Farewell to a Season--and a Mind-Set

Finally. A real summer day to work with in Orange County--and on Labor Day, no less.

Summer stopped sputtering thunder and lightning and humidity on Monday, giving people the day off to relax, watch the major league baseball slugfest and switch gears for fall.

“I look at today with mixed emotions,” said Lt. Pat Lyons, a lifeguard at Huntington State Beach. “I’m always kind of sad to see the sun set on Labor Day. Crowds start to go away.”

Up and down the county’s coastline, lifeguards reported that the crowds already were starting to peter out.

At Seal Beach, there was plenty of towel space, even after the sun broke through overcast skies in the early afternoon.

“I’ve worked here 20 years, and this is the quietest Labor Day weekend I’ve ever seen,” said Police Officer Rick Paap. “The only thing I can think is that everyone left town for the weekend.”

Labor Day wasn’t a celebration for everyone.

Anaheim Police Officer Kahle Switzer, on duty at Pearson Park in Anaheim, talked with some homeless people about the meaning of Labor Day.

“Originally this day was created to celebrate the working class of America,” Switzer said. “But it’s ironic that I’m sitting here talking to these folks about unemployment and the state of their lives.”

David Smith and his wife, Jimmy, have been jobless and homeless for nearly three years. For them, the Labor Day holiday is bittersweet.

Jimmy Smith, who was a waitress, said she is tired of feeling lousy: “I want a job.” Even as politicians trumpet the nation’s low unemployment rate of 4.5%, Jimmy Smith said she has been unable to find full-time work.

The Smiths usually find temporary work with agencies, but lately they have been living off change scrounged up by selling recycled goods.

“It’s very depressing,” said David Smith, who has worked part-time temporary jobs for the past year. “It’s especially sad when I don’t have a home for me and my wife. My hope is that tomorrow I’ll be able to get a job and get us back on our feet.”

To others, Labor Day was summer’s swan song.

The Monson family spent the day barbecuing steaks, drinking lemonade and playing soccer.

“This is a good day,” said Adolfo Monson, a farm worker. “It’s one day where we can sit and relax and not work.”

In Anaheim, 1-year-old Micah Bryan ran around barefoot on a baseball diamond, enjoying the sunshine and playground space as his mother, Terryl Bryan, watched.

“It’s the last big weekend of the summer,” said Bryan, an office manager in San Clemente. “Now I’m going to have start switching gears and getting ready for the fall.”

Times staff writer Nancy Cleeland contributed to this report.