Mid-June Jamboree
Help! I cannot stop this Mudslide from swirling on my tongue and oozing down my throat! I am talking about smooth chocolate ice cream with a ribbon of rich fudge and chocolate chips. If I ever get to the Oregon coast, I will surely stop at the Tillamook Creamery to try out the flavors “packed with more cream than the industry standard” that are unavailable at my local grocers.
After finally placing my spoon in the sink and capping the carton, I pick up The Racketeer and continue reading chapter five where I left off when I got my craving for an afternoon frosty treat. John Grisham makes me chuckle when I read “losers who are too stupid to realize they are losers” and “a thick-chested, potbellied boy who tries to swagger but has too much tonnage on his hips.” I am aware, however, that eventually, I may struggle to put the book down just like I did my spoon because I will become engrossed in its suspense.
For over twenty years Grisham has been entertaining me, ever since I made it a goal to read all his adult books in order. The Racketeer came out in 2012, so I have quite a few years of publication to catch up to. If I am not careful, I may need to catch up on my sleep tomorrow afternoon instead of indulging in frozen sweetness.
It might surprise you that aside from his thrillers, Grisham has written three novels with a sports theme in addition to Skipping Christmas, which became Christmas with the Kranks on the big screen. He has also published a series of crime thrillers for young adults (which I have not read) based on a thirteen-year-old wannabe lawyer like Nancy Drew or one of the Hardy Boys. I sometimes struggle to post twice a month, and this guy-genius keeps pumping out a novel about every year and a half.
By evening, my feel-good fiesta evolves into nighttime viewing. Currently, I am captivated by The Clinic, a 2003-2009 drama centering around the work and private lives of the doctors, professionals, and staff at a medical practice in Dublin. I found it on a streaming platform, where I can watch it for free, though I am forced to suffer through ads that interrupt occasionally.
One evening, however, I watched To Olivia, a 2021 British film about Roald Dahl and his wife Patricia Neal starring Hugh Bonneville of Downton Abbey fame and Keeley Hawes, another of my favorite English actors. Oddly enough, I was not searching for anything related to the author of James and the Giant Peach, whom I mentioned in “Peachism and the Art of Being Happy,” but I came upon it accidentally and was delighted. Hurray for serendipity!
Sauvignon Blanc sails smoothly down my throat as I text one of my boys during the commercial breaks. Sometimes I use an interlude to cruise through recent photos on my phone. Gone are the days of perusing photo albums but blessedly, I can see my grandson on his third birthday, or his six-year-old cousin who lost his first tooth, without waiting for prints to arrive in the mail.
Tomorrow morning will come quickly despite having to wake at least once during the night to shuffle to the loo. I will stretch slowly as I roll out of bed, thank the Good Lord for making it through another night, then head to the kitchen to relish a cup of tea and watch the sun illuminate the sky. Eventually, I will reach for celebratory accessories, perhaps a muffin, a book, or even my exercise bike as I attempt to make merry another day in the gala month of June.
