Last weekend Brooke and I headed out of town for the placid settings of South Haven, Michigan after my aunt generously offered the use of her condo there. We both took half-day Fridays to get a jump on traffic and and could hardly wait to get away from the city for a few days. Unfortunately, a resilient strain of metropolitan stress remained in my system for a bit.
We arrived after a fairly easy two-hour drive but there was some confusion about the condo unit number and which parking space it was assigned. Tightly wound and eager to begin the weekend, I tried to call relatives for info but the cell coverage was spotty and nobody was answering. Then we tried asking other condo tenants (I hesitate to say "locals") but even they couldn't provide reliable intel since several tenants' spaces had been reassigned due to recent construction. What's more, these people who seemed to live in their swimming trunks could only provide answers to a simple question couched in the context of their life story.
The whole episode took maybe fifteen minutes, but to be so close and feel so far away was agonizing. Just as my head was morphing into a cartoon thermometer, I got the required information and we kicked off the weekend proper. As fast as we could change into fashionable swimming attire, Brooke and I were poolside enjoying lovely beverages.
Sitting there, we met and talked with several other tenants and were completely powerless against their friendliness. Once they knew it was our first time there, everyone was eager to share suggestions of sights, shops and restaurants. Despite my acute case of mindyourowndamnbusinessism – known to many people who live, commute and work in a huge city – it wasn't long before I found myself beginning answers to simple questions like "Where you from?" with "Well, the great grandparents on my father's side hail from a small town called Swinford in County Mayo, Ireland ..."
The rest of the weekend was perfect. Mornings spent tooling around town, afternoons by the pool or in the lake and late dinners at the recommended local spots. One of the unexpected treats was seeing the sun go down over Lake Michigan – I'd only ever seen it from the western shore looking east.
By the time we reluctantly left on Sunday afternoon, we agreed the weekend was a much-needed break from condo construction, sick dogs and people who refuse to walk up escalators. After our weekend there, South Haven seems like it's missing an "e" after the "H".
4 comments:
I love the angle of the picture you took for this blog. You are truly a man after my own heart.
It is amazing how many people want to share their life story - even if you don't want to hear it. You are right that that takes a bit getting used to. No one is in a hurry to answer your quick question with a quick answer. They would rather share their personal insights on the matter instead.
As for the suggestions (dinner, sites, etc.) from "locals", take them to heart. They are usually good.
Glad to hear that you were able to get away. I know that Aunt Eileen loves it there and it appears that you had a good time too.
Thanks for the update. Love to all . . .
I am so glad that you had that opportunity, enjoyed it so much and took in as much of the town as you could fit in one short weekend. Aunt Ei loved the picture and thank-you note and was delighted that you had a good time. Aunt Eileen has always said that it is like South Heaven!
This post would have been a lot better if it would have just said "Michigan" under the picture. Instead we had to read about your ENTIRE weekend.
ps-love the blog
i miss it and want to go back every weekend! yes!
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