by Anna Cleary, author of Keeping Her Up All Night (Harlequin Presents Extra, January 2013)
Remember when we were kids and the summer holidays stretched on and on forever? That sense of freedom and escape made it such a magic time.
I still love this little interlude.
The frenzy of Christmas has been and gone, a new year
is drying its wings, and you can see spaces begin to appear in the fridge.
It’s summer here in Oz, so while you Northern Hemisphere folk bundle up warm and prepare to zip back into the worlds of work and academia, Australians are, by and large, on holiday. Not
all, of course. We can still dine out or browse through the shops, but a great many arrange their annual vacations for mid -summer and take the kids to the beach. Or the rainforest. Or Paris.
It’s a lovely lazy time to read or catch up on movies. Watch those long, lean cricketing boys swing their bats and hit sixes over the stands. Chat to neighbours, or ponder the stars and the beauties of frilly lizards. Cuddle. Smell the grass and commune with trees. Stand very still in a ferny bush dell and listen to the green vibrations.
A perfect time too to thank the cosmos for the sheer wonder of being alive.
How do you like to spend your lazy days?
PS. There is a book I could suggest…
“A perfect time too to thank the cosmos for the sheer wonder of being alive.”
Well said, Anna. Well said.
As for me, I’m still clinging to that holiday feel be being as lazy as possible. Hopefully I’ll kick that habit soon LOL.
Happy New Year!
I used to spend my summers in Scotland and the nights were so light that the days seemed to last forever.
These days I love winter more than summer and my lazy days are stored up for them. I love spending a day doing nothing but reading – my best reading is done when I can hear rain on my window.
Lovely post, Anna – thank you.
cx
Long lazy days for me are spent doing my favourite thing READING as much as possible! Escaping to a whole new world !
Lazy days are so great, but becoming more and more scarce in this household! Still…once in every great while we get one. The perfect Lazy Day for me involves a sleep in past 7:30am, coffee and watching a little news with DH while we wake up, pancakes with the family, and then watching football all afternoon. And by watching football, I mean the kids and DH watch football while I read and I look up to see that really cool replay or check the score
Aimee, if we could only hang onto that lovely feeling a whole lot longer. Thanks so much for dropping by!
Hi there, Carol! Great to see you! After Scotland, I suspect an Aussie summer might be just a degree too torrid, even at the best of times!
Seems only five minutes after I posted this before our continent has become engulfed in a massive heat wave.
I agree with you. Winter’s looking very desirable tonight!
Oh Desere. If only… x
Hi Mira. Sounds to me as if even those rare lazy days you treasure are packed with energy and richness. How could it be otherwise with kids! Maybe that explains why your books are bubbling with such life and excitement.
It’s cold here in Alabama! Not as cold as where Mira is, but I have hot Rebel blood that doesn’t like January and February at all.
To combat the cold, and to celebrate the fact that the child and hubby have gone back to school and work, I crawled back under the covers after the school bus left and took a long nap under the duvet. My holidays were too busy to be thoroughly enjoyed, so I’m snatching bits now. And I may go back to the warm bed yet again, this time with my Kindle and a certain book…
The perfect lazy day for me is a Sunday morning where DH brings me a cup of tea in bed, and I can read a whole book before getting up. Followed by pottering around in the kitchen with my youngest, maybe a walk on the beach, then dinner out and a lazy evening spent in the back garden with DH, the kids, a glass of wine and some good music (lying on the trampoline and watching the clouds change as the sun sets). Course, that’s summer. Right now it’s cold and grey, and school starts next week, so we’ve spent today curled up on the sofa with the dog, watching movies. Bliss!
Anna, what a lovely post.. Has brought back lots of lovely memories of just spending summer days mucking about at the park, building hideouts, watching boys… All the usual stuff kids do.
Now I’m very partial to long lie-ins, reading in bed, inpromptu trips to the cinema, catching up on favourite TV shows (Mad Men series 5 is just out, yay!)… And I’m still watching boys btw, although they’re usually men now. And I call them research.
Kim,isn’t that extra little snooze you steal in the morning totally delicious? And BTW, that hot rebel blood of yours is no secret!
Sunday at yours sounds divine, Kate. I’m dropping over some morning with scones. (No. Stay there. Don’t go swishing that duster about. Hold the mood.)
And lovely to see you here, Heidi. Another hot chick to warm my cockles. Heavens. That didn’t sound quite right, did it? BTW, had any Daniel Craig sightings lately? After Skyfall, at last I get it!
What a lovely post. I’m with you, Anna, these lazy days of summer, post Christmas and new years are the best. Mira, gotta say, I love the way you “watch” football:)
Lazy days…oh, bliss! We’ve been going to the beach. This week, I actually swam in the surf for the first time in years! I was great – until that big jellyfish brushed my leg. =)
G’day Trish. Nice of you to visit. How’re you holding up in the heat? Are you a surf frolicker like Robbie on these sweltering days, or an air- conditioned recliner like moi?
And Robbie! eek! There’s been some serious badass jellies swimming down your way. Take care!
Long lazy days? Okay, time to fess up. It is quarter past two in the afternoon here in Oz an I am still in my pj’s having just finished S2 of Friday Night Lights and come back to bed to read a certain book with a great dedication. And hot scene in a boat shed.
Thanks Anna for giving me something to fill a lazy Saturday with!
Anna, you’ve inspired me to get outside and explore and enjoy…next week. When Adelaide’s string of 45 degree days are hopefully over. But I’m spoiled, I’ve been in Sydney for the past week visiting my son and shopping. Always a pleasurable activity now the sales frenzy is over and the streets are filled with tourists and the weather is balmy. I’ve squeezed in a couple of books too.
As I have a 2 1/2 year old and an 8 mth old, long lazy days are the stuff of my dreams, lol, but once upon a time they involved lying on the sofa reading and drinking coffee. Ah, I miss those days *sob*
Lovely post, Anna!
Hope that story isn’t too draining after your long night,Amy. I think it may have been for poor Guy. Imagine being stood up at the altar!
Lovely to see you here, Anne! Sydney is always gorgeous to explore, but make the most of balmy. I believe torrid is about to engulf the entire continent. We are all about to FRY!
And Lucy,here’s to your glory days! Enjoy those babes!