Advantage: Rain

"...I like rain. Curtains and draperies and endless rain going on and on, pattering, rustling, spattering on the roof, not like the challenge of sunshine that moves hour by hour through the room, over the window ledge and the carpet, marking afternoon on the rocking-chair and finally vanishing on the chimney breast, red as an indictment. Today's a respectable and grey day, an anonymous day outside time; it doesn't count". - Tove Jansson, "The Squirrel"

I just thought I'd give anyone who was still dropping by a treat by transcribing some words from a real writer. Someone with bona-fide talent who I am incredibly, incredibly grateful to have discovered when visiting my grandmother's home country. Or country of origin is a better way of saying it I suppose since she lived in the states much longer than she lived in Finland.

It's been like that for a couple of days in the NY area though, hasn't it? Grey days existing outside of time? I love waking up in the small hours at this time of year, laying in bed and listening to the rain flicker off the shingles outside my bedroom and blatter in the mud puddles around the bushes in our garden. It fills me with a sense of peace.

Sunshine, while beautiful, requires action. It does charge through the windows and bark at you to get out, do something, do chores, go to the beach, cook something on the grill, check your garden, dammit how can you stay inside on a day like this? Sunshine is not for resting, not at all.

Grey days, drizzly days, days like today are their own special pleasure. They let you open the screen door and watch and listen. Things slow down like they do during a good, hard snowstorm.

But now I'm just rewriting what Tove wrote, aren't I? And half as well to boot. I've gotta learn to shut up.