3 posts tagged “spring”

So what is it about sitting on the stoop or in front of your house on a gorgeous spring and summer day? My mother thinks it's ghetto. Maybe in a way it is, especially in relation to my block. Though I live in the city, with the exception of the public housing complex down the street from me and a corner store here and maybe there, my neighborhood is very residential. Lawns, yards, parks, trees, houses, mini mansions, cherry blossoms, semi-detached homes and ajoining homes. Even though this part of DC holds its own affluent residents and special appeal there are still traces of real city life; i.e. people sitting on their stoops - porch or not.

A few years ago a single mom and her three young children lived across the street from us. The children would spend all their time in front of the house, despite the fact that they had a nice size backyard. Other than the occassional climbing the neighbor's tree, the children pretty much stayed on their own front, but it did baffle me for a while why they didn't play in the backyard. Especially as they displayed the typical "urban" picture of braiding each other's hair on the front steps.  

Growing up, me and the neighbors my age pretty much played all throughout our yards. However, there was Mikey and his crew that would run their skateboards up and down our block and rode them clear right on to the Ridge Road Rec Center on a good day. A smile actually graces my face when I think about those days. One of Mikey's friends still comes around. Grown of course. Comes back to see his grandparents and mother that still live on this block. One day we had the opportunity to speak - on the account he had received some of our mail by mistake. Took him a minute for him to remember who I was - some little "bratty" kid in Osh Gosh that use to watch them skateboard and taunt them, hoping they would fall over. Still, we did more than just play on our fronts.

Oddly enough, today as I took the Snickerdoodle outside to play, I didn't want to head to the back of the house to sit on the newly built deck.The deck is nice, but..... not my element. At least not today.  I wanted to be on the front.  As I watched over the Snickerdoodle as she ran around in the yard and rode her tricycle it hit me why the front is so appealing.

Community interaction.

Neighbors working in their yards stoping to have a chit chat. Teenage kids walking up from Simple City or the bus stop down the street, cutting through our streets to head home or to the "rec." Interesting to overhear their "gift of gab." Neighbors from a block over driving, take a second to blow their horn, wave and wish you a good day.

Then there is the true tell-tale sign that warm days are here and the promise of more are to come.........

The thunder of the bikes and ATVs.

Though those dudes and chics mostly profile as they ride up and down the street for hours, it's part of the interaction. Spring (and summer) would be so lost without it.

I missed these warm days....

It's these days I savor the most cause they don't last. They never do.

So I lied to myself. I just knew this week of spring break I would be buried in a book somewhere or starting my research paper. It's not that I didn't attempt to get any work done. I tried. I fired up the computer, read over a few things and got sleepy. So that ended that. I reasoned with myself that I was tired and though I want to end this semester with a bang I can't afford to overwork myself like I've done in past semesters.

So what exactly have I've done this week?

The first couple of days I piddled. I actually got bored and missed school. Imagine that. By Wednesday I picked up the pace. Wenesday was my cousin's memorial service. I still haven't blogged about that whole situation, but really, its actually pointless. My cousin, unfortuantely, was buried in Georgia last week, away from her immediate family. Of course the family has been in an uproar about it, really it's been an upsetting situation in her last few days on Earth, but I think we pretty much got over it. The service was nice, even though I didn't make it to cousin "T's" place for the repast. I had to high tail it back home.

Back home I had to wait for the Maytag repair guy. So there is a problem with the new refridgerator that was installed once the renovations in the kitchen area were complete. Thankfully it's not on the recall list that went out last week. It's actually a small problem with the ice maker, to which the repair guy, who came out two weeks ago, said it's something going on with how it's made in the factory. Basically once it is fix the fridge is good to go... as in the Maytag world "for life."

Needless to say there was a mix up and a hiccup to which the Maytag guy never made it on Wednesday. Now I'm sitting her today waiting for him to show between 1 & 5 pm.

Yesterday I made a special trip to campus as I learned via email that another refund check was cut. This time it was a nice chunk that I can invest in. My plan is to split the amount in half. Put half back into fall tuition and the other half I'm keeping. I need it. It came right on time! I was sitting here on Monday biting and spitting nails because I was getting nervous. What was left in my reserves was dwiddling and again I was faced with trying to pay another cell bill and plus figuring out furniture expsense for both me and the Snickerdoodle.

I can breathe easy.

I started scoping out furniture for the Snickerdoodle and I even looked into the bed I've been wanting from Crate and Barrel for the past four years. Lucky me, I found that that the bed is now being sold at the outlet price! I can't let this pass me by.

Tomorrow I'm suppose to be heading to Haymarket, VA for my cousin "C's" housewarming. It's about an hour outside of DC, towards the Middleburg, VA area. I'm just worried about the time as I have to make sure I am back at a decent hour. Sunday is pretty big deal. The community/social organization that my mother is a member of is having their anniversary champange brunch. It's a big whoopty doo since my mother has been part of the planning committee and I'm suppose to be covering the event for a local publication.

Then I turn around on Monday to cover an arts event hosted by the city at the Kennedy Center. Then Tuesday resumes my semester.

Maybe I needed this week to rest. I just hate the feeling of knowing what I put off today it awaits me tomorrow.

Something about this song makes me smile.

Makes me bop my head

Makes me feel butterflies

Something about this song seems to usher out the cold.

Some how I see days of my 'round da way attair... jeans, my brown leather Aldo peep toe heels, silver hoops  and a throwback monogramed T - like my Strawberry Shortcake T - "Life is Simply Delicious."

Something about this tune...

Reminds me that spring is on the horizon.

My season of strawberries and pineapples

Honey Dew Melon...

Bring it on....