Do You Like Piña Coladas?

Pina Colada, originally uploaded by Randy Son Of Robert.

We all get into a routine. It's really inevitable if you're around someone for a long time. I know that I have some friends I think I could never get bored with, but then there comes a time when I'd really rather be with someone else because there's some kind of spark that's simply gone out.


It's especially true of husband/wife relationships. A man and woman fall in love, have that butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling, there's a beautiful wedding, and then whammo. Before you know it they've settled into a rut and things can get pretty dull.


But what if, every once in a while, we all went on a "voyage of discovery" with our nearest and dearests? Maybe we could quiz them, or--better yet--just spend some extra time with them: not just sitting around or doing something routine, but getting out and experiencing something completely new, just to see how they react. Maybe you would discover things you never knew about a person: your Mom's favorite flower is a sweet pea, your husband secretly hates your Brussels sprouts, your sister isn't angry--just thoughtful, your brother-in-law has a passion for Japanese tea. It could make you look at your relationships in a completely different light, and fall in love with your friends and family all over again! 


All of this came to mind after I listened to the 1979 Rupert Holmes song "Escape", better known as "The Piña Colada Song". It's about a man who is dragging through life, completely dissatisfied with his humdrum, everyday marriage. He's fallen out of love with his wife. After seeing a message in the personals column of the paper, however, he makes plans to run away with a woman who sounds spontaneous, exciting, and has a lot in common with him. You probably know the ending, but it's a fun song to relisten to:

I was tired of my lady, we'd been together too long.

Like a worn-out recording, of a favorite song.

So while she lay there sleeping, I read the paper in bed.

And in the personals column, there was this letter I read:

If you like Piña Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.

If you're not into yoga, if you have half-a-brain.

If you like making love at midnight, in the dunes of the cape.

I'm the lady you've looked for, write to me, and escape.

I didn't think about my lady, I know that sounds kind of mean.

But me and my old lady, had fallen into the same old dull routine.

So I wrote to the paper, took out a personal ad.

And though I'm nobody's poet, I thought it wasn't half-bad.

Yes, I like Piña Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.

I'm not much into health food, I am into champagne.

I've got to meet you by tomorrow noon, and cut through all this red tape.

At a bar called O'Malley's, where we'll plan our escape.

So I waited with high hopes, then she walked in the place.

I knew her smile in an instant, I knew the curve of her face.

It was my own lovely lady, and she said, "Oh, it's you."

And we laughed for a moment, and I said, I never knew...

That you liked Piña Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.

And the feel of the ocean, and the taste of champagne.

If you like making love at midnight, in the dunes of the cape. 

You're the love that I've looked for, come with me, and escape.

If you like Piña Coladas, and getting caught in the rain.

If you're not into yoga, if you have half-a-brain.

If you like making love at midnight, in the dunes of the cape.

You're the love that I've looked for, come with me, and escape.

So maybe you should take a moment and do something a little different, maybe just open up to your spouse or sibling, and try to discover one or two things about them that you "never knew."