It rained Tuesday. Most all day. I made a new friend through Twitter who calls it “liquid sunshine.” I did try to see it that way, honestly, but by the end of the day the effort was wearing thin.
Don’t get me wrong. I like rain in the right doses, especially in autumn when the air is perfumed with wood-smoke and the leaves vibrant as gemstones. I like to curl up with a book and a cup of coffee or tea, serenaded by the soft crackle of a fire in the hearth. Or I might escape with my own characters, pecking away at the keyboard while the rain dances on the windowpanes.
Summer is different. Summer = sun = warm weather = it-shouldn’t-be-damp-dreary-and-cold. I had to get a sweater out in the middle of June! I’m not sure I’ll recover.
I was traumatized.
Kidding aside, I decided to make a list of what I do like about rain in the summer:
- I didin’t have to water all those new flowers I planted.
- We didn’t need to add water to the pool after several days of evaporation. My husband had to drain water by the time the rain departed.
- My car got a bath (metallic black is a magnet for the tiniest speck of dirt. Yuck!).
- I got to use the fancy little lamp in my office instead of the fluorescent overhead at work (I turn it on to make it cozy).
- I put off stopping for gas until Wednesday. Chore avoided for another day.
See that? A positive spin on something I’m not overly fond of. Thanks to Catherine Russell for introducing me to Liquid Sunshine. Drop by her website for information on her novel The Stage, a vampire tale you can curl up with when it rains. 😉
I so want some of your ‘liquid sunshine’ and so do my many flower gardens. I’ll be going out later to turn on the soaker hoses.
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For the last two days we’ve had the “real” sunshine. Flowers are perky from all the water they got and the skies are blue. Soaker hoses are always a good substititon for the real thing, Sheri! 🙂
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I love the way you think Mae Clair. Plus, you’re great with descriptions and setting a scene. Now I’m going to pop over to Catherine Russell’s website and take a look at The Stage. Thanks.
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Aww, thanks, Crystal, much appreciated. And I know Catherine will appreciate it too!
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We should could use some of that over here too. Our grass around here is taking on the straw variety. Loved this post Mae! I’m off to water the flowers as well 🙂
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Wow! Our grass normally doesn’t get straw-like until July. That seems to be our driest month. Also a good month for swimming, LOL!
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Love the rainy days and nights. I think liquid sunshine says it well. Great post!
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Thanks, Stanalei! Much appreciated 🙂
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I like rainy days when I home, alone. But with the husband and kids… not so much. But whenever we can use it to make our lives easier, I’m all for it!! Usually my car doesn’t get washed without it. (the husband only worries about his cars!)
Great post Mae!
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LOL! Guys and their cars. My husband is always washing his too. He bought a 2012 this year and suddenly my Chrysler 300 with just over 35,000 miles is the “has been” car. He keeps reminding me I “had to have black” which shows every single spec of dirt. Thanks, Loni!
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love the notion of liquid sunshine, Mae. I must be part duck because I love the gloom of storm clouds and the rain. It’s when I’m at my most creative. I love to sit at my desk, watch it rain and write. the sound of the rain on the window is intoxicating and comforting.
I appreciate your comment on my last blog post. I responded to your comment there. I’d be glad to send you all of Appalachian Dreams that I have typed up; just another page or so. The rest of it is still journal entries in a notebook right now. I’m excited for your enthusiasm for it. 😉
Pretty sure I’ve got my blog problem solved as well so ….. sorry I missed out on your 7 thing. sounded so fun. 😉 Maybe next time. I’m looking forward to stalking around your pages more and learning more about your writing this weekend. I have a rare weekend off so that’s what I’ll be doing between writing.
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I do like rain when I’m writing but I’m so pathetically specific. It needs to be in the autumn! 🙂 It is a wonderful mood setter.
Loved your last blog post and, of course, I’d love to see the rest!
No problem with the 7. Love your word choices and descriptive flair which is why I thought of you. Thanks for checking out the blog. I’ve been poking around yours too. You are a busy person! 🙂
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I love the sunshine but I have to admit that I’m partial to a good summer storm. My favorite time to have rain is in the summer when hopefully, it cools things down! 🙂
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I do love a good thunder storm, especially because they usually don’t last long. What I hate are those long, all-day “soaking” rains. Ruins my pool time, LOL. Thanks, Stephanie!
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You live in PA right? We had rain here – SW ontario- a few days ago but not all day. Generally I don’t care for the heat unless I am at the pool – don’t have one of our own I use a motel pool. but our flowers can always use the rain so I really don’t mind. And I agree with the other comment. You have a wonderful way with words
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Thanks so much for the compliments, Sue. And yeah, I’m in PA. We’ve got a pool in our back yard, so I’m partial to sunshine that allows me to float around on a raft while story-building (I do a lot of that during the summer). I love my flowers ,but I’m not so partial to watering them ,and the rain breezy today but no rain. Such a weird June!
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