I am so into seasonal rituals, I guess I could rightfully be called a Pagan. My celebrations are few and far between; my measurings of the seasons and the Wheel Of The Year are more subtle, but if you visited me year in and year out, you'd probably notice some of the following:
Seasonal-themed dishes and table linens, in seasonal colors with seasonal symbols.
Seasonal curtains and valances.
Seasonal potholders and crochet-top towels.
Seasonal candleholders with appropriate-scented candles that burn in them, mostly in the three seasons not called summer.
These are placed atop seasonal doilies, some knitted by my mother. Beautiful!
And of course, seasonal bed linens, including Peanuts-themed sheets for October and November, because I am a big kid at heart in many ways.
And I have movies for certain times of the year. Encounter With The Unknown, Carrie and Night Of The Living Dead for Halloween. Murphy's Romance, Last Holiday, The Magic Of Lassie and one or two others for Thanksgiving, mostly because they were movies my mother and I watched together one year or another while eating T-Day dinner. Too many to mention for Christmas, but some that come to mind are Auntie Mame (which we watched while making Christmas cookies one year), and Little Women (we favor the 1949 version with June Allyson, Peter Lawford, Elizabeth Taylor and Janet Leigh). Lotsa Christmas TV out there too.
Of course, I have movies for times you wouldn't expect, too. Like February 3rd. Yep, The Day The Music Died. I pay proper homage by watching The Buddy Holly Story and La Bamba.
And then there's Labor Day.
Working at The Plaza for nearly 23 years was very much a seasonal affair. At The Plaza, we had three seasons: Summer, Holidays, and Winter. Summer was from Good Friday through Labor Day. Holidays was from the day before Thanksgiving through New Year's Day. Winter was actually divided into Winter 1 (the day after Labor Day through the Tuesday before Thanksgiving) and Winter 2 (January 2 through the day before Good Friday). Winter was, for the most part, dead. The busiest and most dreaded season was, of course, holidays, whether winter or summer. Summer was just a long grind, mostly busy on the holidays, weekends and anytime we ran specials.
Labor Day was therefore always a day I looked forward to especially. And the last several years I developed a movie tradition, born in two cases from availability of certain movies to rent that happened to begin Labor Day weekend, and one literally entitled Labor Day. Let's take a look.
Ricki And The Flash - Meryl Streep as Ricki, a rock musician who comes to terms with family and all her years of running from relationships. Look out for a still-sexy Rick Springfield as her guitarist and love interest. Meryl has decent singing/guitar chops, and Springfield and her back-up band cook, making the rock sets fun, loose and enjoyable.
The Way, Way Back - coming of age story about a boy, his rather neglectful mother, her verbally abusive boyfriend, and the summer the boy, Duncan, works at a water park, where he finds acceptance and camaraderie. Liam James is amazing as Duncan, Steve Carell does asshole really well, and I can't imagine anyone better than Sam Rockwell as Owen, water park manager and "good friend of the three". Also starring Toni Collette and AnnaSophia Robb. This is my favorite of the three movies, the one most likely to bring me to tears, and linger in my mind for days afterward.
And Labor Day, with Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet, about a boy whose mother falls in love with a man jailed for a crime he didn't commit, who escapes from jail and stays with them one Labor Day weekend, changing all their lives in a way no one can predict. Even if I have to work Labor Day, I always show this movie on Labor Day. And the novel by Joyce Maynard is not too shabby, either.
Not the usual hullabaloo associated with Labor Day this year, as I have not worked outside the home this summer, nor last. So, not so much feeling the usual relief and gratitude that the grind is over. But I am feeling relief and gratitude that I am still alive and healthy, (plus or minus a little vertigo and balance disorder, please pray for me, dear readers). And I am enjoying my seasonals, especially my Labor Day movies. God grant that you all are doing the same.
