Days Like This

“When it’s not always raining there’ll be days like this. When there’s no one complaining, there’ll be days like this,” Van Morrison, Days Like This

PERFECT weather, a day off, and a close girlfriend. Three elements conspired to create one of those rare days bursting with bliss, where stuff simply flows and you are gently swept along by the breeze, rather than being forced to face the winter westerly’s of our lives. I had a rare free mid-week day and chose to escape the city, jump in the car, grab a girlfriend and head north to the Sunshine Coast and the Eumundi Markets.

On a weekend, the road would be packed with people heading to Noosa, but not on this mid-week day trip, our two-hour drive instead punctuated by catching up on our lives. We’ve just one hour each to examine, dissect and debate the latest before arriving in the tiny township of Eumundi and her normally bustling marketplace. Even the markets today are sedate, a slower place which suits us just fine, as we saunter through the stalls, pausing to snatch a mid-morning Turkish golzeme stuffed with spinach and feta.

We stroll and laugh. Steal languid pauses to smell the roses, or in this case, the pungent soap on sale. Chat to a stallholder about his carnivorous plants. Try on eclectic outfits. Resist the seduction of sparkly jewellery. Wander through aisles of books. Observe the colourful characters. Pat a camel.

We stumble across a “Willy Washer” and spend some time discussing its purpose. There’s a male fairy guarding some jewellery that resembles the young man selling the silver, fashioned from old knives, forks and spoons. An ancient typewriter has been dismantled, somewhat to our dismay, and crafted into trinkets. Colourful hand-woven handbags remind us of our travels around the globe.

We discover Noosa Reds – plump, juicy tomatoes bursting with the distinct flavours of this fertileregion – deliciously packed in crunchy brown paper bags. A giant gecko mural hugs a pole. There’s glass-blowing and some beaut ukes. And all the while, we keep winding through the marketplace, unravelling our lives.

Unpacking your world is hearty work and so we head east towards Noosa for a mid-afternoon glass of wine by the ocean. It’s winter and it’s empty and it’s gorgeous because of this. There’s no pressure to swim, even though we’ve bought our togs “just in case”. Instead we simply sit, delight at the dolphins, gossip about the awkward couple at the adjacent table quite obviously on a first date. Don’t worry, we’ve both been there many times, and agree he’s overdone it by ordering a gigantic platter of oysters. The double entendre surely not missed on his target.

Our suspicions are confirmed about an hour later, while we’re sitting along Noosa’s main street, facing the sidewalk in our rattan chairs reminiscent of Paris, sipping lattes like a local. The couple emerge from the restaurant, embrace awkwardly, and Neptune is left to wander down the street alone. We wonder if he’ll regret the gregarious gesture. That maybe he tried a little too hard? Or perhaps they simply had nothing in common? But not my mate and me. We glide easily down the street, admiring artwork, try on hats for the upcoming summer, dream of wearing summer frocks and sandals again soon. The sun sets and we reluctantly head home, salty skinned, tousled hair and nourished spirits. Yes some days, when it’s not always raining, and there’s no one complaining, there’ll be days like this.

The Global Goddess is about strong, smart, sexy and spiritual women (and the great men who love us!). For more blogs by The Global Goddess go to www.theglobalgoddess.com