Sunday Afternoons

If you are a child of the 80's, you might know the song, "It's Just Another Manic Monday."  Just like the song's lyrics, "I wish it were Sunday," ring true for me, too.

Oh, how I love Sundays!  Take today for example:  late September complete with cats napping in the warm sun and open windows with curtains billowing from what is very soon going to be a crisp breeze.  I'll take this weather any day, but on Sundays, it "feels" different.  Even this room looks different which is saying a lot since during the week I work from home in this very spot.  How else can I explain it better than to say that the energy is just different.  It's brighter.  It's sunnier.  It's free-er.

My favorite Sunday afternoons are typically preceded by going to church followed by brunch, preferably with a lovely coffee and a mimosa or two. Think a sunny, informal neighborhood joint and eggs cooked just right.  Back in my single days I longed to be married to a man who would enjoy this exact routine as much as me, and I'm so happy to say that we said "I do," so we do (enjoy this Sunday routine, that is)!  As a bonus, we even listen to the re-broadcast of "A Prairie Home Companion" on the radio. Oh, utopia! 

Once we're back home, out come the flannel PJ pants, t-shirt and those obnoxious fluffy socks with skid-proof pads.  Okay, today it was a bit too warm for all the layers, but you get the point.  In either case, while I'm sure my husband would prefer something a little less "homey," he lets me indulge.

In my unattached days, I kept the rest of the afternoon quiet so I could listen to my thoughts, the wind rustling through the dry leaves, and the occasional car that whizzes by.  Quiet.  Sitting on the couch with legs curled under me skimming over cookbooks.  Compiling a shopping list.  Browsing Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel sites online, an upgraded experience from flipping through the old-school mail order catalogs.  Imagining the possibilities.  (Maybe new curtains?)

In my single days, my quiet "I don't have to run day" afternoon extended until about 7:00 PM, just in time for PBS's "Nature" followed by "Masterpiece Theater."  Now, with a husband and his love for Hi-Def TV and surround sound, the quiet afternoon is a memory, a compromise of trading in single life for a relationship.  Turns out, though, that I like my brunch with coffee, mimosas and my husband better than the quiet, and PBS is better in Hi-Def with surround sound.