A new era... a better era... the hammock era...

T: Life. Liberty. The pursuit of happiness. And a hammock. Perhaps our founding father's omitted this fourth cornerstone of Americana, or perhaps they simply realized that it was already such an integral component of the first three items. A wonderful and mystical leavening agent without which the dough of our nation could not rise.

All I know is that our lives have been given a remarkable new depth and purpose, and all this was made possible by a wonderful factory somewhere in India, a conveniently located Lowe's Home Improvement outlet, and the financial backing of our dear Uncle Visa. Mine is not to question why, mine is but to....nap and swing.

V: Upon my arrival in Florida, there were so many things we needed for our new place. A million things that we didn't have for one reason or another:

• vacuum (I haven't had carpet since leaving home)
• lawnmower (ditto about a backyard)
• washer and dryer (not something either of us thought to question when renting a house until we went to do some and found some empty hook-ups in the garage. Huh.)
• paint (the all beige interior-exterior-carpet color scheme left something to be desired)
• a car (in NY you only own a car if you are willing to pay another rent to have it in the city with you)

But the thing I was most excited about was not doing a load of wash without quarters, or getting to listen to my own music en route and sing along with out being 'crazy lady' on the train. No, the thing I have been most excited about was our very own hammock. In our very own back yard.

And now we have one. (sigh) We have both tested it out solo, and with very careful timing and balance, tried it out together. It is honestly my favorite place in our new place, and I see a lot of time being spent out there, sipping some wine or just watching the stars. It is the beginning of a very good era.