Spring Break

 Those of us suffering, I mean living in the Northeast this year  - ok at least I was suffering and moaning about it - with what has been an endless, cold, give me a break not again snowstorm and snow school closing winter-  it seems as though finally as we inch toward May warmth and sun are here. 

I actually like living in a place with seasons, as nice as San Fran was when I lived there the days seemed to literally be one long day because there was very little variation in the weather.  For some this is nirvana for me it was just what I wrote one long endless day.  I like the variety of the seasons, partially because of the fashion options and mostly because it really makes me feel like I am moving forward on the conveyor belt of life.  Spring makes me cheesily poetic as you can see. 

Spring comes also with the wonderful notion of spring break.  Now as a kid growing up in Queens this did not equate as it does for my kids to Caribbean/Floridian/Warm weather destination family trip.  It only meant we had some time off from school which I could use to procrastinate doing homework during, if I had any, and go outside and play with my friends.  The days getting longer meant that I had that much more time before the street lights went on and we all had to scatter before our own mothers called for us and then yelled at us for not coming home soon enough.  I assume maybe those with discretionary income probably went to these destinations even then during spring break but "dahlin' " we made do and tried not to lose jackets taken off during mad tag games dodging the never ending stream of traffic that came down our block.

Spring break started to take on some significance as I got closer to college.  Pop culture generation that we are am sure this was influenced by some set of movies, or maybe it was those The Afternoon Movie that ran at 4 pm on ABC, where either it was 50s Beach Blanket Bingo (boys, cars, music, freedom) or Elvis (swoon) in his endless hip swaying, break out into song movies usually set in warmth.  Those seemed like rites of passage - you finish high school and in college during spring break you fly some place warm and frolic (will leave at that and you can define frolic however you did it).  My first spring break came in high school - at the generosity of my friend Margaret's dad.  Our parents paid for our airfare and he allowed us to use their condo.  We had no car, not even sure how many if any of us had a license.  So we did what any senior hs girls would do without transportation - we baked by the pool, we flirted with the guys cutting the grass, we laughed too loud, we took cabs to eat and maybe sneaked a pina colada (or 2) and when he came down to join us he dubbed us Nimrods - and bought us visors that proclaimed this.  It still is a great fond memory in my mind. 

So here came college and funds were still not quite discretionary, actually they were hard earned, scraped together and supplemented by my mom so it was not going to be more than a modest hotel, ok motel, ok once again crashing in a posh Boca Raton senior community (my other friend's dad had moved there with his 2nd wife) and he rented us a convertible.  Needless to say cruising in Ft Lauderdale up and down and up and down and once again up and down the strip -- that was awesome. 

One year a group of us decided that driving to Virginia Beach, in one car, one small Nissan Sentra (I loved my first car - no power windows but boy that car took me on all of these trips, including to and from Cali and still holds a place in my heart) with multiple people sounded like a fun trip.  It was - cramped, smoky, exhausting but fun.  Virginia Beach with it's warmth beckoned to us. 

I have become much more high maintenance with age - have made peace with this so judge if you want I do not really plan on going grunge again - and hotels have to have at least 3 stars or more ok 4 stars at least.  We have yet to go - it appalls me to spend that many thousand of dollars to go to Florida, a state that with all the respect for my friends who have chosen it as home is one I have no fondness for.  The other places seem like they will be crowded and again wow - them prices is a shocking.

We choose to spend our vacation money more on summer vaca - planning ours as I write this and cannot wait - and take kids on mini breaks.  They and we like DC a lot and it seems we have not yet run out of things to do there.  I like it most in spring before the humidity descends and my hair ascends.  
I had great time on spring breaks - and after this winter a break from the cold seems reward enough even without our trip -  though they were never quite the girl meets boy and he breaks out into song of the movies.  

Happy whatever you celebrate - - Happy Spring Break ...and we're off...................