6/24/09

soaked

Standing around the practice space last night as the sun went down, sipping drinks out of cans and plastic cups, we told each other lies about the weather.

"It's not as hot as it has been!"
"Feel that breeze?"
"I'm pretty sure it's cooling off some, what do you think?"

Until it turned out to be the truth, and suddenly the wind kicked up some and bright lightning flashed in the purple-black grey clouds that came crawling across the sky. Between songs, the lead singer asked us, "What are y'all all looking up at?" He couldn't see it from inside the storage space, but we sure could. Staring up at it, thunder lost in a double bass beat, smooth-bottomed force of nature come to wash us clean.

Next thing you know, we're getting hit with those fat Florida raindrops, like getting pelted with acorns or pebbles that splash when they land. Wet dust smell jumped up off the asphalt. We protected our beers but not our heads, letting the storm wash off a heat wave's worth of sweat and exhaustion. The driveway between rows became a still river, soaking your shoes and pants' legs before you even realized you'd stepped into the water.

Man, we needed that.

6 comments:

Ms. Moon said...

You got rain? We didn't.
Man, that was a beautiful post.

May said...

You are one good writin' sumbitch. And yeah, the rain... I was writing in my journal when it started coming down and I kept having to comment on it, to myself! Cool air coming in, sweat no longer dripping off my elbows, oh man. I would have only been happier under a tin roof.

That Hank said...

Mama, pretty much all of Tally got it. And lord, we needed it.

May, or under the sky itself.

Steph(anie) said...

mmmm... a tin roof, yes.

Ms. Moon said...

I go out on my little front porch, just to hear the rain directly on the tin roof.
If it would only rain out here, I would do that and remember just how much I love it.

Erin said...

I bet the streets were steaming, too.