I spent my childhood in upstate New York, a place where we had all four seasons to their fullest. In Spring, blossoms bloomed, Summer was hot and sticky, Fall was an actual autumn, and Winter was freaking freezing. But the one thing that made those winter months bearable was the promise of a snow day.
On snowy mornings, my brother and I would huddle in front of the radio, fingers crossed as they went through the long list of cancellations and delays, waiting to hear the five best words ever uttered on the radio,
“Wappingers Central School District – Closed”
These days would cause us great joy, my father not so much. I now understand his distress.
Friday, The Boyfriend had a snow day. A large chunk of Provence was being blanketed by snow and it was decided, that navigating down a snowy, icy mountain on a Friday just wasn’t worth it.
He was very excited about his day off, “What should we do today?”
“Well I don’t know what you’re going to do, but I’m going to do the laundry, some ironing, and vacuum the floor.”
I’m a routine kind of girl, and homeboy was messing with my Monday – Friday routine.
He looked like a sad child so I decided to bake him brownies. Baking seemed like a snow day kind of thing to do.
But every twenty seconds, “Can I eat now, can I eat now, can I eat now?”
This unexpected day off threw The Boyfriend for a loop. He didn’t know what to do with himself except not sit still.
Instead of just having Fifty following me around the house, I had The Boyfriend too. I moved, they moved. They followed and paced the floor.
I was getting dangerously close to googling “indoor activities for children.”
The Boyfriend wanted to play chess but he had to settle with playing against the computer. He keeps begging me to learn but as I have some serious competitive issues I need to work on (like if I don’t win, all hell breaks loose) I think it’s best if I don’t.
Playing chess on the computer can only keep one occupied for so long.
He walked, circling the living room and began to say absurd things like, “Halle Berry wants me. Don’t be jealous”. This confirmed his spiral into cabin fever induced lunacy.
“Why don’t you go outside? Maybe you can play rugby in the snow?”
He couldn’t find anyone to play with, but luckily he bumped into some of the local old ladies and they asked him to join their card game. For the record, I don’t believe this ‘bumped into’ story one bit. I think he stuck his head in the door of the community centre and invited himself, but however it happened, don’t care, he was getting out of my hair and I encouraged him to take his furry little friend with him.
“Yes, please go. Keep the old ladies company.”
So off he went to play cards with the senior citizens in the mini community centre next door. He likes to go because all the old ladies bring him cookies. The Boyfriend is a sucker for a cookie (Re: food whore).
An hour later they returned. I made some hot chocolate and put on a DVD.
I guess all that pacing, following, and card playing tuckered them out, because a few minutes after the hot chocolate and brownies…
And I got a break.
bisou
It's Me, Sara Louise 
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