And rolled beneath a deep blue sky
Didn't have a care in the world
With mommy and daddy standing by
When happily ever after fails
And we've been poisoned by these fairy tales
Don Henley, The End of The Innocence
On the Friday of the long weekend I got an email from George that sounded like he could use some fun company. I had actually been thinking that I'd like to get together for drinks with him so I set things up with Judy and Cindy to meet us after work at Earl's. Service was kind of lousy and I really should learn that I just don't like their drinks.
Late Saturday afternoon Judy and I escaped the city and headed up to my family cottage. I hadn't been out there all summer even though we talked and talked and talked about going. Judy ended up following me out there and so while I waited for her to catch up to me I happened to park next to what I can only describe as Truck's twin sister--a 2006 sunburnt orange Chevy Corvette. I snapped a quick photo.
We arrived at the cottage around 5:30. As always, I had to fumble around in the swarm of mosquitoes with the janitor's collection of keys I have for the doors before we could gain entry. The side door that we normally use was sticking a fair bit. Likely the cottage has shifted and thrown things off. This was the first of many things I noticed that needed some handy help around the place. Sadly, the cottage appears to be on its dying days with the B@rr0tt family. Once affectionately called The B@rr0tt Hilton, during its glory days it would be buzzing full of guests every weekend. No one went out all summer this year. The family that my grandma was renting it to for a week every year for the last while didn't even make it out. I spent a lot of summers out there as a kid making friends and getting sunburns while building castles in the sand so it has a special place in my heart, but I know it's not going to be with us much longer. Each time I go out now it feels like it will likely be the last.
Judy had brought steaks for us to cook up that night. I went to light the barbecue and get things going, but the barbecue wouldn't light. I tried to clean the burner a bit of the old charcoal and dust but it wasn't helping. I tried and I tried and I tried. And then finally it did light, but more in a fireball kind of fashion. It scared me a bit and I backed away. Judy came outside and I could tell by the look on her face that something was terribly wrong.
"What? Oh my God, my hair?" I reached up to touch it, for some reason fearing that it was still on fire.
"It's just a bit singed is all," she said to me. I rushed inside to check things out. Yup, for the second time in my life I had singed my bangs and my eyelashes while trying to light a barbecue. I think it was worse this time than last. I could smell the burnt hair. Why? Why must I be that girl? I love me, but sweet Jebus, why am I the girl who does things like burn her hair while trying to light a barbecue? I think I am going to install a new counter on my blog: number of days since last stupid accident. Ah well. Stupid eyelashes were too long anyway. And hey, this was a cheaper way of getting my bangs cut, right? Oye, Jillian. If you make it to see the age of 40 it will be by some miracle.
I didn't notice it at first, but while I was in the bathroom assessing my new hairdo I started to feel a stinging, burning pain around the knuckles of my index and middle finger on my right hand. Then I remembered that just before lighting the barbecue I had sprayed myself with mosquito repellent. My word, I was practically a human torch. Miracles happen every day, trust me.
Even the slightest burn is some of the worst pain a human can endure, I think. Judy put some ice in a bag for me and sent me away from the barbecue while she finished preparing supper. Never mind the screaming pain I was feeling from the skin burn, my triceps were also screaming at me because I had put them through the Chiseled weights class that afternoon at the gym. For some reason the right arm was worse than the left. I could hardly bend it. I downed my Advil with wine. Between the burned hand that I had to keep in a bath of ice water and the shredded, protesting tricep, my right arm was pretty much useless to me. Drinking wasn't even much of an option since it hurt so freakin much to raise the glass to my mouth. Oh yeah, I'm going back to that class this week for sure. Gotta get those arms in shape some how.
We spent a good part of the weekend watching Sex and the City episodes and then capped that off with watching the movie as Judy had never seen it from start to finish. I also baked an apple pie that Judy marked with a J in honour of the two special J people who would be eating it later.
I knew that Judy was going through a rough time. That on-again-off-again guy of hers that I mentioned before? They are finally off for good. I didn't know how she was really handling it though until I was sitting on the beach with her on Monday morning. Judy is such a strong and together person that she can put on a very believable face. I had no idea she was struggling so much inside and I felt bad for not being more inviting to her to spew if she needed to. I never push for people to talk to me, I just do my best to listen when they do. I pride myself on being a good listener. But I know too what it feels like to want to talk but be ashamed of of admitting out loud and to another person what's really going on inside. I usually don't have much advice to offer. I always feel like I haven't lived enough yet to really offer much anyway. After telling me about what was bothering her she thanked me for organizing the drinks outing on Friday and for getting her away from the city this weekend. I had no idea that I had been so helpful to her when she needed it most. I'm so glad I was able to do that.
I'm back home now. Summer is pretty much over despite what the thermometer has been saying lately. I love fall. To me it has always meant a time of new beginnings and fresh chances. I'm ready for my next beginning.
Out on the road today I saw a deadhead sticker on a Cadillac
A little voice inside my head said, don't look back
You can never look back.
I thought I knew what love was,
What did I know?
Don Henley, Boys of Summer
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