Lillian is hosting Poetics over at dVerse where we are writing poetry using the word Shade. While the rest of the country is dealing with ‘heat waves,’ we here in Florida have temps over 90 every day from May to October. True Floridians look for a parking spot in the shade. There are never enough to go around. This is just a bit of quicky dashed fluff that I have written in the form of 4 Cinquains.
Still dark
when we arrive
which way is west again?
Look for a spot under a tree
that I
might
have shade at
two-thirty, I see
Mr. Racecar Driver who
steals my
normal
spot under the
skinny oak too few
leaves to really call it shady
I rush
and honk
squealing tires
shake my angry fist at
him, I down-shift into second
I win!
© Jilly’s All Rights Reserved
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Jilly's 
Smiling I am. I suspect many of us have been in the situation where we patiently wait for a parking spot, guessing this one person shall be the first to leave, and we are positioned wrong…so that while the person is backing out of the spot, they are backing out towards us and we cannot move, and as that person shifts gear to move forward, a driver on the “other side” shoots into the spot while we sit helplessly by. Yup. It’s the stuff of cuss words and frustration for sure. Love this take on the prompt! Oh yes…..those spots in the shade are so coveted….thing is, depending on how long you are there, the shade may progress two cars over! Perhaps it’s kind of like the quarterback throwing the ball where he thinks the runner will be, rather than where he is now. I shall part two spots over and laugh at you for stealing that place my friend, as your car fries in the afternoon sun! 🙂 Hah! Glad you posted this one, Jilly! 🙂
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Thanks, Lillian! That is pretty much how this one works since it is our parking lot at school. I left for lunch today and someone stole my shady spot but I felt vindicated when the day ended and we were all in the full Florida sun! In truth, I’m pretty tame behind the wheel, but this was a fun bit of fantasy.
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Yup, shady places in Miami are rare, unless you’re under the mall. I’m glad you beat him to the punch. I’ve given up. It’s hot in Texas everywhere you park, till late October
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Ack! Miami is way too hot for my liking. I’m an Orlando girl. Consider this a bit of fiction; I don’t really drive like that – fun to imagine 🙂
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I used to like Winter’s there. Go to the keys and fish or snorkel.
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You lived in Miami?
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Back in the 50s and 60s and 70s. Kind of a nice place then. Lived in Cutler Ridge, Perrine, Coconut Grove, and Coral Gables. We were raised lots at Homestead AFB
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Had no idea! Homestead was a clean sweep with that Andrew guy. (My husband is former AF – never managed to get stationed in FL.) Thanks for sharing 🙂
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It was a great place to be a kid in the 60s 😄
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a little bit of road rage – made me smile. Certainly don’t need any shade down here at the moment…
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Thanks, Maureen! Purely fictional & silly. Sending you warm, sunny thoughts!
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I used to travel to Phoenix for a client. I remember it getting over 120 degrees in the summer. There were plenty of places to park but only a few had a place with an open structure over them to protect them from the Sun. I found the heat entertaining, but I didn’t have to be there for more than a few weeks out of the year.
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Yep! I’ve gotten used to it, but it is the cold A/C that is more likely to get to me. Thanks for stopping by!
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A fun romp, Jilly! Remind me to wear a seat belt should I ride with you. …and to be careful whose parking space I take!
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Ha!
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I can just see this…and feel the anger. So much for shade.
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I know! How dare they?!
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Visited some folks in Florida many summers ago and I can relate to the heat and shades and golf carts all around ~ This made me smile Jilly ~
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Thanks, Grace! Visiting Florida in the summer is a very brave thing to do.
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Love the line breaks.
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Thank you! The Cinquain form is enjoyable.
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Shady parking space is heavenly in hot summer
Hank is here:
https://imagery77.blogspot.my/2017/08/be-more-specific-to-allay-suspicions.html
Hank
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Great fun! As for the heat, it was 90 the other day and I was thankful for the cooler temp.
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Lol! I know the feeling!
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Ah, our numbers are legion, those of us who’ve not “won the race”. We’re still out there orbiting the parking lot looking for another spot!
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Thanks for reading, Bev!
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I’m glad I no longer have this problem – my car is mostly parked at our house. Thanks for reminding me so eloquently! 🙂
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Your post reminds me of the Philippines. There, days get to be too hot that one could almost bake cookies inside a car.
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Exactly! Most days I burn myself on the steering wheel – I will be glad when Fall arrives. Thanks for reading!
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Made me smile. The heat is hellish now.
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Haha..I remember the fight over parking spaces when the girls were little…we loved the heat when we went to Florida on holiday.
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Yeah, I love it, too! Let me guess – you were at Disney?
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It was our “homage” and kept us going when my husband was serving in Iraq in 2003. We came to disney and Cocoa Beach… we were there during Hurricane Charley and have extremely fond memories. I remember the heat, walking out at night in the dark and it hitting you as soon aas you opened the door.
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Summer in Florida is brutal! I was a couple of states north of here when Charley came through – cool that you got to experience that with fond memories. Cocoa is our nearest beach and a favorite spot.
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