For the first time in about 20 years I have a 1/4 share in Provincetown for the summer and am halfway through my first week.
1) Arriving on Thursday morning was a bit like returning to the Before Times. No one — all right, almost no one — is wearing a mask on Comical Street, except inside shops, and not always then. It’s like a bubble of almost-carefreeness.
2) I did go to tea dance at the Boatslip on Thursday afternoon. While far from the super-crush of August, I still feel cautious about hanging around in big crowds. There were a lot more costumes than I’m used to seeing, including one young man in a thong, which — well, the French may go in for that sort of them, but we are British, thank God! ;-)
2a) One challenging aspect of the post-pandemic is not recognizing people you used to know.
My Thursday dinnertime view.
3) That evening I took myself out to ye Pypy’s Whyrfe for dinner al fresco with a view of McMillan Pier in the sunset. And . . . lobster pizza and rosé. Indulgent, fabulous.
4) As long as I walk around town with Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to the Civil War by Joanne B. Freeman, I’ll never have to read it, ‘cause I keep running into people as soon as I open it up. Friday I treated myself to lunch at the bar at ye Ryss’s Grylle, had just embarked on a chapter with my gin and tonic, and then who should walk in, talking trash about me to the host, by Dahling. Well, I put him in his place . . . which was right beside me at the bar, and we had a fine time talking and talking and talking. It was the first time we’d had Quality Time together, Just the Two fo Us, since before the pandemic.
4a) Even so, I’m making good progress with Field of Blood, which you should all read. The parallels between the 1830s-1850s and today are missing only spittoons, bowie knives, and maybe pistols in the US Capitol.
5) The house party has been — how shall I say this? — rambunctious this weekend, with a lot of laughter, overlapping conversations, and a dramatically broken wineglass. The advantage for me: introduction to the world of Cards Against Humanity. What filthy fun!
Hiking in on Sunday.
6) Yesterday, Sunday, I made it off to the beach in the afternoon, and it was beautiful to be back. But oh, that beach is pebbly! Ouchie!
7) The weather for the rest of the week looks inclement, but I am not letting that get me down. Suddenly I’ve been getting some very challenging questions from Etiquetteer readers, and I want to spend some time focusing on that. I anticipate an atmosphere with more clarity before I return home Wednesday afternoon.