Rain!

It’s late June.  In fact it’s June 28th and we have rain in Northern California.  I hear the last time this happened this late was something like 20 years ago.  Daytime highs are unseasonable cool – the 70’s!  This weekend it will heat up back into the 100’s just in time for the 4th of July.

I always welcome the rain, especially when it brings a brief respite to the stifling heat around here.  Yesterday we opened up all the windows and let the mild temperature and pre-storm breeze blown in and cool down the house.  The sounds of rain on the roof and cleansing smell that accompanies this rare downpour  wafted in the open kitchen window as I prepared dinner for the two of us.  Beef Stroganoff was the faire.  It is still cool and cloudy this morning as I plan to bake a pound cake recipe I’ve been threatening to try for some weeks.  Cranking up the oven is not something I usually do this time of year, so I better take advantage of the coolness outside while I can.

I recall another unusual rain from a long time ago.  It may have been June, not quite sure.  It was 1968 – I was 18.  And it rained like hell while we were at Disneyland!

My friend Bob’s brother in law worked for Bank of America.  It was one of those corporate night’s at The Magic Kingdom where they stop letting in regular folks about 8 pm and allow friends and family of B of A employees have the run of the place.  It was rained cats and dogs all evening.  Despite the watery deluge, the park was open save for a few ‘attractions’ that must close when it’s raining…most of the outside rides.

Something that was up and running that night was a new ride called Pirates of the Caribbean.  It had recently opened to much fanfare.  It may have been the first time I experienced ‘Pirates’.  The rain didn’t matter.  We rode the ride then ate at Aunt Jamima’s Pancake house across the way.

The “we” in this case was Bob and his date, my date (his 16 year old sister) and myself.  We trapsed and slogged around Disneyland for a few hours, slipping and sliding at times on the wet cement and wooden steps leading to some of the rides.  There was an umbrella or two at hand, but they kept getting in the way while standing the in lines.  My date’s real rabbit fur hat didn’t fare well in the wet as it began to smell like, well, a wet dog (or rabbit)!

Our evening ended a bit early, around midnight, and we drove home with memories of one of the more unusual times at one of my favorite places, thanks to the rain.

Today, this morning, it is raining and I have a day off to savor the rain.  It may be a slight nuisance to some but it’s a joy to others.  My daughter lives in Seattle, so she is no stranger to rain…it is a daily occurrence about 9 months of the year.  She and husband Roth and son Rowan are looking forward to a summer of sunny days, something they haven’t had much of all winter – it’s been unusually wet in the Northwest, even for Seattle.

As for Loretta, she’s not as big a fan of the rain as I am.  I think it’s her upbringing in Santa Barbara that ilicits this disdain for the wet stuff.  It’s not that she hates the rain, it’s that she would rather be outside in the sun.  Me?  Not so much.  I don’t hate the sun, I just have a hard time with the stifling heat and oppressive humidity.  Living in the valley of Northern California, I think what I most hate is the the $300+ electric bills for air conditioning that accompany this time of year.  Just another fact of life one must accept in these parts.

The rain, I will enjoy it while it is here.  It will go away after today and make way for the heat coming this weekend.  It won’t return until late fall at the earliest unless we get blessed with a summer thunderstorm or two of course.