I started my weekend out on Friday by going to a soccer game with Simeon, Lisa P. and her man-friend Jeff. It was really fun. We bought the cheap tickets planning to spend the game in the Widmer Brothers beer garden, which is right on the field, and right by the beer. But when we got there, all the tables were taken. So my super-sweet-talker-friend Lisa walks over to this guy (Hi Virgil!!) sitting all alone and ask him if he is expecting any company. He wasn’t so she asked him if he would mind if she joined him, along with a few friends. So he let us keep him company at the game and wouldn’t even let us buy him a beer for his generosity. Then after the game there was a surprise (to us anyway) fireworks display. Sim said it was fate making up for me missing the 4th of July! It was great. I went home quite buzzed and very happy.

Then Saturday Sim and I lounged around the house. Finally we decided we needed to go out on a date and do something fun. So we grabbed lunch at Stanford’s and a matinee showing of Garden State. All I can say is wow. The movie was incredible. I had heard really great things over at Tequila Mockingbird over a month ago, but didn’t think it would ever come to a theater near me. Then when we were trying to decide what movie to see and it was actually listed in my theater, I was all excited again. I pulled up the trailer to convince Sim that this was the movie for us to see. He saw all my excitement and said “what the hell, sure.” But once the movie was over, he was really glad he did. Zach Braff, the hella funny young guy on Scrubs is so incredible. He actually wrote, directed, and starred in the movie. Can you imagine that?! All I can say is it is so refreshing to watch a movie with real plot (that doesn’t hide behind special effects), touching moments, and pure hilarity that keeps you giggling for days. Sim and I were reading through some quotes from the movie and I was actually crying, I was laughing so hard. So go make the decision for yourself. Watch it and you will see.

Then we went home, hung out for a bit. Adam and Susie came by with the kids. We all had dinner, which was cut short sadly when Darcie fell climbing over the baby-gate at the top of the stairs and hurt her wrist. Who would have thought that something designed entirely to prevent kids from hurting themselves would actually be the thing to hurt them? Not I!

Sunday we laid around in pure Bateman fashion in our pajamas til afternoon and caught up on some good quality television. But was I the only one let down by the MTV VMA’s? I expect drama. I want controversy. But what I got was bored. I changed the channel part way through and watched the end of Charmed. What can I say? At least they have drama.

It’s amazing what the power of a smell can do to a person. You can be walking through a busy mall, determined and walking with purpose, then suddenly stopped in your tracks by a familiar smell. It can be food, cologne, flowers. And suddenly you are taken back to a familiar place, a better time. Your pace slows and you take the time to look around you and absorb life.

Some scents are intoxicating: my husband’s cologne, a campfire, white roses. I get butterflies in my stomach, weak in the knees, often goose bumps.

Others invoke comfort (and sometimes hunger): Fresh baked bread, waffle cones from Baskin-Robbins, kettle corn at the farmers market. I want to curl up with a good book and a blanket.

The more powerful smells can transport you back in time to relive a moment in the past. These are different for everyone. For me, the smell of an old baseball glove takes me back to playing softball with my dad. Chanel No. 5 reminds me of the last Christmas I was able to spend with my mother-in-law. Hot buttered popcorn always reminds me of my first job working at a movie theater. All these memories are tied inside a simple scent.

Today I am wearing my new Sweet Pea lotion from Bath & Body Works. It’s very comforting, soothing. Whenever things get stressful or aren’t going my way, I find myself breathing in deeply and letting the scent wash over me, in a way that only a smell can.

Oh, it has been so nice to have the rain back. I am a true Oregonian if there ever was one. I love everything about the rain: the way it sounds, the way it smells, how it waters my plants for me. It finally up and rained on Saturday night, after what seemed like ages of nothing but sunshine. Sim and I were thrilled. We were driving home from helping Adam move into his new house. It was perfect. Sim looked over at me and smiled as he had to turn on the windshield wipers for the first time in ages. I instinctually rolled down my window and let several drops hit my hand. The weather was warm and the air was thick. The rain seemed to calm everything; the heat, the humidity, even us.

Sunday was everything a weekend should be. We slept in late, lingering in our pajamas until past noon. I finally showered and climbed back into my comfy pajama pants and a long sleeve shirt (imagine that?!). Throughout the day, we kept pausing at the windows to look outside and watch the rain bounce off the deck. I found myself opening windows to listen to the gentle sounds as the water found its way to the ground.

While we were working on fixing a drip in our guest bathroom toilet, we opened all the windows upstairs and let the clean smell of rain drift inside. We spent the rest of the day curled up on the couch watching movies. It was a great weekend. Everything in the world was right.

Its amazing how something as simple as rain can make everything better.