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They were hitting us like bullets. Caught in the middle, we couldn’t fight back. My 13-year-old daughter’s eyes were filled with terror as she gazed through the window. When my son and I managed to break away, we dashed into the house. Panting and out of breath, I plopped my weary body into a warm fluffy chair. Subsequently, I tried to persuade Danielle to leave the comfort of our home. However, she would only stare through the same window.
Was it a raging hurricane or typhoon? No, it was just a rainy day in Southern California. We SoCals are ill-prepared for even the slightest drizzle. Poor city planning causes flooded streets that engulf stalled cars. Traffic crawls. Panic reigns. When dark gray clouds invade the usual clear blue skies, people jump into their cars, pick up their loved ones and drive to the safety of their own homes. Families anxiously gather around the television, munch on popcorn and watch the weather report.
Eventually we all have to go outside, as work and school still exist. Life has to go on and everyone has unique ways of coping. Unlike Danielle, many kids manage by creating havoc. Even well-mannered teens rush out of their classes to leap into puddles, in a contest of who can make the biggest splash. Lovers quarrel about who will get the “good” umbrella. However, the winners will discover that by the time they get out of the car, and open the darn thing up, they’re already drenched. It actually takes less time to just cover their heads and run for shelter.
For me, a rainy day like today is a Costco day. A typical “dry” experience at a warehouse store is as follows: Seek out and stalk a poor woman who is just leaving the store, follow her to her car, and then grab the parking space when she leaves. Squeeze through the store aisles packed with carts and people. If one dares to stop without signaling, I ram into her and whisper choice words under my breath as I back up and pull away. I ceased with the hand gestures a while ago, as I realized that she might sneak up on me and put a gun to my head. Crowds do this to us. When I’m done shopping, I grab a book that catches my eye from the book department and proceed to the checkout line. By the time I’m at the final chapter of the 300-page book, I’m at the head of the line. I finish the book by the time I get to the exit door.
However, today was different. I pulled into their gas station, with no wait. There was even a cover to shelter me from the rain; I better not let that secret out. After pumping the relatively cheap gas, I drove into one of many close parking spaces. Once inside, my cart sprinted through the aisles. As I headed to the front of the store, cashiers begged me to stop at their empty register. However, my perfect Costco experience was interrupted by a car waiting for me to leave my spot. With so many spaces available, this man had to pick mine. Heaven forbid he gets a few more drops on his umbrella by choosing an empty spot a few yards away.
I would venture to an amusement park just to avoid the usual crowds. However, since we all become brain-dead on the freeways during rainy weather, I’ll just go back home.
What happened to strolling in the rain, the clear air invigorating our nostrils? The drops hitting against the umbrella was a soothing sound. Now rain is such an anomaly. I know that this sounds bizarre and rather self-destructive, but I think I’ll grab my raincoat and umbrella, step outside and enjoy those memories.
