”
If Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.
”
–Unknown
“If Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.”
–Unknown
For the past few months, that has been an often-used quote at my house – because Momma ain’t been happy. Oh, it’s not my life or my family or even the fact that I’ve overdosed on reality TV.
It’s the rain.
I hate rain. It’s wet. It’s gloomy. And it isn’t sunshine. Look, I’m a Californian for a reason – I like the sun to be out. I crave sunshine each and every day that it rains.
Rain is OK in very small doses. I like rain at the end of a very long, hot summer, when even September and October have been stifling. Then, around November, a good storm with thunder and lightening ushers in winter. We eat fresh bread and soup and sit in front of the fire with hot chocolate, playing “Junior Scrabble.” It’s fun.
But only once.
After that, I start to resent the rain. Oh, sure we need it. I’ve heard all the reasons. And I know how lucky I am to live in California. Anywhere else and I could be complaining about snow – which is wet AND cold – a lethal combination for me. But I am still sick and tired of rain.
Unfortunately, this year, the rain didn’t stop until late in the season. And that just drove me crazy. I started staying up late to watch the news. I would sit at the edge of couch, just waiting for the weatherperson to tell me the news I longed to hear. I kept the TV tuned to the weather channel during the day, hoping for sunshine in the forecast.
I would get deliriously happy when I heard that we would be rain-free for a day. I’d run around the house, making plans for my sunshine days. I thought I would start the vegetable garden, plant flowers, and sit by the pool. But the rain just kept falling.
So I took matters into my own hands. I behaved as if it were sunny out all the time. My plan was to force Mother Nature to do her job properly and put some sunshine in my life. I put away my winter sweaters. I wore short sleeves and cropped pants. We even barbecued. Harry stopped me one day as I was trying to convince Junior to wear shorts to school, despite the pouring rain outside the door.
Clearly, I had gone over the deep end.
Since I couldn’t fool Mother Nature into stopping her evil plan to drive me insane, I decided on another tactic. I would make peace with the rain. I would welcome it as a friend. I would stand next to my soggy garden and chant, “April showers bring May flowers” until I was blue in the face. That worked for about five minutes. After that, I was soaking wet and completely ticked off that the stupid rain just would not stop. I was starting to go nuts.
And then it happened.
Last weekend was beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that Junior and I went for a swim – okay, it was cold, but he’s a Californian too and we couldn’t wait any longer. I even planted flowers. And we ate Mother’s Day dinner outside on the patio and saluted the sunshine with icy Margaritas.
I just hope it lasts. I don’t think I can stand to chant, “May showers bring June flowers.” So if it rains again and you see a soaking wet crazy lady walking down Monterey Street dressed in shorts, don’t worry. I’ll only be trying to fool Mother Nature.
