I had a letter-perfect Sunday. Mr. W suggested a picnic with my parents to take advantage of the sunny beautiful day. I at first said it wouldn’t be a good idea, since my parents wouldn’t appreciate the annoyances of unruly, undisciplined kids running amock, bird poo on the picnic tables to avoid, and the bees, ants and other insects to fight for our food. Plus, the hassle of packing stuff to be eaten outdoors! “Are these reasons your parents wouldn’t want to go on a picnic, or why YOU don’t want to go on a picnic?!” Mr. W asked skeptically. Same thing, right?
I called my parents on the phone and asked my mom what she thought of the picnic idea. “Picnic?!” she exclaimed. “Severe allergies!”
“YES, severe ALLERGIES!” I repeated loudly to Mr. W over the phone.
My mom heard me and hurriedly said, “If you two want to go take a stroll in a park, we’ll go with you for company!” Darn.
Mr. W and I stopped by a Chinese patisserie on the way to my parents’ and bought a variety of fresh baked rolls and breads for picnic food, but everyone ended up eating it all at my parents’ house along with a freshly cut bowl of syrupy sweet honeydew melons. (I admit it, it was me; I was too hungry.) And then it was off to a nearby Chino Hills park that my parents had recently discovered.
The park was really pretty, with a big pond in the middle and weeping willows almost dipping their long trains into the water surface. At the front end of the pond, a variety of turtles of all sizes sunned on a floating log. At the back end of the pond, a large rocky waterfall spilled onto the duck-lined water. The four of us watched in amusement as a male duck, with his bill tucked into his wing and seemingly asleep, followed a female duck around the pond, popping his head up abruptly when he’d accidentally run into her, and then settling back down to his lazy nap. Another male duck followed another female duck around, aggressively fighting off other male ducks who dared approach the nonchalant female. The females seemed completely oblivious to all the vying going on around them for their attention.

After walking around the park, the four of us went back to my parents’ house, where I fiddled with the piano a bit. Then Mr. W and I set off back to his home. On the drive back, we passed a newly remodeled shopping mall and he noted that he’d be interested in seeing how the place looked, as it’s so nice now from the outside. “Wanna go right now?” I suggested. So off on a detour we went. I didn’t get past the Victoria’s Secret store, which was having a sale on sportswear. I picked up 2 sports tops and a sports bra, and with the discount my total bill went from $150 to $90-some. I handed over two giftcards for the store and paid less than $6 out-of-pocket for the items. Good deal.

And then off we went to attempt the trip home again. Until suddenly, Mr. W noted that we were really close to a hole-in-the-wall Mexican seafood restaurant in the ghettoest part of Santa Ana that had the best ceviche. Hence, our second detour led us to a refreshing dinner.

Finally at home after that, Mr. W and I donned our swimsuits and hung out in the whirlpool jacuzzi. Later, back at his house, we wound down the rest of the way by enjoying popcorn while watching the pilot episode of Ally McBeal. I’d never seen the pilot, and it’s pretty good in setting up the character dynamics of the show without feeling rushed in giving you too much information too quickly. We’re now starting Season 1 of Ally McBeal, and I can’t wait for episode 2. But for some reason, I can’t seem to find additional seasons. 🙁

Oh well, short of the nightmare I had, it was a great Sunday.