I'll Tell You What ...

One of the best Firkins yet. Mindy, Bob, and Mary Ann The sun setting over Raymond as we pulled out of my sub-division Friday eve. I woke for good at 5:40am after first waking at 5:15am but choosing to sneak a little extra sleep. I woke in the middle of the night extremely thirsty and with a racing heart, and a mind full of fear. I am not sure what it was that caused such feelings – a bad dream or what, but I was stressed. I drank almost a full glass of water and then went right back to sleep. It was one of those wake-ups where you feel just so damn tired. My exercises went much smoother than many other days of late, probably because it was Friday. I felt much calmer and at peace too. It was a glorious Friday morning. It was 53 degrees and clear. After my exercises, I took Ykraps on a much deserved walk. We were back for coffee and the rest of our morning by 5:59am. Before meditating, I sent Mindy and email and checked some of my favorite web pages (I hope nobody saw me). :) My Friday morning meditation was a good one. Unlike a lot of days recently, I was able to free my mind of clutter and worry. As the morning continued to brighten, I continued onward with my usual plan. I began prepping my lunch and making my breakfast. And just as I planned, I showered and readied for home departure by 7:25am. To add a little Friday spin to the day, I wore my legacy Barley’s shirt to work. To kill the last few minutes, I stroked my guitar & then shot the vagrant geese taking up residency in my yard. I do not care for those damn rats with wings at all. I didn’t leave the house until 7:34am. Traffic to the freeway was heavy, which reaffirms my suspicion about the local traffic patterns. A lot of people must leave home at 7:30am. And since I am so close to the ramp, when I leave at 7:30am, I beat most other traffic. I talked to Mindy real quick along the way. She was at school early for ‘Muffins with Mom’ as opposed to ‘Donuts with Dad’ which occurs in the fall. I arrived to work at 7:50am and the morning was surprisingly calm, especially for a Friday. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop but that never happened. Come 12:45pm I left for the gym and my Friday run. By now the weather was absolutely gorgeous. The temperature was hovering close to 70 degrees and the sky clear and blue. I listened to David Gilmour during my run, which only served to improve my already good mood. After a shower and dropping my gym bag in my office, I grabbed my Trooper keys and left for a short errand. I went to Straders on Riverside Dr. to pick-up a hanging basket of wave petunias and a new coconut fiber basket liner. Plus, I thought that I’d peruse the entire center checking out the possibilities. Nothing lifts my spirits like hanging out at the garden center this time of year, especially on a sunny day. I was gone just over 30 minutes. It was 2:30pm when I returned to work. As I dug into my afternoon I ate my packed lunch. Today I had tuna fish. It hit the spot. The afternoon remained as calm as the morning right up until 4pm. Then the bottom dropped out. What I thought might be a one of the calmest Friday’s on record got a bit dicey for a little more than an hour. Suddenly everything was hitting at once. I had plenty to do. I was able to mange through and provide a good turnover and leave with a feeling of satisfaction at about 5:20pm. Finally, the weekend was here! I arrived home somewhere near 5:45pm and after my evening chores, which are much lighter because there’s no need to scrub lunch containers or prepare morning coffee, I took to the deck for a nap. To aid in that transport, I read for a little while. Within minutes I was out like a light. I went back inside around 6:15pm still feeling a little sleepy and crashed in my reading chair for still another 10 minutes. I woke when Mindy arrived. She had just been tanning and running a couple other errands. I prepared both of us a vodka & raspberry Fresca with a splash of lime while we talked. At 7:30pm, Mindy took a shower in preparation for Barleys. While she showered, I blogged. We left for Barley’s around 8:20pm. We hadn’t been there on Friday for two weeks. Most of he usuals were present and accounted for, including Bob & Mary Ann, Rick, Josh, and of course the Barley’s crew. I had half expected Bob to invite me golfing tomorrow but that wasn’t the case. It seems his weekend tee time was established for Sunday afternoon instead. He id ask if that would work for me but it wouldn’t since we had already committed to being at Mindy’s mom’s for Sunday dinner. I had 3 firkin IPA’s this evening. Mindy had one glass of wine. For dinner, she had salmon and I had Gates of hell wings. For only having three beers, I had a pretty good buzz. Because of this, I allowed Mindy to drive just to be safe. I don’ know that I have ever ridden shotgun in the Trooper before. If I have, I can’t recall it. It was an odd feeling! At home we readied the hot tub for a soaking and I threw my Larry the Cable Guy CD in the stereo and piped the audio to the deck speakers. At the time I didn’t pay much attention to Mindy ‘s request to turn off the Cable Guy CD, and I know she was in stitches a number of times too. She told me later that she didn’t want to listen to that while hot tubbing. I think that she would’ve preferred some romantic music. After we left the hot tub, I paid enough attention to Mindy to help her forget about the lack of romantic music. If I were a betting man, I’d bet that we were sound asleep by 12:30am.