Summer’s Golden Nights

Last night, a typical night out with the girls in a still relatively small town (during a recession, so a much less busy downtown than, say, two years ago), one that probably will not be repeated for a few weeks once classes begin:

 

The girls:

• 60-something college administrator
• …and her two 20-something daughters (non-academics)
• 50-something former chair
• 40-something prof
• 30-something prof

The night out:

• meet at a local jewelry store downtown, having their Labor Day sale, to purchase goodies for selves and others.
• head over to local restaurant with a yummy happy hour menu, including oysters and gourmet pizzas.
• greeted with many smiles by the waiters and wine steward who know us quite well after all these years.
• share stories of summer fun, ex-beaus, current woes, with the required minimum of shop-talk (mostly whining about the cost of attending our respective national conventions this year).
• decline dessert, and walk to a bar that specializes in dessert-like martinis (I have my fave, the Ginger Rogers, no need to even order it since the server remembers).
• we sit outside so the smoker can smoke her soon to be illegal clove cigs, but fall arrives fast in our little town and the wind rushes our continued talk (we now share netflix and book reading details, wondering why some of us got Dexter before others).
• the administrator and daughters head on home, while the others decide to finish the night at my house with a glass of wine (if fall hadn’t suddenly arrived, this would have been on the deck; instead, we sit at the cozy kitchen table).
• the 30 something drives home (having declined the wine), while I walk the former chair to her house a few blocks away.
• I slowly amble home, admire the full moon and the clouds, and listen to the music from a blues band playing in the amphitheater just a few miles away.

Extra Credit

An Extra Credit assignment from Inktopia (via Faemom, et al)

1. What’s your current obsession?  My honest answer is just too personal, so let’s go with a secondary obsession:  running.  I run daily now and feel and act most bitchy if I miss a day.
2. What’s you favorite color and why?  I really can’t answer that easily: it depends on what the object is. My Honda Civic is purple; my living room walls are peach; my home office walls are an Italian yellow; and in my closet, after black, the most common color is golden beige/ reds/blues.
3. What are you wearing today? Black hoodie sweater from Macy’s, Levis 512s, Dansko black clogs, and funny Life is Good socks with daisies on them. 
4. Why is today special? This morning I participated in the ½ marathon training run: 9 miles in the forest, in a May snowstorm.  And, I just finished grading midterms. Whew!
5. What would you like to learn to do?  Ballroom dance.
6. What’s for dinner today? Probably pasta and veggies.
7. What’s the last thing you bought? The Levis I’m wearing right now…
8. What are you listening to right now? The hum of the dishwasher and the dryer (I just finished grading midterms—I need silence for grading, alas).
9. What’s your most challenging goal right now? Writing that darn speech I am giving at the end of May (though I have a lovely list of ideas at least). 
10. What do you think about the person who tagged you? I’ve never met Ink, but we both believe we would have been the best of friends at age 13.
11. If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?  On an ocean, a warm, swimmable ocean.   
12. What would you like to have in your hands right now?   A bowl of cookie dough ice cream. Or a completed speech.
13. What would you like to get rid of?  Insomnia, 10 more pounds, the dust bunnies under the bed (I’m just not good at giving one answer….)
14. If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? Italy, on the ocean….maybe Sorrento or Cinque Terre.
15. What super power would you like to possess?  This one is tough since I’m not really familiar with all of the superpowers that exist in the world of super heroes.  I suppose Harry Potter’s wand with Hermione’s skill would do the trick, though.
16. What’s your favorite piece of clothing in your own closet? My Victoria’s Secret “biofit” black bra.
17. What’s your dream job? One that involves words, people and creativity and that takes me only about 4-6 hours a day to be considered a success.
18. If you had an unexpected $1000, what would you spend it on? Spa treatments for me and some friends (pedis, manis, massages—and champagne)
19. What do you find annoying? Cramps are annoying.  People who can only complain.  Incessantly barking dogs.
20. Describe your personal style.  In winter: Jeans, boots or clogs, snug sweaters, and either a long pashmina-like scarf or a fitted jacket. In summer: long skirts and tank tops.
21. What Broadway show would you want tickets to? [my replacement question since I don’t know enough about clothing designers] 9-5 or Hair or Desire Under the Elms: all being “revived” this month on Bway….
22. Whose closet would you want to raid?  Cutty’s on “House”: she dresses a bit wild for a hospital administrator!
23. What are you most proud of?  Right now, running 9 miles in the snow this morning, but with luck, by the end of June, running the ½ marathon, twice.  I’m also proud of my work in the classroom at times, but see #1.
24. The beautiful bloggers I’d like to know about are: To quote Ink, “everyone reading this!”

→ Now the rules of this tag:

1. Respond and rework: answer the questions on your blog, replace one question you dislike with a question of your own invention.

2. Tag 7 other people you would love to learn more about. I’m putting out a universal “tag” to all readers.