Easter Respite
And they clothed him in a purple cloak,
and twisting together a crown of thorns,
they put it on him.“-Mark 15:17 ESV
It is Good Friday, a day that historically has little resemblance to “good” for this writer. Is it any wonder then that I sensibly approach everything on this dreaded day with caution, paranoia and belabored bouts of hesitancy in a quest to avoid the fiendish little gnomes of ill will who have taken up residence inside my cabinets, behind my doorways, beneath the shadows of doorways, waiting for their moment to announce themselves with a unceremonious coup de gráce plunging me and my wobbly well being into tremulous disarray.
Just moments ago, for example, following an embarrassing encounter at the market with the realization I was three dollars short in my grocery purchase, meekly advising the cashier to take back the asparagus and one avocado, I hurried home to discover my internet connection was down, quite predictably, I might add — it is after all GOOD Friday — creating panic, havoc and social ostracism.
Urgent calls threatening cancellation to service providers registered little more than obvious boredom and the lamest of apologies for problems they could not define, let alone explain. In a fit of frustration, or was it thinly veiled contempt, the source of ‘excellent service’ suggested scheduling a personal tech call so she might be done with this agitation on a day when most are in church denouncing their sins, seeking forgiveness and promising penance for the remainder of their sordid days on earth. I insisted we go through the plug/unplug drill again, but she had made her decision and with barely controlled fury announced the tragically foreshortened life of my modem. Everything that could be done had been done. Time to let it rest in peace.
“But wait!” I wailed. Insisting this was an emergency that could well cost me my livelihood, I pleaded to have someone there at once or, at the very least, the same day. To her credit, or atheistic upbringing, she did not mention the number of souls sitting in pews all across the country as we spoke, resulting in a dearth of service calls on this religious of days. After a long silent pause while she studied the schedule, Miss Excellent Service apologetically concluded that no one was available until the following day. I confess, the old familiar spiral of Good Friday going bad started welling up in my chest. So, this was what it was to be — again. Another good gone out of Good Friday. I argued, cajoled, and pleaded to no avail. In a 24/7 culture, it seems, nothing happens sooner anymore than 24 hours hence. Knowing the futility of any further orneriness, I petulantly accepted my fate, scribbling down the following day’s appointment and immediately set about to reconfigre Bad Friday.
Undaunted by naivete or sheer stupidity, I began plugging and unplugging cords, cables, modems, and power cords, mumbling the stations of the cross as I went. Miraculously, I brought back from the dead the very modem whose demise had been greatly exaggerated and, with no thought of canceling tomorrow’s service call, sat back in stupefied satisfaction. The way I figured it, on this, the day Christ died for our sins, Comcast could assume responsibility for theirs by offering a friendlier manner and a more finite diagnosis than mere brow knitting. What was inescapable was the possibility I might have very well ended my near perfect record of Bad Fridays. Had my gloomy milieu been resurrected? The future awaits.
The point in all this and yes, dear readers, there is a point, is to kindly request that fans, lurkers, curious interlopers and the steadfastly faithful indulge the highly superstitious, the mildly morose, and the weary-of-posting Errant Aesthete from her duties for the Easter holiday. I am looking forward to deliciously plopping myself down in God-like splendor, supine on the chaise lounge, luxuriating in little umbrella drinks, Cecil Beaton’s wickedly bitchy diaries and the comforting knowledge that Easter miracles still happen. Happy Easter to one and all.
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Easter Respite « The Errant Æsthete | OurBrownies.com said this on 04/10/09 at 05:04:06 |
What a beautiful picture….A Happy and relaxing Easter to you!
Inspiring photo, and appreciated your quote from the Bible as well.
I always had a thing for Good Fridays going bad too. Funny and
what a scribe you are. Liked the way you got the spirit of religion
in there with humor and taste. Being a Catholic, too, I well remember
the stations of the cross and the company’s inability to send anyone
out on a day “when most are in church denouncing their sins, seeking
forgiveness and promising penance for the remainder of their sordid
days on earth,” was perfecto!
Thanks for sharing a little bit more about the mysterious errant aesthete.