After bumming around campus for a bit Sunday afternoon, Ana, Percy, and I took to a local park. Percy won the spitting contest and I almost knocked Ana off an overlook. We got some excellent photos and Percy told us about the time the ducks flew away with the lake. Being by the water obviously made him want to be on the water (or I might just be projecting) because he suggested, "There's this guy that we can call... and he'll take us across the river in his boat... and there's this restaurant..." With plans like that, the evening can't but end well.
So we hopped into my car and drove to "the river" -- which meant following darkening country roads to a sketchy-looking boat launch. I, at least, knew that Percy's family has their boat there; I think Ana was considerably more sketched out. We left the car there and walked up the road to another dock, where we awaited the arrival of the boatman. He was supposed to meet us at 5:45, but "he's not always on time," according to Percy.
It was freezing, and I am always cold, so we had grabbed my Snuggie (courtesy of Wendy!) to keep us warm on the dock. In case you are wondering, yes, three people can fit in one Snuggie, even when one person wears both sleeves. If you aren't creating a mental picture yet, please do : three 20-odd year olds, wrapped arms wrapped around each other, under a Snuggie, on a dark dock, down an empty street, staring out at the water.
Rest assured, loyal readers, that my adventures with Percy always end well.
Eventually, the boatman arrived, in a covered pontoon boat with space heaters and Jimmy Buffet playing on the radio. The boat smelled warm and clean and the boatman was a gentleman. And when we arrived across the river, I recognized the marina where I had stopped with Percy's family before. The restaurant was empty, but a nice place. As we walked in, Taylor Swift's "Mine" came on : "Do you remember we were sitting there by the water? You put your arms around me, for the first time... You are the best thing that's ever been mine!" And we acquired a new song.
After a delicious dinner of shrimp and clams (Ana split every meal she had that weekend with someone, so that she ended up trying at least 2 menu items from everywhere, and I don't think she did it on purpose), I was fairly certain that life couldn't get better. The only thing that made my night better was that we dropped off 2 other sets of people on the boat ride back, so that our time on the water got extended.
If you are waiting for a disaster, you can stop. I told you, such a night can't help but end well.
Yeah, sometimes I wonder about Taylor Swift. She writes a whole lot of songs about stealing boyfriends/wanting someone else's boyfriend/getting her boyfriend stolen. I mean, it happens. But it makes me wonder about her.
ReplyDeleteThe new CD has a much different tone than the others - still fun to listen to, but not quite the same.