September 21, 2005

It Was a Fine Day for a Funeral *

But that's got nothing to do with the topic at hand. It was also a fine evening for suburban porch sitting.

There is an art to sitting on ones screened porch. It didn't take me long to develop my own style. I'm a natural. Comfortable chair. Cold beer. Good book. Mild evening. A lap full of Dudley.

Heaven.

The night air was full of sounds, quiet suburban sounds. Unobtrusive and familiar. Crickets. The occasional car in the distance. A child's voice from afar, followed by a dog barking. My neighbor calling her cat, "Kitty-kit-kit-kit-kit-kitty!"

The cat-calling inspired Dudley to come to full alert and charge out his pet door, crunching through the blanket of leaves that already litters the yard as he raced to the fence. He bow-woooed enthusiastically as only a basset hound can.

Since we all know practice makes perfect, porch sitting is one activity I will continue to practice even after the frost is on the pumpkin. I can already imagine being snuggled in a blanket with my girlfriend, listening to snow softly fall.

Heaven. To be continued.




* Line borrowed from a song by the band Disappear Fear , the title of which momentarily escapes me.

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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

MMMMmmmm. If you ever need any help with that please call me.

weese said...

yup. fire by the patio for us as the leaves begin to turn. (altho until we get some rain...we will not be burning anything).
still - i gotta get me one of those screened porches

SassyFemme said...

I love sitting on the front porch, but it's still way too hot. Once it cools a little I like to sit out there and read, or just sit and enjoy the sounds of life. Unfortunately, Fran never joins me because she hates the thought of bugs outside!

Career Guy said...

My spot is on our back deck. Problem is, it is getting dark sooner. Tonight it seemed like the sun went down and five minutes later it was pitch black. Our suburban noises are different. The guy in the back is likely to be cursing and belittling his children at the top of his voice. The son in law of the neighbor next to us will be revving his ATV, wafting blue smoke in my direction; and the guy on the other side will be on his sixth beer and bellowing at a visitor about some inconsequential thing. Yup--surburbia--nothing like it.

Suzanne said...

Screened porch = no bugs + lamplight for reading after dark.

John, dude, your neighbors sound like an interesting bunch. I think I prefer our quieter brand of suburbia!

Suzanne