollution.
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