Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Girls' Weekend Out

Barbara: I know this is easy for some people and not-so-easy for others. As one of the latter group for most of my adult life, I want to take a moment to recommend it: take a couple of nights away with some good women. I know it’s hard to get the time off, especially if you have kids. But do whatever it takes. Offer your husband or sibling or another girlfriend a reciprocal weekend off. 

Find some place to go that fits your budget. Plan it so that you don’t have to cook all the meals: ie, you divide the duties, including wash-up, so some meals you get to laze while others toil—and vice versa, of course. Bring lots of guilty-pleasure food (in our case, chips, kettle corn, and chocolate) and wolf it guilt-free, washing it down with yummy cocktails. Bring a few really fine meals to savour with fine (or cheap) wine. 

Do not bring expectations or judgment or recrimination. Bring joy and honesty and open arms. If you’re enjoying your sojourn in nature, do as our Mohawk friend suggests and listen to the creatures you come across––because each one is there to tell you a story (and each of you may need to hear a different one). If you can’t get to the wilds, I’m sure every place has some kind of story to share, even some good ones. 

You will feel a million times better (and wiser) afterward. If someone had told me this even ten years ago, I would’ve argued that the work involved planning a weekend away without the family wasn’t worth the stress and trouble. My older self wants to tell my younger self she’s an idiot. My younger self would’ve argued I couldn’t afford it. My older self would say you don’t have to go anyplace exotic to have a good time––sleeping bags on floors will do for a weekend. My younger self would’ve asked which girlfriends would fit the bill, would fit together, would be fun. My older self would say that any good friends will do … as long as no one brings expectations or judgment or recrimination. They will fit together—maybe not perfectly or seamlessly, but willingly––because they need it as much as you. 

Deb: Barb does sing the praises of a beautiful thing. I love my gals getaways. I am sure Barb was inspired by the weekend we just had at a friend’s farm. It was glorious. Barb has recently joined the group of us and is now lured by the getaway siren-song of too much food, booze, laughter and food. Food. Had to say Food one more time because well ... Food! We are so excited to get up there and see each other, you would think we just got out of prison. And yes it is easy and sweet, we chitchat about nothing and sometimes we explore our innermost thoughts. The whole weekend feels like a big blanket of estrogen draped over our shoulders. But I’m thinking we better get busy and make a quilt because the estrogen is in short supply as the years wear on!

10 comments:

  1. Raising my coffee cup in a toast to Girls' Weekends Out! Life just takes on a different perspective in the company of good friends, doesn't it? Somehow its purpose and vision are crystal clear.

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  2. I love when I get away for a weekend with my girl friend and it is just me and her. There are times that I just like for me and her to talk with out the sound of my boyfriend voice around. There are something that I just need to talk about with my girl friends that I could never talk about with my boyfriend. When me and her get away we always go to the beach or someplace like that and get away. When I come back from my getaway I always feel relaxed and non stressed. That is the best thing. Is always good to get away once in a while . I know that if I didn't get away once in a while I would probably scream.

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  3. Agreed! Later this summer, I will write about my traditional friends' "retreat" -- another incredible adventure -- but there is something uniquely special about just the girls every now and then.

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  4. Those kinds of trips really can do wonders. A couple months ago I retreated to my best friend's house up north and spent four days with her and her mother, and for the first time in a long, long, long time I was happy for four whole days. No sad breaks, no loneliness, not even any homesickness.

    The only trouble was leaving. I find that when I have a really good time with someone, I'm almost too devastated when it ends.

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  5. That always makes me sad too when I have to come home and I have had a great weekend with my girl friend. I was sad when I had to come home from the beach, but I knew that I had too. I just like to get away because I know when I am away from my boyfriend and work and everything else that is going on, that I have no worries or anything to be responsible for.That is always good to get away from the stress of everyday life.

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  6. During the school year, my girlfriends and I try to have at least one Frivolous Fun Day a month. It's nothing fancy, but definetley helps take our minds off the stress of school. Glad you girls had a great time!! Everyone needs a break now and again!

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  7. No matter how much you love someone, it always helps to get away. There just somethings no man can understand. And you always come back with more energy and ready to tackle what ever comes along.

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  8. This makes me sad that my friends are scattered across the world. I have two good friends in Portland, Oregon--but I would have to FLY there-- one in Seattle, one in Okinawa... I really LOVE girl time, but I don't live by ANY of the long time ones, and seem to have been to busy to have gotten to THAT level of close where we live now. Enjoy it!

    If any of our writer's group makes it really big, we will have these regularly, all over the world--taking our turn to show the rest our own local stuff...

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  9. To Adrienne and Lyndsie, I honestly feel that's one of the bonuses of growing older -- is realizing to the core of your being that the wonderful time just ended will reappear in another guise at another time. There is no "never again" for times like these.

    As for Hart -- funny thing is, I adopted these gals I went away with. Having had a great group of friends that I enjoyed as part of a couple with my husband, it wasn't till I met Deb that I was inspired to run away with a gang that I didn't have a whole lot of history with. And it didn't matter! They've become as precious and vital to me as my long term friends.

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  10. Truly, a gals' weekend together is the most relaxing, refreshing thing. We called our once-a-year getaway the W(M)ild Women's Weekend. Each person, along with one other, was responsible for one meal and its cleanup. The rest of the meals, you ate like a queen and didn't do a damn thing. Oh, it was heavenly. I haven't attended for 8 years, since moving from Alberta home to Saskatchewan. Tsk. I know what I'm missing, too.

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