Making the most of our last 'public' holiday for four months was supposed to be easy. Dana had proposed that we take advantage of the situation and go away somewhere, but forgot that we had the dog until late Saturday night, by which time, a weekend break would have turned into less than twenty four hours away from home! Instead, Samantha and I decided to follow up on old traditions, and go and see an early morning film. Peter Rabbit was the movie of choice, and our choice of cinemas were quite prolific.I received a call from Samantha on Sunday to say that her car was not running smoothly, it was 'bunny hopping', and making a strange noise whilst idling, and that she was going to see if she could book it into the repair shop on Monday morning. This narrowed down our theatre options, but we still had a choice of two. I had a gift card which had been given to me several years ago, from an attorney for whom we serve papers.
Starting the week in the usual manner, I saw Dana off to work and did not deviate from my Monday morning tasks. Once finished, I set off, in my car, to the adjoining county, where Samantha was waiting to be collected. The roads were full of what we would refer to, in England, as 'Sunday Drivers'. No one appeared to be paying attention to the rest of the traffic, or alternatively just not noticing that my car was in the lane, in which they wanted to merge, right then and there, without the need to indicate, or give way. Each vehicle that pulled directly in front of me, was either a rather large lorry, or one towing a trailer. The journey was bordering on dangerous. I wondered if this was to get me into the mood for the film, and felt rather like Peter Rabbit in Mr. McGregor's Garden! At least my car did not 'bunny hop'.
Samantha was waiting at the bottom of the ramp of the plot that housed the large car plant. As she got into my car, I handed her two pots. One contained the danish pastries, which she had suggested I make, and the other, lemon poppy seed muffins, which she has been craving ever since our local french cafe stopped making them! I set off in a southerly direction, to go to the cinema that I perceived to be nearer. As I past the first exit, I realised that the cinema in the opposite direction was far nearer, so we exited at the second exit, looped around, and 'hurtled' along the road, as fast as any escaping rabbit! There was a group of school children waiting outside the cinema, and we deduced that they were probably there to see the same film that we wanted to watch. "Out of the way", we said as we ran to the line that had formed by the ticket office. "This is an English film, for English people", I said, mimicking a rather old, alternative comedy programme that was aired in the last year of the previous century, that did not (to the best of my knowledge) make it to this side of the Atlantic. However, despite Peter Rabbit being very English, the film was out on this side of the pond first!
We stood in the queue, wondering whether we would get to the front before the start of the film, despite there being thirty minutes left until 'lights out', and then spotted a card machine. I decided to check the balance on the card, just because! After attempting to swipe two or three times, I turned around to see my daughter with 'that' look on her face, with her finger crooked in a beckoning fashion, and saying, in unspoken words, "Come here!" I obeyed instantly, and she took the card from me, as I replaced her in the queue, and with a deep sigh, proceeded to not only check the balance, but try to order tickets. The show that we wished to attend was 'sold out', and so we ran back to the car, in a hurry!
The cinema to which I had planned to go first, was now the only cinema available to us. Hurtling again, at the speed of escaping rabbit, we all but flew along the Interstate and 'looped around' to the other side of the road, and entered the complex that housed the 'other' cinema. Here, we could choose seats, of which there were as many as lettuces in Mr. McGregor's garden, and once we had made our choice, we went into the building, and stood in line for popcorn. We entered the theatre with minutes to spare, with the pre-movie commercials already in full swing.
The seats were extremely comfortable. They reclined, and had foot rests. Unfortunately, both the reclining and foot rest mechanism were operated by a button that was on the side next to my daughter, and each time I got comfortable, she would press my controls, and I would be brought to an upright position. All the other children in the cinema were behaving themselves! The last commercial ended, she hit the button. "I'm gonna 'it you!" I shouted, in full cockney accent, just as the room became silent. All eyes turned to me, rather than to the screen, and I was glad of the reclining position so no one could decipher from where the noise was coming!
The film was wonderful. Of course, we pointed out the obvious errors, in the first few scenes, which were supposedly filmed inside a rather large department store, in Knightsbridge, London, famous the world over, but no one appeared to be interested in our critiques. There were two scenes where two characters made comments, and my daughter nudged me, saying, "That is so you!" Without giving too much away, one was regarding an obsession with allergies, and the other was a comment about London being the greatest city on earth! I felt quite flattered! We texted Steph as the credits rolled to let her know that both her and Ollie would love it!
I stood in line for my free refill of popcorn, as Samantha returned a call to the maintenance man, whom had left her a message whilst we were watching the film. It appeared, at first glance, that the air filter was clogged with leaves, and they would have to replace it. She gave them the go-ahead, and they said they would call back when it was done. We walked out of the building, and as we did so, the wind took half the popcorn from the box, and we ran back for shelter. While my daughter waited in the shaded area, I ran out to get the car, and my hat was caught up in the strong breeze that had developed. I hopped across the car park, in the manner of Flopsy, Mopsey, and Cotton Tail! This was a source of entertainment for many who were waiting to get ticket for later shows, and I was less than happy to be the pre-movie show, yet again! Once both of us were safely in the car, we headed for Ikea.
There is always a want to do something different on a 'bank' holiday, but we tend to end up repeating previous performances. Like Mr. McGregor's garden, Ikea is full of tempting items, but I resisted most of them. With my tape measure in hand, I check out the length, width and depth of many a piece of furniture that could possibly be the next 'best' thing in my kitchen, but all failed.
The next phone call was not good news. It appeared that a 'rodent type' creature had made Samantha's engine its designated restaurant of choice, and satisfied his (or her) appetite by chewing on a set of connecting pipes, with 'engine mounting' for dessert! Why not cabbages or cauliflower, like Beatrice Potter's characters. No doubt vegetables were not available at said restaurant! The damage was quite severe, and after the mechanic sent pictures to show what had taken place, she gave them the go ahead, and asked if it would be completed today! Apparently it would, but probably nearer the end of the day. We drove back to Samantha's house at a more leisurely pace than that previously, and I helped her clear away some unwanted clutter that had accumulated. About twenty minutes after our arrival, she got a call to say the car was ready, and the cost had come in 'under budget'. We took the dog and drove to the facility.
Dana and I did get to enjoy dinner together, and then came home to spend what was left of the 'holiday' watching a movie that contained no rabbits, lettuces, or air filters!
The wind that was whirling around on Monday, turned into tornadoes in some parts of the state by Tuesday morning, and rain had started to pound the windows in the early hours. The thunder and lightening had subsided by the time we went into work, but the rain continued to pour. At lunchtime, we donned our plastic ponchos and walked down to the supermarket. "The plastic bag committee is in session", said Samantha, as we headed out of our car park, and along the pavement. As we reached the traffic lights, the little man on the screen opposite said we could walk. A lone figure was standing on the adjacent pavement, and I said that he had no need to thank me for making the lights red, and allowing us to cross. Samantha pointed out that he had got to the junction first, and very probably pressed the button first. Ultimately, I doubt the 'buttons' have anything to do with when the lights change, as the sequence is set on an automatic timer. They stay green one way for the same time, whether you press the button or not! However, I gave credit to my fellow walker and thanked him as he passed by! He smiled, and appeared to have read my lips when I suggested he thank me, as he had been watching and laughing as we approached the junction. I am sure it had nothing to do with us wearing plastic ponchos! I had not been drinking, had not eaten too many lettuces, had not just escaped 'with my life' from Mr. McGregor's garden, but felt elated nonetheless! "He is going to go back to his office, an tell his colleagues that he was thanked by two plastic bags, walking down the road". Samantha started to giggle. Although sometimes critical of my outbursts, there are times when only she shares my humour! I continued, and then took the part of the stranger's colleague, in my own 'new' movie. "What? Are you delusional. Plastic bags talking to you? Impossible! Plastic bags are banned in Austin! Have you been drinking!" The faux conversation continued, and we laughed our way into the store. On our way back, the lights were once again in our favour. A car was edging forward to turn right, and I pointed out that it was my right of way. I started to sway back and forth. "I shall plaster myself on your windscreen", I sang as I ran across the road. The driver was smiling, no doubt glad that she was not the victim of 'plastic bag rage'! I am sure her grin had nothing to do with watching two grown women wandering around the streets in plastic ponchos! "She will go back to work and say....." My daughter beat me to the punchline. I found myself wavering across the pavement, being a 'plastic bag in the wind' all the way back to the office. Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday.........!
We wore plastic all week, as the rain did not halt until Friday. "Is it still raining outside?" we were asked, several times. "Nope, just wear these for fun", was the answer that was not comprehended, and followed up with one word; "Pouring"! This was understood!
Saturday followed the usual ritual. We had been quoting phrases from Peter Rabbit all week, and found ourselves laughing heartily, leaving those around us to wonder why! We raced around the supermarket, and warehouses, like escaping rabbits, and the lady who checked us out at Walmart commented that we had 'gotten around pretty quick'. "Quickly, quickly!" I was tempted to answer, but nudged just in time! I chose not to embark on the whole sentence, starting with the 'gotten', even before being discouraged to make any comment!
The rabbits would not have enjoyed the weather this morning as they would have ended up looking like drowned rats, a preferred participial adjective Samantha would have liked to have used to take care of the rodent that cost her so much on Monday. However, despite those states around us having suffered so much this weekend, with floods, storms and other nasty meteorological effects, it looks like we are heading into calmer climes. This does not mean that I will be any less adverse in my actions! Much as I do not like to use my posts to promote or demote, I would thoroughly recommend the film, Peter Rabbit, to those of all ages. It was fun! In the meantime, I am headed to the kitchen, to reek havoc with a number of ingredients I bought this weekend, to satisfy the culinary desires of all creatures, baring those who actually enjoy rubber piping and metallic paint, and shall be sure to try and mix all well together for ............ another story!
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