I Want To....

- Go to a concert that's entirely too loud, get deaf for a day, and spend the next morning in our pj's shouting above the ringing in our ears, drinking coffee.

- Get massages in the same room, sneaking glances, and giggling.

- Stay up all night, drinking wine, and listening to music, telling secrets of what memories each song evokes.

- Camp out, eating around a campfire and sleeping intertwined, reeking of smoke.

- Take a painting class together, and astonish ourselves.

- Go on a road trip, crooning with the radio, windows open, dog's ears flapping in the breeze.

- Dance in the rain.

- Have a thunderstorm, lose the power, and share a quiet moment.

- Have a picnic upon a checkered blanket.  You in a tie.  Me in a dress.  Both of us wearing hats, and lightly brushing hands.

- Spend a weekend in Vegas, lounging around a pool, sharing headphones and a playlist.

- Lie together on a golden beach, under a golden sun, staring at the blue, blue water.  Laughing quietly with the surf.

- Live happily ever after.

In Which I Love on Children's Stories ....that title sounds awful.

So, I've been reading a new book lately, The Name of the Wind, recommended by my brother.  It's a fantasy novel, which I don't tend to think of as my genre of choice, but I have been so pleasantly surprised by it.  I'm not going to go into description, you can read it for yourself.  It's a little bit of everything, and most recently it's reminding me of a Harry Potter for grownups.  Not that Harry Potter isn't perfectly perfect for grownups.  I loved that series.

Then, today I was thinking about movies I like.  And when I'm in a relaxed mood, not looking for anything too serious, I always go for children's movies.  Or those films that are somewhere in between childhood and adulthood.  Because (and this is a concept brought up in The Name of The Wind) they always have a distinctive outline.  Child faces danger and loses.  Child goes into the wilderness to learn about the foe, and learns about themselves along the way.  Child often encounters wacky, outlandish mentor, and must prove him/herself.  Child faces danger again and succeeds.  All is well with the world.

There's something so satisfying about that formula.  I'm sure it's the last bit of it, but I also think satisfaction lies in the foe.  The danger is always immediate, not some metaphorical bit of nonsense.  It's a witch, or a bogeyman, something that actually can be defeated.

Then I thought about a famous childhood movie/tale we're all familiar with.  Old Yeller.
That movie was just plain mean.
Where the Red Fern Grows, as well.
I don't know how we're not all a little more psychotic having lived through those experiences.  To this day I'm kinda ticked off at wild boars.  ....and red ferns.

At least in my book, it's only the bogeymen he has to fight.

On How You Know You've Found the Right Man

Earlier this evening, the boyfriend received an email from me declaring: "The lady of the house wants ice cream for dinner!"
This was post-workout madness speaking (sorry Jillian Michaels), and since I didn't get a response, I assumed he allowed common sense to rule and ignored me.
A couple hours later, after I'd showered and simmered down a little, he arrived home with a grocery bag full of goodies.  Among said goodies were my 2 favorite kinds of ice cream.  "Because you said you wanted it."
My heart went all mushy.  But that might just be the cholesterol.