The Sound of a Memory...

It is said that sound and smell are two things that evoke memories the strongest.
Yesterday afternoon I had that effect sitting in the back, under the lanai, by the pool.

It was St. Patrick's Day yesterday and for some reason this part of the country seems to go nuts over things green. It's Florida and things are pretty green already but the people seem to want to party.
Guess the Snowbirds are bored.

Laser Joe (neighbour diagonal from me) was ramping a party up around 3 pm. Though you can't see into his place (privacy fence, tall trees, you know the type). You know when a wing ding is starting.
The music starts.
This time is was Irish tunes. The kind with accordians and penny whistles.
Not at all unpleasant.
Then the dog starting barking (their door bell) and the people arrived.
Many people arrived by the sound of it.

Then I was struck with a flash back memory.
I've heard this before.
Whoa, it's been years!

When I was young my family would host huge cocktail parties on the side lawn at the cottage. The white picnic tables were the bars, there were bar tenders (I can't recall who really by I know one cousin BM and friend MT were quite often) and the yung'uns (me and my pals) were servers. The gigantic lawn umbrellas were up (remember the fringe on the edges of them? Why I remember that I'll never know) and the metal lawn chairs had been all washed and dried prior to the party.
There had been a flurry of activity the morning of the event with loaves of sandwiches (yum on the peanut butter and bacon ones) and making sure the plates were ready to go in the kitchen.
I can, to this day, make up a plate of hor's d'oeuvers in seconds with what ever is in the fridge. Rarely though did we run out of food. It was dinner for a few days after.

Everyone was dressed in their summer finery. Men in white pants, blazer and (horrors!) white patent leather shoes. Women in what ever bright, flowery summer dress thing they could find and jazzy sandals.
Yes, I wore a skirt for all of these extravaganzas.

I don't remember any of the conversations, I suppose I wasn't supposed to. But I remember the noise of all the friends visiting and gabbing away. That noise was all around me yesterday with Laser Joe's party. The snippets of converstation, the clink of glasses and the laughter.

I was transported back in time....

I remembered that my friends were usually at each Southampton cocktail party, as this was a circuit thing.
There were parties just about every weekend at one cottage or another.
We all were recruited (conscripted??) to attend as servers.
We dreamed of the day we could attend as guests and not as daughter's of hosts.
We didn't complain, of course, it was an expected aspect of the summer.

The back roads in Southampton were always a challenge to negotiate when there was a party going on. The roads were narrow then. Everyone drove to one of these shindigs, drinking and driving was not quite as taboo as it is now. 
Huron street was essentially a gravel road as many were at that end of town. 
They were pot holed and bumpy for the most part.
And the town oiled them.
If you don't know what that is (it's now banned of course) it was a truck that slowly came down the road and sprayed oil on the dry road bed to keep the dust down.
It worked.
It really messed up your car though.
Especially if it was white.
Or any colour for that matter.
The oiling schedule especially down our stretch of Huron street could make or break a party. I only have recollection of one debate on date change due to the oiling of the road.

Why the heck am I remembering this now???

The memories were there I guess, but I haven't thought of that time for, like, ever and now...?

The Sound of a Memory....
 The gathering crowd at Laser Joe's was SO distinctive of those summer parties many moons ago. The 30C weather and sunny evening didn't hurt either.

Weird.

I hope that, in the future, I'll have distinctive memories of my time here in Port Charlotte. The birds, the smell of the flowers when the breeze is right. I may not have palm trees to jog my memory but if I close my eyes I might be able to see them. Hear them with their distinctive rustle.

Hmmmm
Nice.