Cocktail Hour

Fumbling around, tossing old shoes out and rummaging through old clothes, I made my way into the closet to discover the those four words blurted out by every woman alive,
“I HAVE NO CLOTHES!”
The leather boots from last year were crinkled up from being sat upon by other shoes.
“I can’t wear these!” Tossing the pair of shoes that I loved so much.
“Madelene!!!” I call out.
“What’s wrong sweetie?”
“We have to go shopping.”

Subconsciously, Madelene starts to put her hands above her pockets, holding them tightly, as if I were about to attack her for the plastic. I know what you’re thinking--you mean her purse, right?

No. She doesn’t carry a purse. She carries around a little folder-like wallet. This thing is so packed (not with money) but with business cards, receipts, credit cards and other miscellaneous items. She keeps it closed with a headband. When we go out for dinner, she throws her ugly wallet inside my nice purse. It’s a lesbian tradition I guess. I'm just thankful she doesn't have one of those chain wallets.

“We’ll go Monday on our day off, how about that?”
“Sure.”
I replied, as I sat there on the floor of my closet on a Saturday evening, exhausted from the discoveries I made. The thought of shopping for new fall clothes, and new boots, made me feel ten times better. I felt as though she had just given me a shot of euphoria. Madelene always knows what to say at the right time. Nothing is impossible for this woman. If something is wrong, let’s fix it. If you’re not happy with this, let’s do that. Okay, so she babies me a tad; well, okay, a lot, but who doesn’t like being pampered once in a while?

Monday rolls around, and I’m rolling on the other side of the bed. I bump into Madelene who is snoring away like a lumberjack.
“Mad? You up?” I ask, knowing that is the stupidest question someone can ask.
She lifts her little night mask up to her forehead, so she can see me. Yes, she wears one of these lovely satin night masks.
“Huh? You okay? What time is it?” She rubs her eyes, trying not to absorb the light so quickly.
“10am.” I said. We never sleep in that late, however the night before we were enjoying some cocktails with my sister and her boyfriend. Madelene was clearly hungover. I need a fast remedy for her, ASAP! Now if you all know me personally, or have been reading my blogs, you know what that ‘quick fix’ remedy is…
Yep. Deb’s famous bloody marys. I decided to go downstairs to invite my mother to come outside with us on this beautiful ‘almost afternoon’, to have a cocktail with us. She was more than willing to join us. I waited for Madelene outside on our patio. Mom and I were talking and already starting our quick fix, although we had no problem to fix. We don’t like others to drink alone. Madelene comes galloping downstairs and opens the door to come out. It took her nearly thirty minutes to come out of that bathroom. Her hangover remedy was there to greet her hello. Whenever Madelene and I bring my parents to the beach house in the Hamptons, we usually end up drinking lots, and playing scrabble. We could sit out on that deck, overlooking the ocean and playing scrabble for hours on top of hours sometimes.
“Scrabble ma?”
“Alright!”
She says.
By that time, I was almost done with my drink, the sun was shining brightly, and their was this fall-like breeze that was enough to make my thoughts turn around to,
“Ugh, I can’t imagine being inside a mall on a day like this.”
I think Madelene had that thought as well. We ended up staying outside the entire day enjoying the beautiful weather. It won’t be too long until the blistering cold makes us prisoners of our own home, so why not take advantage? We’ll go shopping next Friday evening.

We all start playing scrabble. Madelene and my mother are brains. They can get any crossword puzzle, and trivial question answered, and they usually end up making me look like a big loser at the end. Shush- don’t even say it… Maybe it was the alcohol or the little sleep that Madelene got, but she got up the nerve to put this word out on the scrabble board. “I can’t believe you placed those letters down in front of my mother!!! Madelene!” I said, laughing and crouching down low in embarrassment at the same time.
“Oh come on Deb! We all know the real Madelene’s a sick pup.” Mom said, as she chuckled.
I was relieved that she didn’t give Madelene a cross-eyed look trying to figure out what really was on Madelene’s mind that morning. I’m still trying to figure that one out.

Occasionally I would run behind Madelene and take a peek at her letters. Happy to report, I was first place, leaving mom & Madelene in the dust! Results: (Please take note of the notepad and the name of where we got it.)
Shopping still awaits me, but I’m glad I gave that up to spend time with mom and Madelene. Later that evening, I felt as though I had a slight hangover from the afternoon cocktails. Do I keep drinking? Or do I just call it a night? I popped a Maalox and went to bed.

Little things such as spending time with family & loved ones mean much more than trekking down to the mall, doing errands, or finishing up small tasks at home. Things like that can wait. I feel that God intended for us to enjoy this life we have on earth; to enjoy the journey. It doesn’t matter how rich you are, what your job status is, or wishing for things that you don’t have—it’s “now” that’s important. To appreciate what we have 'today'.

Some good quotes from the bible:

Even so, I have noticed one thing, at least, that is good. It is good for people to eat well, drink a good glass of wine, and enjoy their work—whatever they do under the sun—for however long God lets them live. ~Ecclesiastes 5:18

Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don't have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless; it is like chasing the wind. ~Ecclesiastes 6:9

You probably think playing scrabble may be quite boring and dull. To me, it wasn’t about the game; it was about spending time with two people I care about. When we go out for dinner, it’s not about the food or the wine list; (although that wine list may come in handy!) it’s about the company you’re in. The fact that it can be taken away from us so quickly can blind us; leaving us to take for granted the blessings that God gave to us.

If you’re one of those people who have too much on their plate, you’re bombarded by work and other tasks in life, stop and spend some time with a loved one. Ask them to have lunch with you; take them out for a nice dinner—remember, we’re here for a short time; we may never get this chance again.