"Talking to myself and feeling low..."
No I'm not!
Another exquisite song by Paul Williams whose words perfectly capture what many people feel about rainy days. I agree about Mondays, but rainy days? I love them.
First of all, without rainy days, we'd all drop dead. Rain cleanses and nourishes the very land that sustains us (Dust Bowl anyone?) and provides a necessary respite from sunny days, which really get me down...especially now that I'm not the sun-worshipping beach lizard I was in my youth.
Second, when it rains in NYC, it's QUIET...just like when it snows. Because most people don't like being out in the rain, they tend to stay indoors which provides yet another necessary respite (for me anyway.) And I love hearing the whooshing sound of car tires going by on wet roads, especially as I'm drifting off to sleep. So soothing...
Third, if I ever lived in a one or two-climate area where it rains about an inch of water a year, I'd go stark raving mad. I remember the brief time I lived in California. I was so starved for rain that when the skies did manage to open a bit, I ran outside, did a rain happy dance and reveled in the feeling. But when I looked outside the kitchen window one night and saw a MOUNTAIN on fire just across the road, that's when I packed my bags and made a fast return to the east coast. Thanks but no thanks.
I even loved rainy days as a kid. I used to think that the rain would hide my tears when I was sad, which was most of the time. But that's another story. I remember one rather cool rainy day, the summer of 1957, when my mother made me wear a flannel shirt over my summer top and dungarees. To this day, I love flannel shirts because of that memory. Lingering in the background of that memory is also "Bye bye love, bye bye happiness..." by the brand-new Everly Brothers. Biggest hit of that summer. (Music is truly the soundtrack of our lives.)
So, my dear Paul Williams, I have to disagree with you about rainy days. When I wake up to a rainy day, there's no "hanging around, nothing to do but frown" for this kid. I'm happy for Mother Earth, grateful for the quiet, and absolutely love the temporary peace it brings.
But you are right about Mondays!
The Carpenters are best known for this most beautiful song, but again I present to you, the song's father...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpWg6sibsdU
