Someone I know who’s not quite 28 inches yet –I’ll let you guess who– was a major crankster and wouldn’t go down for a nap. He finally seemed to settle down –after refusing boob and comfort and all good things known to man.

So what does his dad decide to do in this glorious bit of spare, child-whimper-free time?

Assemble furniture, of course. With a hammer. And a drill. And some minor cursing.

Well, wouldn’t you?

_____

Weather is this weird, amazing topic. It’s compicated as hell and no one understands it well for sure, but somehow we all manage to have a bit of a say in what it may or may not do. And we all know that while this is the easiest subject to pick up with a total stranger, weather can turn deadly and it can be deeply fascinating.

Yes, yes. Trite.

Weather. Bla bla.

Earlier today, I was walking with the Meow after having done the bit of grocery shopping for the day. I was kind of wondering where today’s 78-degree forecast had gone.

The friendly Fox 5 people repeated it all morning: 78 degrees today with a chance of showers in the afternoon. The weatherman was busy goofing around on this Flag Day, trying to make a flag at a local shop. He failed rather splendidly. But on he kept, with his “I stuck myself three times! And don’t forget– 78º in the District with a chance of showers today! I’m no Betsy Ross, but the District will hit 78 degrees today!”

And so on.

It’s about 72 degrees and breezy and while the sky is cloudy, there is little indication that the temperature will rise or that it will start to rain before the sun sets.

During the walk where Meow flirted and his mother wondered and held on tightly to the handles of his stroller where, against manufacturer’s advice, the day’s purchases hung, we encountered a kindly older gentleman who hoped the sun would stay away and not beat down on him, as he was sitting outside guarding a doorway.

I told him I thought it was supposed to be warmer today and get warmer.

His reply eludes me right now, but somehow whatever he said puzzled me but made sense.

His reply about the weather caught me by surprise. He knew something I didn’t.
I smiled embarrassedly and waved goodbye.

______

Weather kills.

Weather …. er…. thrills.

Weather is the reason people have things to complain about in otherwise boring existences.

Weather is a metaphor for life itself– unpredictable and omnipresent until it stands against us and oppresses us.

It bothers me that there are things that can never be fully elucidated orr fully explained like the weather itself. What causes some people to be successful and together, and others to be pathetic duplicitous liars who talk themselves into marrying people they were considering dumping otherwise. What causes some people to be burdens of society, and what causes some people who go through similar experiences to walk away with completely different memories and/or battle scars.

And it bothers me that weather, the simplest and most ignored thing ever is that very thing that can make or break a day, a place or even a life.

Weather, man.

14 Jun This entry was published on June 14, 2006 at 7:09 pm and is filed under Soapboxing. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.