the back burner

meteorology

Today the rain was late. It hung and hung there in the clouds until I was finally sure that my prediction was wrong. I was driving home at that point, rushing back to grab a shower and call a friend in need. The sun was blazing away as I drove up to the house. I swept into the house with arms full of stuff and head full of thoughts about the weather and the aforementioned friends.

The ensuing sequence of events fascinates me:

I traipse into the kitchen hollering greetings to Dave and to Mike while dumping breakfast dishes from my car into a waiting sink.
I shed my bag, spilling its contents somewhere near the dining table.
Bedroom next, I grab in one smooth motion both cell phone and address cards.
Pace quickening to the bathroom, dialing while pulling off clothes.
Wonderful talk with AG while sitting on the can, spirits rising.
Crank cold water from the shower head!
Leap in!
*gasp*
WHOOP! (this is a noise humans make when they are happy.)
*sigh*
I watch as muddy, cobwebby, and gray water circles around my toes and takes with it down the drain all the stress of my frantic tempo. Life slows down.

It rained shortly thereafter. Maybe it wasn't really late. It's better that it came post-shower, cuz this way I can take responsibility. Maybe I inspired the rain? Who knows? Perhaps in the end a typhoon has been averted somewhere in East Asia!

Oh, and by the way, I did some backlogging of entries in case you're a stalker and want to see them. They're poems written this summer while on the road or in planes. I miss the idea of keeping a warm spot in my community for warm people to drop themselves into and have warm chats. Nobody does that in St. Elmo! I think I should have done that more in college. I mostly just benefitted from other people's warm places.