Lounging about on holiday
Jessica Long builds a sheeted fortress for a night and lives to tell the tale.
It’s that rom-com time of year and The Holiday made it onto my watch list, again. I presume most people have seen Kate Winslet’s and Cameron Diaz’s characters deal with their relationship woes in this 2006 film by now. But there was something in the film I hadn’t taken much notice of, until now.
It struck me when Diaz’s character visited the dreamy-eyed Jude Law at a cute English home. It was snowing outside and, donning a gorgeous outfit and stilettos, Diaz crawled into a magical tent in the lounge.
She ignored her adult ways to enjoy an innocent night of fun, filled with a little magic.
I realised, in that moment, I had never camped in my lounge as a youngster. So, I thought I’d give it a crack. I mean if Diaz can, I can. Right?
Building a fortress out of pillows, blankets and sheets was a childhood fantasy. For whatever reason, I just never became a linen-building engineer.
In my little Wellington flat, I told my room-mates I was taking over the lounge for the night. I’m sure they thought I was mad.
I dragged and dropped furniture. Cushion couches were strewn across the room and I harboured the household’s blankets, pillows and anything I could find to make my cloud-like cave.
It was actually a lot harder than I thought to build a sheeted-roof over my head. But, finally, I managed to piece something together – a far cry from my Hollywood-styled dream.
Crawling into my new little home for the night with a book and some snacks it seemed, at first, I was going to be in for a pleasant night. It was relaxing and comfortable for a while.
Truthfully, my youth has been over for a while, and there was a little less magic than I suspect Diaz encountered.
The first issue was carpet burn. It turns out crawling in and out of a tiny indoor camp is a major safety hazard when you’re not the height of a 5-year-old. I wasn’t even wearing my Duchess of Sussex-inspired pumps.
It took a long time for me to drop off to sleep but not because I was gossiping all night with my favourite gal-pal, or feeling the effects of a major sugar binge . . . I rediscovered floors are, and have always been, uncomfortable.
Overall, it was an experience I’m glad I finally ticked off but I now know firsthand just how much fun Diaz would have had in that tiny indoor tent.
It turns out crawling in and out of a tiny indoor camp is a major safety hazard when you’re not the height of a 5-year-old.