Remember being at a party or a bar or in a class when you saw That Guy across the room — and he was looking at you, too? And how, all of a sudden, the day got just special, kinda exciting? And your heart started beating just a little bit faster?
Maybe he inched toward you, maybe you inched toward him — can’t remember exactly who moved first, but pretty soon there you were and there he was, standing right next to you. Your heart was pounding so’s that’s all you could hear. You were too giddy to speak, hoping he’d go first.
You held your breath; he opened his mouth and –
Nothing. He had nothing, really, to say. He was bland. He was boring. He wasn’t That Guy, after all.
Ladies and gentlemen — meet Earl.
Not the bad boy Earl we’ve been obsessing over for days, but a kinder, gentler Earl who merely grazes our southern fingertips with his lips instead of moving in for a whirlwind deep kiss before leaving us, broken and powerless.
And it’s okay. Yes, it is. We saw waves this afternoon, and they were plenty big enough for me.
Maybe we’ll get some rain. We’ll probably get some wind, but it’s still pretty wimpy out there. Honestly, I will be happier without tree limbs crashing down. And with the electricity staying on. I’m still a little spacy from the root canal I had this morning so I’ll probably go to bed early. A little bland and boring myself…
But I fully intend to be on the beach first thing in the morning to survey whatever Earl has left behind.
Oh, look. Isn’t that Gaston in the corner there, by the punch bowl? I wonder if he could be That Guy?
Glad to hear Earl turned out not to be that guy for you. Sorry to hear you had a root canal though. Enjoy your adventure tomorrow.
Thanks! Polly and I have been to the beach this morning to check things out, but we didn’t even get rain last night, let alone wind.
The surfers were sure out this morning though. I’ll post some pictures later.
I’m hoping Earl is bland and boring, through and through, for your sake.
You very cleverly humanized the character of the storm.
Earl was worse than bland and boring — he stood us up altogether. We really needed rain, and he simply headed north with it.
“Whooooo” breathing sigh of relief for you! Know you wanted rain, but that would have been just too much. Now you are ready for fall.
Thanks! I’m a lot more ready for fall than I ever was when I lived in New England, where I realized that fall, no matter how lovely, was followed by winter — to me the kiss of death.
Oh well, all that hype for nothing.
At least you the high surf to appreciate. Glad you didn’t have tree limbs falling through your roof.
I’m glad Earl turned into a wimp. Yeah, the tree limbs through the roof would have been not so much fun.
Anything strange or note worthy wash up on the beach? I love walks on the beach after a storm. You never know what you will find. I’m glad that earl skipped the NC squirrels. Although it would have given you a great excuse to have the tree guys back out to your place.
I was surprised at how little washed up on the beach. Practically no shells and no seaweed. I was expecting some interesting stuff myself.
Don’t worry — the tree guys will be back! And you’ll be sure to hear about it when they come….
It looks like Earl turned into a “girl!”