Friday, August 7, 2009

a bit of cheer

Gone are the lazy days of summer. They slipped away without even telling me they were leaving. School has yet to start but the activities have. As much as I'm tuckered out from the mom/taxi thing it nice to have a little structure to our days. Five bored kids at home on a hot summer day can make the walls of the house close in and every one's voice an octave higher.


The high temps here much parallel the cold temps of a New England winter in that you are really forced to stay inside. It's instinct in my body to want to be outside on a sunny day--not to waste it indoors. It's hard to train myself to stay inside. We burst outside at around 7:00pm and run wild with pent up energy and a half deflated soccer ball.



This brings me to my boring thoughts--and yes, I do feel like such a bore lately. For this I am sorry. My thoughts include your opinion of the ideal summer. Where would you spend it? Did you have happy summers as a child? Did you have fresh squeezed lemonade? Did your Gram announce it was "too hot to cook" and you clasped your hands in glee. Even though it really just meant you were having cold cuts and waldorf salad.
These houses are very close to where my Gram grew up. It makes my heart hurt to see something that was once so magnificent become so neglected. Unc J and Auntie J do you recognize these places?
How pretty these places must have been in their glory. Especially when they were surrounded with the colors of summer...surely the children who spent childhoods in them were never bored? Didn't they read books and act out plays? Didn't they hang out the turret windows and yell at their friend Joe to maybe play ball later? Didn't they sit on the porch and play marbles until their mother brought out warm oatmeal cookies? And now look at them all saggy and leaky. How can this happen?

Do you recognize the talent here? Showing you these dilapidated houses...I am not only boring but so very depressing as well. Tootleloo!

2 comments:

Emily said...

Gee thanks! I know how you feel. I feel the same every time I drive by some big old vacant house. We have a book of old mansions on Long Island. It is AMAZING. Most of the houses in it have been demolished. I'll try to find it and send the title to you. Talk about depressing!! Glad to hear you don't think we're crazy for moving into our old place :)

i cant decide said...

I love old houses. I grew up in an old house in old town Orange California. The houses in your pictures are much fancier though. We had a two story craftsman. I don't think the pics are depressing. It is fun to imagine what they looked like and all of the people who lived in them. How different life is now!

I've been feeling a little boring myself lately. It happens.