Things I Miss

Pop as seen through the window by a visiting pal of his

Visiting Daddy
I’m strong enough to make the trip now BUT his nursing home has been locked down for the past month. And now, more or less, so are we.

I expect, if the sane, NOT-on-the-take health officials win the battle with the Idiot in Chief and his band of fellow greedheaded you-and-your-grandpa-should-die-so-I-can-hoarde-MORE-wealth, we’re gonna be shuttered until May at the earliest.

I miss going out to lunch
That was my big treat to myself – lunchie out. Ten and I were regulars at La Paloma on Taco Tuesdays and, once a week, we’d have fish and chips (or, as my dear, gone too damn soon, pal Tom called the dish: fission chips). Twice a week we’d take our mid-day meal in a decent yet relatively inexpensive restaurant.

Walking along the seawall
Yes, I CAN still take a stroll there BUT, now that everyone’s working from home or has been laid off, there are ramblers EVERYwhere. On a nice, sunny day it's practically a crowd scene. Bars and shops are shut. Browsing and buying – an American hobby.  Quaffing a pint whilst staring at sportsball on a pub’s big screen teevee – another great American pastime.

Going to the Y
As I elliptical away, a shit-ton of food related guilt is alleviated (I should NOT have had that third piece of ‘za!). Rage and anxiety is lessened in every lap of the track. And then there’s the pool. Swimming laps, something I’ve not done since last summer, is the PERFECT meditative exercise.

The library
DUH!

The bookstore
DUH redux!

Having dinner and Jamo with Hillel

 Going to the movies.
Granted, I’ve not gone out to a picture show in, yeah, prolly a year. I missed Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame (LURV Scarlett Johanssen), Terminator: Dark Fate, Fast Color, Freaks and I Am Mother. Yeah, they’re likely all available off Netflix (or wherever Jen and Oni rent and download). That’s NOT the point though! I love the whole movie experience – the sinful buttered popcorn, the seats – like big Poppa chairs – that, near fully, recline, the dark, dark theater, the giant screen and PREVIEWS. Christ I love previews.

Nantasket Beach
I’m finally feeling well enough to have a nice, leisurely, low tide stroll AND the weather’s getting warmer so I wouldn’t freeze my pretty ta-tas off. This time of year, Nantucket is sublime.

Now then, the beach may very well be open (I can’t find status online) BUT I don’t want to drive the whole way down there (30-40 minutes) to find it either crowded with other walkers OR closed.

Mini Vacas
Up to Portsmouth, New Hampshire for an overnight – dinner, galleries, independent booksellers!

Boothbay Harbor, Maine for a weekend visit with my cousin Gary (Della’s brother!) and his awesome wife Dawn!

A ferry ride to P-town for a couple days of galleries, fab food, people watching and hikes over the dunes.

A couple nights up in the White Mountains!
Down to NYC for MORE art – the Met, the MoMA, the Guggenheim, the Whitney, the Natural History Museum!

At the same time that I’m missing friends and certain activities, I AM getting in a LOT of reading and painting. I'm, and this is surprising to lazy-ass me, doing my PT exercises on the regular. I've rounded the recovery corner and am, at least somewhat (according to Ten) less kvetchy and whiney.

By the time this lockdown is over, I should be damn near perfect, right? RIGHT!?!!