The rain

I like flicking cigarette butts into puddles of water. That little fizzle sound they make is the kind of aural ecstasy that is matched by perhaps only the cracking of a creme brulee. It rained in San Diego last night, and it rained all through the morning. I would have missed it entirely, I think, if Mona hadn't told me about it. I slept with the windows open and listened to it drizzle night. It's the type of thing you take advantage of here in San Diego because it never rains here.

You can tell that it never rains here because all of our malls are outdoor malls and when it rains a significant amount the streets start to flood over because our road engineers haven't built enough drains into the street. By the end of last January we had officially received more rain than Seattle for that year and this had literally caused the closing of several intersections throughout the city due to flooding. I can think of at least 3 that I encountered.

I do love the rain. It makes me wonder what I would do in a place like Washington (state). Maybe I like the rain so much because I have grown up in sun-beaten cities, spending most of my life in El Paso which gets almost no rain, and now living in San Diego, which gets even less. My stint in Austin was a little more enjoyable; central Texas does get a fair amount of rain throughout the year. And I have to say I am fond of those memories of going out onto my porch and watching the rain pore. I would just stand there spellbound by the tapping and splashing of water everywhere. I loved it. Maybe I would get tired of it if it rained all the time though. Maybe.