94º In The Shade (Sunday Afternoon)

Celebrating Beth's 60th Birthday

It's a bit unusual, but I'm starting the blog on Sunday afternoon, sitting on Beth's front porch in 94° heat — which sounds like the title of a novel I've read. Between the sun and the stillness of a Sunday, not a soul has passed by. I'm warm but not terribly uncomfortable as I sit here writing and reading, having just finished November Road a few minutes ago. I liked it. Tonight we're going out to dinner to celebrate Beth's 60th birthday, two days early, at a restaurant she recommended called The Lounge. We are looking forward to going out to dinner, especially Beth. 

For some reason, the heat made me think of my first swim in the lake, usually sometime in late May or early June. It's so cold that I ease down the ladder one body part at a time — feet, then legs, then stomach and back, getting my arms and chest wet — before diving under all at once. The shock of it is both stunning and exhilarating, and after two or three strokes, I'm used to it. I will give it a go this coming weekend. 

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It's now 8:10 Monday morning. Tin Tin just ran in, which means Beth is up, having slept in for once. I was up an hour ago and have been sitting here reading the newspapers on my Mac, waiting for someone to stir. Kaia is out in the yard, being a good boy and not barking. Yet.

Sunday was a warm one. Beth and I were both up early, and I got the blog written and published before Evie woke around nine. We had no big plans for the day other than the birthday dinner at six. Once everyone was up, I had breakfast — a couple of scones with coffee — and by 9:15, it was already warm enough that I decided to take the dogs out early.

The walk was warm but still manageable. We headed down to the lake, hugging the shade where we could, and came across a couple of women out on horseback. Tin Tin, naturally, went into a barking frenzy and lunged toward them, so I had to haul him back. The path around White Lake was busy, probably owing to the Sunday crowd. We were out for about 25 minutes and were glad to get back into the air-conditioned house.

Horses

Bikers

We managed to knock out a couple of things before lunch — Evie vacuumed while Beth and I set up a printer in the spare bedroom. By midday, Beth and I were hungry, so she offered to make BLTs. Most of the afternoon, we sat around on our devices, watched some tennis, and waited for late afternoon when the three of us would shower and get ready to go out.

By 6:00, we were showered and comfortably dressed and drove the half mile to The Lounge. Walking into the air-conditioned restaurant after even a short drive in that heat was a genuine relief. We were happy to snag a booth and settle in with drinks and menus. Beth ordered a dirty martini; Evie and I went with beers. We loved the feel of the place, and within the hour it was packed — tables full, bar crowded, people waiting at the door. The menu leaned Southern and retro, with most entrées in the twenties, which felt right. We were in no hurry, lingered over our food, did some reminiscing, and finally headed out around 7:30.

Back home, we changed into something comfortable and stayed up until ten watching a couple of episodes of Margo's Got Money Troubles. It turned out to be a really good day.