O.C. Writers

By Fred Klein // 

 Sometime around 2006, I remember going on a date with my girlfriend, Roberta, to Laguna Beach. Our reservations at The Beach House were for 6:30 but we still had to wait for a table so we had drinks at the bar.

Finally, we were seated on the balcony overlooking the ocean. I ordered Mahi Mahi and Roberta ordered fried shrimp. We shared a bottle of white wine. When the food came out, we had a visitor join us, wanting to share our meal. A bird was perched on the balcony railing, waiting to get our leftovers. He wouldn’t leave until we threw him some pieces of bread. We ate and watched the sunset over the ocean, making a beautiful orange sky.

After dinner, we decided to take a walk on the path to Las Brisas restaurant and then back along the beach. The marine layer had rolled in, and it was getting a little foggy. We took off our shoes and got our feet wet in the surf. Arriving near the Laguna Hotel (where Humphrey Bogart had his clandestine meetings with Lauren Bacall), Roberta noticed some bright lights over the water. At first I thought it was a helicopter but it seemed to hover there making a low droning noise. The apparition appeared to have seven lights outlining a circular frame with one blinking light in the middle.

Roberta said, “It looks like a UFO!”

“I doubt it,” I said but was still amazed.

The lights then moved from over the ocean to directly above the beach in the back of the hotel. Staring straight up at the lights, we couldn’t tell if the UFO was large and at great altitude, or small and close by. Then the lights started changing colors except for the middle one which glowed red.

By now, we were not the only ones watching the mysterious flying object. Many people on the beach were now looking up and pointing at the lights. Some people seemed excited. Others just seemed stunned. This went on for at least half an hour. Then the lights traveled back over the ocean, moving up and down, right and left, putting on a light show.

I’ve never been one to believe in UFOs, but now, what was I to think when the bright lights appeared right before our eyes? If it were just Roberta and I, we could chalk it up to having too much wine, but what about all the other observers?

Roberta: “Do you think it’s really a UFO?”

“I don’t know.”

 Then the lights appeared to descend, getting closer and closer. It seemed like it was going to land on the beach. As it drew near we saw that what we’d imagined to be a huge aircraft was merely a small drone-like craft about three and half feet in diameter and maybe a foot high. It was shaped like a saucer and had LED lights around its rim.

A man came out of the shadows holding a remote control. When the drone landed and the crowd realized what it was, they applauded the light show.

I rushed over to ask the man, ‘Did you build that yourself?”

He nodded. “Yes, I did.”

“Could you build me one?”

“Yes, for $1,000.”

“How long have you been flying it?”

“Several years.”

A thought occurred. “I guess that explains the recent UFO sightings off Laguna Beach.”

The man just smiled and walked away.

 

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FRED KLEIN is a member of the Southern California Writer’s Association, O.C. Writers, and Hometown Reads. He has a humorous book, Memoirs of a Road Warrior, for sale on Amazon.com. Fred writes from his experiences as a salesman, laboratory technician, food service worker, writer, drummer, and pilot. He lives in Irvine with his wife.