Your Turn
It is almost June and to me June means summer time and those absolutely perfect days. I remember getting out of school on that last day and thinking to myself how much free time lay ahead. It seemed like years. Now of course the bastards at the stores torture kids by putting back to school stuff on display right at the end of June. I mean come on, I know you need to make room for your Christmas stuff, but give everyone a little time to enjoy doing nothing. So, that brings me to today's topic. Perfect day. What would it be? What was it? You can describe what your perfect day would be like or you can do a Groundhog Day moment and tell everyone what was the day you would do again and again.
We have a spot on a river that is about 75 miles away. We used to go there three or four times a summer, when the children were younger, but now we only go once every summer.
ReplyDeleteThe river looks as if it was painted for a movie--that beautiful emerald green, slow moving, surrounded by tall oaks and pine. The water is cool when you get in, but soon becomes like bathwater.
The best part, though, are the boulders. These things are as big as Quonset huts and made of pure granite. Kids jump off of them, and there are divots that seem to have been crafted by God just for sitting, like in a hot tub. Our kids know that if they ever jumped off of one of the boulders, they would die--either from a head injury or from me killing them for jumping.
But there are so many boulders--fifteen or twenty--that no matter how many people are swimming in the river, there is always some private nook in a boulder in which to tuck oneself and dream.
Scraping together our two children (one grown, one almost grown), and matching their availability with our schedules is always a challenge. But we plan it in advance and neither of our children would miss the trip. It's where we know we are a family.
We start splash wars, we have races against the current, we climb to the top of the "waterfalls" (a rush of water over four feet of rock), and we eat slightly sandy sandwiches on the shore. More than what we do, though, I love the river because it is where I am reminded that I love and am loved. The dramatic setting of the boulders and the warm river and the trees and the sky makes that one day every summer only more precious, because I'm sharing it with the three people I love the most in the world.
My perfect day would involve camping with friends, a beach, lots of sun, swimming, guitar playing, imbibing, bonfires, stars, and cuddling!
ReplyDeleteI've had some perfect nights but no full perfect days like that yet. But summer is again upon us ... :)
Gladys, I was having trouble coming up with my perfect day, so I'm going to steal yours.
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ReplyDeleteOh, Gladys - I got a little teary reading that! It sounds like a beautiful place!
ReplyDeleteA perfect day? Waking up to the sound of the birds in the trees outside our bedroom window. Pouring a cup of coffee and heading for the screen porch to read the paper and start the crossword. Putzing around the house in my nightie, knowing that I don't HAVE TO go anywhere today, if I don't want to. Working in the yard; weeding the flower beds; taking a walk in the 40 acre woods behind the house. Seeing deer at the salt block 50 feet off the kitchen window. Fixing dinner together. Enjoying a glass of wine with my man as the day fades into evening. Going to sleep knowing that tomorrow will be a perfect day, too.
Sigh.
Gladys that was lovely.
ReplyDeleteI've had the last 2 weeks off and have done nothing. It was nice but now I'm overwhelmed by the options so I choose to do nothing, argh.
A perfect day for me would be hiking all day, and then taking a nice long hot shower or bath (I'm not picky) and heading out to the Drive-In for a great movie.
I once had a day that was JUST SO FUN.
ReplyDeleteRight after turning 21, two of my best girlfriends from high school, one of their boyfriends and I decided to road trip from our hometown north of Boston to Mohegan Sun, the casino in Connecticut.
After a day of gambling and exploring the gorgeous casino, we decided -- hey, why not drive to Providence? Providence is such a random city!
We walked around the Providence Place and had dinner at Fire & Ice, complete with my first scorpion bowl. And because my friends had missed my 21st birthday, they surprised me with some cheesecake with a candle in it. It was so nice.
It was around 10 or so when we got back, so we decided to go see the 40-Year-Old Virgin. It didn't matter that I had already seen it two days before!
The best part? None of it was planned. We never stopped having fun, so we just kept enjoying it!
I wouldn't do any of these things for fun these days. I can't stand casinos. I don't gamble anymore. I hate Fire & Ice. Since moving to Boston, I haven't been to Providence in years.
But it was just one of those perfect, serendipitous days -- driving along the highway, blasting the Killers and having a great, great time.
A few weeks ago, my friends and I were talking about how ridiculously fun and random that day was. I love them so much. <3
Perfect day for me would involve the following: a personal chef/trainer/stud named Lars, NO TRAFFIC in Los Angeles or Orange County, a winning lottery ticket so I can spend more time with my son (really, that's all I want), being flown up to Yountville to have a meal at the French Laundry, being flown back to end the night at Disneyland. I'm a woman of simple tastes.
ReplyDeleteHmmm...the "bad" me would like a free full-day offshore charter with some crazy friends with calm seas on a pristine 60-footer stocked with awesome food and drink, DJ, all the tuna and wahoo we can catch, some blow, weed and ecstasy, and some hot, CLEAN hired ladies making us all happy. And no one puking all day.
ReplyDeleteThe "good" me wants the same thing but without the whores or blow (but I'll keep the weed and E, though!)
Hey, I admit I'm not a normal 45yo married woman, but Enty asked...
I have a description of some favorite days a few summers ago:
ReplyDelete1. Sitting under a palm tree in the grass, near the beach, reading for 6 hours.
2. Sitting at the beach, baking under the hot sun, wondering how much more I can take. Then getting up and dipping my toes in the cold, salty water.
3. Sleeping in, knowing that I am not in rush hour traffic, every day of the week.
It was my birthday, 1997, San Francisco. Beautiful blue sky day. 75 degrees in the sun. Both my parents were alive (now, both gone, one in 1999 and one last yr) and visiting. My husband at the time, two friends and my family all spent a spectacular day in San Francisco. A great lunch at McCormicks and Kuletos, a boat ride to Alcatraz and a tour, walking around the City together, then a casual dinner at Calif. Pizza Kitchen. It was a fabulous day. I'll always remember it. My best birthday ever and one of the happiest days of my life.
ReplyDeleteSelena likes the tuna, who knew? lol. good to hear it!
ReplyDeleteI had my perfect day...
my boyfriend at the time and I went on an amazing roadtrip without a map or GPS. we hopped in the SUV and headed out turning right every time we could. that was our thing if it felt 'right' we would turn. we camped on logging roads that were so high up you'd get light headed from the fresh air and swam during the day whenever the mood struck us, no matter where we were. we cooked awesome food by the mountain lakes, got some good lovin and some great weed.
we went one day where we decided that no one could talk at all, you could only communicate with body language....it was as KatE would say, Amazing. you'd be surprised what you feel from people when you can't talk. driving, laughing and singing our hearts out.
i look back at those pictures often and wonder if i'll ever have another day like that again....or a f*cking boyfriend!
My family drove to Florida last year and stayed - for free by the generosity of a relative-in-law - at a resort condo that overlooked the ocean. One morning, I got up early to watch the sunrise over the ocean. I felt truly grateful and happy at that moment. My son had survived 4 open-heart surgeries and I am married to the greatest partner I could wish for and have a sweet little house.
ReplyDeleteI would like to relive that morning every morning so I could prepare for my day and not worry so much about things.
During the day, we took my son to look for shells and fish and jump the waves.
The evening alone on the balcony with my husband was just as sweet.
Laying in bed in my Malibu beach house wihtout a care in the world watching the ocean with the love of my life
ReplyDeleteCan we squeeze all 3 courses at Carnoustie into one day? Doubtful, but it'd be heaven to try.
ReplyDeletedamn, montana you rolling like that? i ain't mad at cha... lol.
ReplyDeletemy son would be alive. my oldest daughter would be whole and healthy and if that happened everything would be just fine.
ReplyDeletei haven't let myself think about that for a long time.
My grandparents had a storage place & woodshop above their garage I use to love to hangout in when I was small it was like your own stone treehouse. You could imagine yourself anything there. (Pirate,Princess,Explorer)
ReplyDeleteOn Ardleigh Street in my other grandmothers house in Philly's Chestnut Hill where she'd tell me stories in her lovely Irish lilting voice.
At the dam & recreaion area near where I live where as a child while my Dad fished I would explore for fossils and hunt for arrowheads while he told me about the history of the area and history of my family.
As an adult my favorite place became Sandbridge, Virginia. It's a nice beach where I would wake up before the crack of dawn(when I didn't have to get up but wanted to)just to see the sun rise over the Atlantic Ocean because it was breath taking with color. God's own canvas of pinks and purples and it was reflected in the water where a mama dolphin swam by with her baby every moring I was there.
I sound like I should break into a tune of My Favorite Things.
What I have done for the last
ReplyDeleteGoing back to Cherry St. circa 1970's. Any of the following will do...endless days of kickball, swimming in the backyard or trips to the local amusement park with my neighborhood friends. Of course my dad would be there and we'd all have soft serve ice cream with lots of jimmies and then call it a day.
ReplyDeleteBeach Volleyball on the Texas City Dike. I loved it. I was so deathly skinny. Weighed 110 soaking wet. Was a stick, and loved every bit of the outdoors. Grilling a package of hot dogs and eating Nacho Doritos with a COKE, not a Diet Coke. Wow, those were the days. Then I would slather on Aztec Tanning Lotion #8 so I would fry!
ReplyDeleteSummer in northern Wisconsin is perfect on the crystal clear lakes. So my perfect day starts there. We cruise around our chain o' lakes on the pontoon boat and stop and swim whenever the spirit moves us. I lay on my towel to dry off and listen to all of the awesome songs of the 70's summers-Eagles, Steve Miller Band, Supertramp. Add good food and a bonfire at night and there you have it. Perfection!
ReplyDeleteJust waking up in the morning and getting to lay there,no school!
ReplyDeleteMy bedroom window faced east and the old 50's style industrial grade steel screen window would get hit full on with the morning sun. When I moved my head back and forth on the pillow the glare would turn into glitter and go back and forth back and forth.
hee hee, jax...only "recreationally."
ReplyDeleteMy groundhog day would have to be the last day I spent with my father. We drove from South Carolina to Atlanta, GA so I could make a flight back home after visiting him for Thanksgiving. It was the last time I ever saw, touched, hugged him. 5 months later he was gone. I love you dad.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think about it, I've had a lot of perfect days. The times I cherish the most is when I was a kid and we came to Quebec from Toronto to visit my grandparents every summer. The feeling of seeing Pépère sitting in his lawn chair, then giving us big hugs when we ran to him. He'd offer us "Fudgicles" (that's how he pronounced it). Then everyone would come over - aunts, uncles, cousins. Sometimes people who haven't seen my family in years would walk right in, sit down and have a beer and a laugh. Pépère and I made a diagonal line in the small house. He'd be in his chair, trying to watch the ball game, and I'd be sitting opposite, listening to one group argue on side of us, then other group argue about something different on the other side. Every once in a while he'd catch my eye and say, "How 'bout those Expos Kimmy!"
ReplyDeleteThose days made me so happy. Didn't have to worry about a thing, and I felt so loved.
It's a rare occasion when I feel that sense of happiness and belonging with my relatives today, so I'm grateful when it happens, and I know my son appreciates these times, too.
My perfect day happened in 1987. I was living in LA at the time and my best friend, a gay artist, had just bought a 1960 convertible corvette that he was itching to take on a road trip. He picked me up about 11:00am, we drove down PCH, stopping in Malibu to get a scarf for my hair which was blowing everywhere (he bought a damned kitchen towel, lol). We drove up to Santa Barbara, had lunch at the Biltmore, walked on the beach, then drove around town. Drove back to LA in the early evening. It was glorious. He died of AIDS in 1994. I miss him but I love the memories...
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