I reckon there will be heaps of tears when we leave Sorrento
June 27, 2005Sorrento, Victoria, Australia
5:33am
Another early morning.
Two things I realized one day before leaving this cottage. There are heating pads in our bed and we can see a bounty of stars if we leave the curtains open at night. These are two things I would have taken advantage of since day one had I knew. Listen to me, I am such a winger. That is winger as in “to winge”, an Aussie term for whining. They use this word a lot. Also “reckon” “heaps” and of course “mate”.
Here. Lets use them all in one sentence for kicks.
“I reckon that mate winges heaps” translates to “that guy whines a lot”.
Yesterday we went to three beaches and two parks in a six-hour span. Cramming it in I guess. Today we will be relatively close to home preparing for the trip to Cairns tomorrow. The weather here has been great for the last week or so, allowing easy adventure for the three ramblers. It has hovered between 16 and 18 degrees I reckon (acclimation alert) with not a cloud in the sky, allowing for postcard sunsets. And champagne dreams and caviar wishes. I don’t know why I just wrote that. It just felt right.
The day began with me reading in bed. I was wearing a burgundy silk robe, sipping a handful of cognac, and listening to Nana Mouskori. Poopsie, I said, shouldn’t we be getting a move on? To which Steph screeched, unfiltered cigarette hanging from her mouth, Shiraz spilling on the carpet;
“Stop bothering me when I am watching my damn shows!!” I do so love my poopsie.
The day began with me reading in bed. Steph was making bean salad and helping Hud with his colouring. Sunday morning, no television. I have adopted that rule from my sister, who I love with all my heart. Hud does not even seem to like television. He switches it off sometimes in the middle of what I deem to be pretty entertaining kid shows. What a weirdo.
With snacks in the knapsack we hopped in the car and drove to Flinders, a town we had been to before. We drank our cappuccinos and ate the best berry muffins ever created while watching Hud play in the park. It was Sunday morning, so a number of other kids were there with their respective parents. It is so white here; there aren’t even any hip mulatto kids. Just alabaster white and stunningly beautiful. Usually, even with my parental bias in check, I think Hud is pretty darn cute compared to the other kids, but, wow, there were some good looking kids running from slide to slide. And I scanned the adult crowd to see if anyone stood out. Nope. Normal mugs. Like me I suppose.
But I think Hud is beautiful because Steph is beautiful. Even if he looks more like me, his beauty is still from Steph.
With a pee behind the tree, and a fake poo in the café, we were back in the car. We stopped at Shoreham Beach first, a small beach riddled with sea grass and other kelp. It looked a little nasty, but when we stepped out of the car, Steph demanded we go for a walk. I got out and immediately knew why. It smelled amazing. The true salty fishy fresh redolence of the ocean. So we walked up the coast a short ways and around a big jetty. Hud found sticks and hit the water pooled on the black rocks from higher tide. Steph and I watched the hypnotic surf, discussing nothing, just accepting the scenery in relative silence. A couple of quick photos and we made our way back to the car.
Next up Port Leo. A surf beach. We parked right across the street from a small park, with a strange amount of kids and parents huddled right near the entrance. Hud bolted, I followed and suddenly we were cutting through the middle of a birthday party. I grimaced and pressed my lips and smiled, bowing a little sheepishly, avoiding the presents and coolers, until I was free from the circle of parents. I thought it was kind of funny. The parents did not. They had the “you weren’t invited to this party” look I remember so well from high school. I reckon these mates can bite me.
A quick park play and then down to the beach, where the sun was soon to disappear over the horizon. This was obviously a morning beach. There were no surfers either. But Hud and I built a wicked volcano tunnel track for his trucks. I was saying to Steph, that I start these little Hud/Dad moments sometimes out of obligation, and then, minutes later, I am elbow deep in the sand, making truck noises myself, suddenly realizing that Hud is not even beside me anymore and I am the only one playing. Like Peter Pan I am.
The tide forced us to leave Port Leo, as we were lying there and the encroaching surf hit our feet, shocking us into movement. The water is cold, but doable. I have been in Ontario lakes on May 24 and on thanksgiving so this is nothing. I did not go in.
Last stop, and the best one really, was part of the National Park that entered off the highway. I thought it was going to be more a farm, nature type walk, so I stopped the car begrudgingly, wanting to go to the back beach near our cottage to see the sunset. But it turned out to be a walk to another, very lush, black stone dappled beach. It was downhill about a kilometere, and a bit muddy, so we all had to watch our steps. We reached the pretty and raw beach and a couple teenagers were sand surfing down a big dune, one of them trying to do a handstand backwards going down. He made it about halfway, enough for his friend to film it. Steph walked on along the coastline
as Hud wanted to play in the sand. I watched him for a while until I could stand it any longer and climbed to the top holding Hud’s hand.
On my knees at the top now, I tucked, and we rolled and laughed down the sandy bank, granules entering every orifice. Every orifice.
Coburn and I knew a girl named Sarah Orvis growing up. Guess what we called her.
Steph returned and we made our way back up the hill to the car, arteries pumping very fast doing so.
I was sure Hud would fall asleep, but he did not, eating the rest of his bean salad in the back seat, singing his own made up songs.
We dropped off the movie in Sorrento and came home and made dinner. I barbequed some chicken breasts with a honey mustard glaze and Steph made a salad with walnuts and apples and the parmesan cheese we bought from CheeseWorld (Edam! It was good).
Hud went to bed pretty shortly after dinner, his bedtime earlier now that he does not nap.
Steph and I watched television until nine and then we went to bed to read.
Read yeah right.
Oh poopsie……
Love to all,
J.
June 26, 2005
10:14am
Sorrento, Victoria, Australia
Yesterday was Steph’s solo day. Mine was the golf day. We understand the need for these days. What couple is used to spending 164 hours a week together? Particularly after our tag team parenting, pass each other in the night relationship back in Toronto.
It is working so far. Minus the one brawl things are grooving along peacefully. We take turns with the responsibilities and do not let any resentment build. We let each other parent without the other stepping in to be the good or bad cop. Hud goes to each of us equally for consoling or shame. We are more affectionate and loving. Romance is easy staring at different sunsets every night. Hud seems balanced and more responsible for himself everyday. He is loving and sweet and honest. So far so good.
Steph left at 10 to walk the 5km to Sorrento for some cappuccinos and window shopping. Hud and I grabbed the laundry bags and made our way to the Rye launderette to get everything clean for the next stage of our trip. We leave for Cairns early Tuesday morning, so everything has to be packed and ready tomorrow night.
Hud and I went to a park during the wash cycle and to the front beach for the dry cycle. He played with some kids tentatively at the park, still quite shy and happy to just run instead of see saw with another kids his age. I am wary of the lack of time he spends with other kids. He gets a ton of parental attention and needs to interact with other snotty, gross kids. The last thing I wanted to accomplish in this year was to accidentally produce a spoiled child. Come September, when we are settled in for a couple of months, Steph and I vowed to seek out some programs that allows Hud to be without us and with other children.
The beach was sweet again. Hud played with his trucks and I leaned back and read. The front beach(Bay side) is smooth as a countertop. No waves, no ripples, no boats really. Just my son making a racetrack in the sand and me holding my book in front of the intense sun so I can see.
We picked up the laundry and drove to Sorrento to find somewhere to eat. It's right around two weeks in one location that you begin to feel a little like a local. The shopkeepers recognize you and are a little more apt to make conversation.
With the weather being so great, Sorrento on Saturday was pretty busy. People must make the day trip down from Melbourne for the fresh produce and cute cafes. Hud and I weaved through all the day trippers and suddenly, karma, we bump into Steph. She of course declined our invitation for lunch as she did not like our choice of restaurants, and I think she secretly wanted some more Steph time. Good on her.
She did hook up with us after lunch, and we bought the last of what we should need until Tuesday.
So of course we went out for dinner. An awful Chinese food place that squeezed us in with no reservation, as this was their last night of operation. Well we know why. The food was shit and expensive. I guess we were due for a bad food experience.
We watched The Aviator snuggled on the couch after Hud went to bed. Saturday night and all. Date night.
I thought Cate Blanchett was great as I have always been a Hepburn fan. Leo (that’s what his friends call him) was pretty great also and would have won the Oscar in any other year.
This post was pretty humourless. I can’t be funny all the time.
Although I think I should be.
Love to all,
J.
posted by Jason @ 8:36 PM
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