Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Tastes of the Idyllic Life

Despite the fact that I visit here every couple of months for a few weeks at a time, I'm still not convinced that Pacific Grove, CA is real. The weather is always in the sixties, the houses are bedecked in gingerbread and surrounded by picket fence-enclosed gardens of wildflowers, people walk to the market where they are greeted like old friends and one can see the ocean from just about any elevated point in town. (Please take this moment to ignore the fact that, as I'm writing this, Santa Cruz is burning to a crisp and scattering its ashes on post...)

Two days ago, I discovered that the PG library is where it's all happening. The librarians call you by name from the minute you apply for your card and they most likely know just about everything about everyone living here. The children eagerly discuss the events of their days with these women as they scan their piles of books and the kindly librarians ask, in turn, about their pets or their parents or how their grandmother is doing. Tucked into quiet carrels and bent over stacks of reference are the snow-headed saints of a generation I know far too little about. Who knows what they're researching? I wish I did.

On the corner of a block just two streets from my house is a delightful knitting and quilting shop that is run by a sweater clad motherly woman with a twinkle in her eye, a young tattooed twenty-something with a gentle smile and two very soft dogs who know exactly when it's 1:00 in the afternoon. Skeins of handspun wools and tiny balls of perfectly balled silks cover every available space. I think it's impossible to leave the place without some bit of wool or cotton tucked in a bag and a tip or two on how to better your purl or knit stitch.

Coming off of nearly three months of absolute insanity, it's a bit jarring to enter into this world where people hang signs in their business window that say "be back later" and the only establishments that stay open past 6 are the local chocolatier and a handful of restaurants. I'm having to re-learn what it means to sit back and take life in. I'm relishing the hours in the afternoon that I can spend trying new recipes, teaching myself to knit, sitting down on the rocks by the ocean reading and the obvious hilight of my day: getting to be there when Jason gets off work and spend the rest of the afternoon and evening hanging out.

I wish I knew when this country decided it was such a good idea to speed life up, wake up earlier, work later, eat fast food instead of carefully thought out meals, forego relationships for the ease of online connectivity...the list goes on. While I realize life will never be Pacific Grove all the time, I think this town teaches me something every time I'm here about how things really should be.

And with that, I'm off to check my fruit soup that is currently chilling in the fridge. Recipe and pictures to follow :).

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