Tuesday, February 21, 2012

the seatbelt strangle

i love st. george.

my family has been going there at least three times a year since i was born. we have a house in bloomington that is older than my dad and has the most hideous home decor you can imagine a la my grandma 40 years ago. the roof is leaky and the barstools are way too high for the counter so you get those line marks in your legs after eating lunch.

but it has the most comfortable recliner that i like to curl up in for hours and read a good book--or maybe one of my brothers' calvin and hobbes collections. there's a ladder in the back hallway that leads to a loft that has a king and a queen bed in it, along with a tv, so it's the ultimate man cave. and when it's warm, we like to drag the mattresses on the roof and sleep out there. the stars are pretty bright in bloomington and in the summer, you get bats that fly over your head.

i love the mountains that are literally right outside the back door. you hike up the first part of the mountain and then the very last part, you have to literally rock climb to the top. i still get a teensy bit nervous doing it, but it has the best view of st. george up there!

i even love the ride down to st. george. we always leave salt lake in the evening and don't roll into the grocery store parking lot till eleven or twelve, because of the dinner stop, the occasional bathroom stop, and the "we're pulling over until everyone can get buckled and get along" stop. speaking of buckle, i just came up with the perfect name for my biggest car pet peeve...."the seatbelt strangle." you know how when you lean forward in your seat and the seatbelt won't give you any slack, so you lean back a little and then forward, but the seatbelt has only pulled tighter, etc etc, until you are literally trapped against the seat? that happened to me, like, eight times this weekend! but anyway, i really like the smell of skunks on the side of the road because i only associate the smell with fond memories of driving to st. george late at night. my favorite part is when we finally get off the freeway exit and the engine suddenly goes really silent, which is everyone's cue to wake up because your body knows that feeling--it means you've arrived! and then everyone drags their suitcases into the house rosy-cheeked and bleary-eyed and face plants into bed.

it doesn't matter that you fall asleep without changing because you were in your sweats to begin with.

and so begins another trip to st. george. 

1 comment:

  1. im in spain and you make me want to come home and go to st. george. you're writing is incredible. love you!

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