Labor Day weekend might not have fireworks or a stuffed turkey, but it’s still a great holiday and always seems to come at the right time. I was in need of a mental break when Sept. 5 rolled around, and I welcomed it with open arms. Parish and I don’t have the luxury of owning a boat or lakefront property (yet), so we stayed close to home and enjoyed every minute of it.
If you’ve read some of my previous columns, you know that my hard-working man had been away on business for most of August. Our time together was always a little rushed, and Parish is usually tired from driving and battling with concrete all day. The Thursday before the weekend started, Parish completed the time-hogging commercial job and was finally able to come home.
Friday night, Parish cooked wings and we talked over dinner and enjoyed some cocktails. Saturday morning, we went shopping at Park Plaza and stopped by our favorite Chinese restaurant for take-out. We are hooked on the show “Lie to Me” which streams continuously through our Wii on Netflix. It is so nice to watch a show without commercials interfering the action or drama on screen. I don’t know how many hours of “Lie” we watched – suffice to say that we made a nice dent in the series.
Sunday morning we went to church and dropped by our Starbucks for a Frap and latte. Our time at Starbucks is spent solving the world’s problems and attempting to discover life’s calling and whatnot. But that all stops when the last bit of caffeinated beverage is inhaled. Then we went home and took a nap because our brains were tired from trying to solve the problems of this crazy planet. It was nice to wake up on Monday and not have to head into work. I slept in while Parish cleaned his truck and waited for me to start my day. I made breakfast/brunch and we decided to head to the Big Dam Bridge for some exercise and fresh air. Everyone in the state and maybe a few other ones had the same idea. The place was buzzing with people, bicyclists, runners, dogs, kids and fisherman.
Herds of tourists lazily walked on the bridge, pausing every few steps to take self-portraits. It was a mess. I know they were tourists because of their footwear – flip flops and sandals. If you are serious about conquering the bridge, you wear tennis shoes.
Monday afternoon was nice and uneventful. It was so great to have Parish home and just there. We didn’t even have to be in the same room or talking – his presence was enough.
I was able to read some more of my book for book club, The Illumination by Arkansas-author Kevin Brockmeier. I’m not even halfway through the book, but I like it a lot. Brockmeier’s fictional tale addresses the idea of being able to see other people’s pain by way of light emanating from the point of distress. It’s a wild concept, but one that is worth exploring and dissecting. My book club meets at the end of the month, and I will give you a full report then.
Looking back over the glorious three days of relaxation, I realize that we found a lot of free things to keep us happy – watching shows at home, walking the bridge, window shopping, making homemade cocktails and socializing. It makes sitting in front of the computer bearable and the four-day week doesn’t hurt too much, either.