The Rain

We've had so much rain. And yet, last week I was in the depths of despair because I feared it would never rain again. We had six weeks of hot, dry weather...with barely even a cloud in the sky save the one day a tropical storm came by us and spat six drops and snubbed its nose and went on about its business.

So on Sunday night we were all perplexed, amazed, and, apparently, instantly rendered unable to drive properly. Rain came down in buckets. FOR 24 HOURS. Then we had a day of sunshine. Then, more rain, in buckets...for OVER 24 HOURS. I believe that's all over with for us, but our friends in Wilmington should get slammed the rest of today.

Two funny things happened in the rain. On the way to school this morning, my son (who is in a very good mood in the mornings - this will change next year with the 6:15 wakeup) and I were listening to our dj friend as we do. She played a 70s rock song that I couldn't take at that moment, so I switched to our jazz station. A peppy swing number was on. Son sighed and said, "On a rainy morning, I prefer SLOW jazz."

I'm with you, brother.



Another funny thing is that my children reverted back to fort building for the duration of the storm. All sports were canceled...for the first time all season, I might add. This meant some free time and some rare inside time. They took all of the blankets, towels, stuffed animals, weights, hats, and spare paper in the house and constructed an enormous system of rooms and tunnels.

It was more than a little humbling to watch this week's Mad Men with it's destructive quality and then have to get on all fours to exit the den.

They are each writing notes to "my neighbor" and have decorated with comfy pillows, flashlights, and until this moment when I decided to blog, my laptop.

There's more rain called for on Monday. I'm letting them keep it up.

Rap Thursday

If I hear one more person act surprised that I like rap, I'm agonna let them finish...and then....

Seriously! What the hell! Did YOU not like the rap? DO you not like the rap?

Girl rap = bananas.

Summoned

I guess this is pretty much what I've been thinking about.

Hopscotch

There is an indie rock festival in our town! Featuring not only some of the most intriguing new bands of today, but easily one of my top five influential bands, Public Enemy, as a headliner!

And we aren't going.

We are 1. broke, 2. overbooked, and 3. exhausted. One of the many "this is so awesome"/"Raleigh you rock" tweets last night as the festival got underway was a welcome, "I'm having to be satisfied reading tweets about my favorite bands instead of seeing them live. #havingkidschangesyourlifefortheworse" Or something akin to that. I agreed (though not really - I do love my urchins).

So tonight, as a local fave plays in front of my husband's office and then is followed by members of Animal Collective and the band Broken Social Scene, and then tomorrow night when Public Enemy fights the power that be, I shall be here with my children and then at my book club annual retreat. The children just aren't worth the $30 ticket. The book club has been neglected far too long.

So what is the light at the end of this dark, musically-bereft tunnel? The fact that we actually ATTENDED Hopscotch today! For the geezers, they had music DURING. THE. DAY. I blew off an appointment, grabbed my hubby, and went, in mom jeans, to a club. At noon! And there were beers! And good old friends, and some new ones too! And music! By a band I knew a little, and grew to love during their set!

I grew to love my husband a little bit more, too. That was truly one of the best hours I've had in months. Happy Hopscotch Weekend, all you hipsters! I joined you, if only for a little while, in rock solidarity.

Do You Remember?

Ah, Labor Day. A weekend where I....work. However, we have a lot of down time planned this weekend and hope to soak up some local culture, splash in our local pool, and dine on some local summer favorites before they go dormant.

September Sucks is my mantra...school/heavy workload/hurricane season, etc. There have been distractions from the usual mêlée, I must say. Such as:

Injuries and Illness

My Form + Function friend had gum surgery. As I told her, I KNOW YOUR PAIN. Ouchie, oh ouchie ouchie. My pastor broke his shoulder coming out of a Starbucks. His right shoulder - his healing, hugging shoulder. Bless. The many children we know with ailments are all doing ok...some in worse shape than others, but a few actually coming out just fine after, say, having a boat propeller slice up their back, or falling out of a high window....

Ok, on to a more positive diversion:

Nic Cage

I love him, I do. I saw "Valley Girl" four times in the one week it screened in Macon, GA. And I was hooked - for life. So we rented "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans". Yeah, I sat through about an hour until he smoked crack with a (very young) party girl in a parking lot with his gun out and....other things...out...and in. Anyway, harsh. But so great! I thought my husband would love it but he had trouble sleeping after completing the film. And to that I say: nice work, Nic!

The Emmys

I am starting to hate award shows...even though I am pulling most faithfully for people I love who might be up for said awards....but then there was this:



Happy!

Also, some lovely ladies....refer to Go Fug Yourself for highlights. Speaking of Glee, Heather Morris who plays Brittany, was possibly my very favorite.




Sparkly!