A fan hums and swivels in the corner. With each sweep of the room roving bands of air push against my face and it’s still not enough. When the heat is this immense and intense the only thing to do is be very still and quiet and think cool thoughts. A languid pop ballad sung by one of the cheesiest groups of all time is good too. Nothing too challenging. Nothing to make you think too hard. Enter ‘Too Much’ by the Spice Girls.
LOVE IS BLIND, AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE
DEEP AND MEANINGLESS, WORDS TO ME
EASY LOVER, I NEED A FRIEND
ROAD TO NOWHERE, TWISTS AND TURNS BUT WILL THIS NEVER END…
On years like this, when spring hardly gave us any sun or warmth, I’m not quite ready to barricade myself against the first little heatwave, if it can even be considered such. Our potted tropical plants are just beginning to unfurl their leaves, when in most other years they’d be in full lush bloom by now. The garden plants have largely caught up, especially in the last couple of weeks, as nature has a way of evening out the particular inconsistencies of an off-year. That said, on especially hot days, even if we haven’t had a lot of them, I find myself retreating into the controlled air-conditioned environment of the house, hunkering down in the dim coolness, where false visions of the world can be found on screen and the artificially-manipulated temperature no longer induces sweat and stickiness.
TOO MUCH OF SOMETHING IS BAD ENOUGH
BUT SOMETHING’S COMING OVER ME TO MAKE ME WONDER
TOO MUCH OF NOTHING IS JUST AS TOUGH
I NEED TO KNOW THE WAY TO FEEL TO KEEP ME SATISFIED
Back in the late 90’s, when I was still in college and between semesters, the summer was an extended staycation, with lots of lounging and lazy do-nothing days. The Spice Girls movie was playing on television, showing them on their tour bus doing some lounging themselves while this song played over the opening. It reflected the enjoyable ennui of summer, when lying around and raising your eyes to the television was more than enough exertion for the day. When at last daylight faded and the sun went hidden behind the other side of the earth, I’d traipse upstairs into the well-lit environs of my bedroom. In my heart swirled enough darkness; I was always seeking the light. There I would loll about on the cool, carpeted floor, reading or perusing magazines until the early hours of the morning. The next round of daylight could never come soon enough. It just felt better when the sun was shining, even if it got too darn hot.
To combat that, I found it best to put on a pop ballad, the cheesier the better, and let it wash over me like the waves from a fan. If you’ve got some sweet ice tea and hard raspberry candies, so much the better.
WHAT PART OF NO DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?
I WANT A MAN NOT A BOY WHO THINKS HE CAN…
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