I pick up the Cape Cod Times and find an article,
5 Things To Do When It Rains on the Cape
1. Shop Til You Drop
Okay, not to be a snob, but when you live in New York you can
shop til you drop. Here, there are a few good stores, but I wouldn’t say
there are so many that I could shop til I drop. Besides, I’ve already
been to Maxwell’s the first day I arrived.
2. Get Some Culture
“The Cape is loaded with museums,” the article says. I
don’t often go to museums in NYC, so it’s unlikely I’d be enticed to going to
one here.
3. Catch a Flick
My mom’s not a big moviegoer, so this option is out.
4. Strike. Trade your flip-flops for bowling
shoes and hit the lanes.
No interest in this either.
5. Yum: Fill up on flapjacks.
Eat a lot of pancakes. Really. This is listed as one of five
activities for a rainy day.
It's more like a downpour than rain.
“I’m sure it’ll let up by dinner," my mom says. Why don’t we have fried clams at
Cooke’s in Mashpee? Their clams are voted
among the best on the Cape,” she adds. I agree, and all day look forward to our dinner.
But the rain keeps coming.
The kind that seems to sweep in opposite directions at once. The trees shimmer, and the news reports that some local power lines are down.
“I am not driving in
this. And you aren’t either,” my mother
announces early in the afternoon.
We
play gin, read some, and have lunch. But
the rain doesn't let up.
“I have plenty to eat in the
house. I’m telling you right now, if it
continues like this, we are not going out.”
I look outside later and think, this is perfectly drivable weather. Plus,
where we’d be going for dinner is only 15 minutes away on one straight
highway.
“We are NOT driving on
151. It is dangerous. And the road always
gets flooded.” My mother is adamant.
By 5:15 we are reviewing the
contents of my mom’s freezer, cabinets, and refrigerator.
None of her offerings appeal
to me.
“I
could make some lamb loins, and a baked potato.” (We are invited to a barbecue
tomorrow night.)
“What
about a BLT?”
“Would
you like eggs for dinner?”
“I
know. I have frozen pizza from Costco.
It’s delicious, and I have stuff for a salad.”
“I
can make a casserole of pasta with cheese.”
“What
about cabbage soup? I have some in the
freezer; you like that.”
I look out the window and
see that the rain is slowing down.
I try again and this time my
mother relents. She agrees to drive over to the local fish market, where we’ll
pick up lobster salad for dinner. No
nice clothes. No make-up. No prep at all for going out. We are still dressed in running clothes from
our morning walk.
Once in the car, driving
seems less threatening.
“Okay, do you want to drive
over to Cooke’s for dinner?” my mom asks.
And so we do. The fried clams are great. And the drive isn’t bad at all.
We get home and the rain
picks up again. We are safe inside, just
as the internet goes out.
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