You’re still the face I want to see
- Melissa Herrera: Not Waiting for Friday
- February 18, 2024
- 1127
I can barely think about what overhead lighting I need for the new house, let alone what to do for Valentine’s Day. Most people were agonizing over the length of January, and for us it sped by faster than the speed of light.
We had several places we wanted to try but waited too long for reservations. One of our standby faves is Fronimo’s in downtown Canton. Their food is so fresh and innovative, and they snuck us in for a reservation on Feb. 14 for two, despite being full up.
George said, “We live in the city. Why not go out on the day?” And I couldn’t disagree.
I’m looking forward to a delish cocktail and a small plate of samosa croquettes or tempura swordfish bites. I love their small, narrow dining room.
But we’ve been finally able to relax a bit after a rush of making sure things are haphazardly in place so we could live. A shape seems to be forming in the new house, an outline of order that is softly, slowly falling into place. I’ve created a coffee nook that will feature my favorite mugs from my vast collection, a space for them to have their moment in the spotlight. Some of my artwork is sitting on the floor under the walls they’ll be hung on. Things are inching into place minute by minute. There is no countdown, though, and they’ll get hung when they get hung.
Something that does bother me is the TV over the fireplace. I did not want this and swore we would never be TV-over-the-mantle people, but that seems to be the only layout that works. Now my head is cocked upward to see the TV, and the crick in my neck is going to drive me nuts. This is an obvious first-world problem, but the TV mount Hunter found for us to order might solve it all. It nestles against the wall but pulls down over the mantle when we want to watch TV. I might order it, but who’s going to put it up? George and I nearly didn’t make it through our last TV mounting, and I swore I’d never do it again.
We’ve had several movie nights plus a Super Bowl viewing (not a fan of either team) since moving in, and this is important to us — a good room to watch good entertainment in. The lighting is coming together as well because you can’t have lights glaring on the screen. Lots to think about.
But love remains in this new-to-us home. Our souls have felt the rush of moving simmer down into the calmness of living. We’ve been waking up slowly every morning, sipping coffee together, deciding what projects to finish. We’ve never worked well together on a renovation in our own home because our opinions are both strong. They clash and cause friction, but not here. We’re older and more mellow, knowing the little things, while they matter, shouldn’t separate. We have time. Let’s make our ideas work.
I want to go to the movie theater after our meal. I love feeling tiny in a large theater with big sound, wrapping my arm around someone who wants to be there with me. I want someone as invested in a movie I want to see as much as where I want my pictures to hang — and that they’re hanging solidly because someone cared enough to drill that extra screw in.
Our relationship is solid this Valentine’s Day. Some years have been shaky, moving along fault lines of our own making. We’re not mushy folk, but we love a good meal at a table we both want to sit at, the face we’re each looking at the one we want to see, choose to see.
Melissa Herrera is a published author and opinion columnist. She is a curator of vintage mugs and all things spooky, and her book, “TOÑO LIVES,” can be found at www.tinyurl.com/Tonolives. For inquiries, to purchase her book or anything else on your mind, email her at junkbabe68@gmail.com or find her in the thrift aisles.