MisterOceanCity.com

This is my story, but it could be yours…

Really, who is
Mister Ocean City?

A long time ago, there was a boy who ran out of the car carrying a present he bought with his birthday money. It was a double album. The Beach Boys, Endless Summer. The first song he tracked up was “Help Me Rhonda”. But then straight to Side 1. Surfin’ Safari, Catch A Wave, Surfing USA. The dream was growing, and it couldn’t be stopped.

Unfortunately, this boy lived 4 hours from the nearest ocean. Somehow, though, it was a plus that this boy was too young to know any better. Fast forward to the 1990’s. The boy is now on his own, and has a job at the shore.

Alexander Piela bought a house in 1997 on a radio salary, rented it every summer to help the house pay for itself.

As the years went by, Alexander had to deal with the ins and outs of refinancing, dealing with condo association issues, etc. But what seemed like an overwhelming task at first, owning and managing a house in a town like Ocean City, well, it didn’t seem as difficult.

At this point I’ll speak in first person…

For years I had been coming to Ocean City for weekends and day trips. And that translated into a week here and there. But I always wished (as I’m sure some of you do) that after all the fun, I could just walk back to my house. Somewhere in O.C. I’d be walking back to the car to drive through the traffic to drive back to wherever.

And I’d see people on their porches, or on their balconies. And I just wished I had a place of my own, just like they did. A place of my own (cue smoke machine and dreamy music) a place of my own, a place of my own…

Thankfully that day did come. I was excited and a bit apprehensive when I went to close on my house. I’m sure you can appreciate what a major thing buying a house really is. . That was in July 1997, over 25 years ago. I’ll say there were a
few difficult times, as anyone who is a homeowner can expect.

But the reward is beyond words. I went through a few mistakes of my own, learned a few things, and met some great people who really helped me along the way. Because I had a place of my own…in Ocean City.