I didn’t find my way into bed until just before 11pm the night before. Still, I woke this morning before 5:30am. And as my new routine dictates, I was careful about making excessive noise getting out of bed, peeing, and brushing my teeth. As I left the room and headed downstairs I pulled the bedroom door almost closed.
I am still getting used to the family room without the six poinsettia plants surrounding me as I lay for my sit-ups. For whatever reason, it seemed to take a bit longer than usual and they hurt a bit more this morning, too. Once I got to my push-ups, I whipped out an extra 5 on top of the routine 50 just because. I was feeling strong but stiff. Lastly, I breezed through my 40 curls then leashed up Ykraps for our early morning walk.
Outside it was very sultry again, and it certainly didn’t feel like early morning unless of course you’re used to spending it in a blast furnace. As clear as it was the sky was still dark, but was only 5:45am. Even still, I could detect an approaching sunrise on the eastern horizon. Too, sitting at about 45 degrees above the morning horizon was a single bright star - the only one that I could readily see in the entire sky.
Our temperature today is expected to flirt with 100 degrees and it will be accompanied by extremely high humidity. It will be a hot run for sure. After finishing my entire routine I made the decision to drive the BM’er. Since it was a Monday, I would have to put my laptop in the trunk and my bulging gym bag on the passenger seat. I was a fun ride into work, just as one might’ve expected.
Once at work I got right down to business and began catching up on all of my to-do’s. I had a one-on-one scheduled with my boss at 10am thus I had little time to get involved in anything else.
After my one-on-one I returned to my office and began making preparations for a big launch tomorrow. My cell phone rang and I saw right away that it was brother Tommy. I expected he was simply returning my calling albeit late – from Friday afternoon. Instead, he had some dreadfully bad news to deliver, which caught me completely off guard. He said that it was about Tiffany, and that she had off’d herself, or something like that. I was stunned and sad all at once. After asking, he went on to tell me how. Instantly, my heart began ache for her and those closest to her. And I would be lying if I said that I didn’t feel just a little guilty. I mean, could I have intervened somehow? Could I have been the ‘white night’ so to speak. Is there something I could said, given, or did that would’ve helped turn her otherwise bleak outlook on life around? These and a million other thoughts raced through my head.
In an instant my thoughts turned to my own three daughters. I asked myself such things as how sure I was that they feel loved, cherished, and appreciated, and then I asked myself what I could be doing that I am not. I thought about how I might intervene in their lives no matter how dark or how complicated their problems seem, because when they’re gone, they’re gone. Certainly don’t ever want to face woulda, coulda, shoulda.
Honestly, looking back, Tiffany barely stood a chance at escaping the poverty and hard life style that she had been raised in and had become so accustom to. And, yes, we hear stories all the time of people escaping such turmoil and becoming free of their pasts and moving on to accomplish great things. Could she have? Absolutely, but she needed a few breaks that she either wouldn’t take or never got. Under that brash exterior laid a very tender heart. She’ll be missed.
I struggled through the rest of my morning but didn’t share what I had learned with anyone. I said a silent prayer, and took her memory with me on my run. All I can do now is try to find something in her short life to use as a positive lesson.
As expected, my run was a hot one. It was about 95 degrees with the humidity topping 60%. That put the heat index at 107. The final mile was grueling. I could feel no breeze and the sun baked on my neck and shoulders. My body was covered in a thick sweaty glaze. The two ponds along Davidson Rd. were tempting targets, but I didn’t partake. I toughed out the final mile and made it back in one piece. And just as one might imagine, it took a few extra minutes to cool down. As I showered I promised myself an early morning run on Tuesday so to avoid the extreme heat.
I was a little down but wouldn’t allow the day’s dreadful news to destroy me. I kept telling myself to be strong and find something valuable and life sustaining from the entire situation. I took the final minutes of the day to catch up on my weekend writings. The next thing I knew, it was 5:15pm. I quickly wrapped up for the day and made my way to the BM’er and home.
I had left the top down in the BM’er and the leather seats were hot. Even with the A/C on full blast, it couldn’t overcome the extreme heat. Truly, I would’ve been much better off with the top up. But … that’s a sin! I arrived home to an empty house. Since it was a Monday, Mindy had taken the kids to her old home and to her ex. From there she was going to the grocery. I would have an hour or so completely alone! After doing my normal chores, I decided to spend my time updating my blog by adding some pics to some of the past week’s entries. Just as I was finishing, Mindy arrived home with groceries and more stuff. After carrying everything in and helping her put things away, I retired for a short nap in my reading chair. I slept, I think, for about 15 minutes. When I got up it was almost 7:30pm. Mindy was enjoying some California rolls and wanted share. I had two but didn’t particularly care for them. I watered up and headed for the garage to begin my yard chores. I figured if I stayed at it I could finish tonight.
After wacking and edging I began to mow the sides and easement with the push mower. Just then Jim pulled up with the kids. After a little meet & greet I got back to business. I worked hard to finish what I had started. Surprisingly, the grass and flowers are drying out even after the torrential rains we had as recent as Thursday night. But that’s what temps in the 90’s will do. After I finished mowing and blowing, I drug out the sprinkler to water the front yard flowers that almost never get manually watered anymore. The impatiens in particular needed a drink badly.
Just as I set the sprinkler for optimum coverage, my old neighbors, Daryl and Jennifer, pulled up with their two boys, Cullen and Holden. Caitlin was at camp Jennifer reported. I hadn’t talked with the two of them for a long, long time. Daryl, I hadn’t seen in almost two years, and Jennifer, last spring for just a minute at Straders. It was good to catch up. They were in awe of the changes to the landscape. But don’t feel sorry for them,. They have a beautiful mansion between Mill Run and the river. They are both successful doctors. They stayed for about 20 minutes talking and walking around the yard. It was completely dark when they left and all of us were being eaten by tenacious mosquitoes.
Once Inside, I took a very quick shower to wash away the yard debris. When done, I helped Mindy put the kids back to bed. They were up unusually late – 9:45pm. After they were out, we went back downstairs where I popped some popcorn and Mindy had a bowl of cereal and a glass of wine – ewh! We found our own way to bed around 11pm.
I didn’t find my way into bed until just before 11pm the night before. Still, I woke this morning before 5:30am. And as my new routine dictates, I was careful about making excessive noise getting out of bed, peeing, and brushing my teeth. As I left the room and headed downstairs I pulled the bedroom door almost closed.
I am still getting used to the family room without the six poinsettia plants surrounding me as I lay for my sit-ups. For whatever reason, it seemed to take a bit longer than usual and they hurt a bit more this morning, too. Once I got to my push-ups, I whipped out an extra 5 on top of the routine 50 just because. I was feeling strong but stiff. Lastly, I breezed through my 40 curls then leashed up Ykraps for our early morning walk.
Outside it was very sultry again, and it certainly didn’t feel like early morning unless of course you’re used to spending it in a blast furnace. As clear as it was the sky was still dark, but was only 5:45am. Even still, I could detect an approaching sunrise on the eastern horizon. Too, sitting at about 45 degrees above the morning horizon was a single bright star - the only one that I could readily see in the entire sky.
Our temperature today is expected to flirt with 100 degrees and it will be accompanied by extremely high humidity. It will be a hot run for sure. After finishing my entire routine I made the decision to drive the BM’er. Since it was a Monday, I would have to put my laptop in the trunk and my bulging gym bag on the passenger seat. I was a fun ride into work, just as one might’ve expected.
Once at work I got right down to business and began catching up on all of my to-do’s. I had a one-on-one scheduled with my boss at 10am thus I had little time to get involved in anything else.
After my one-on-one I returned to my office and began making preparations for a big launch tomorrow. My cell phone rang and I saw right away that it was brother Tommy. I expected he was simply returning my calling albeit late – from Friday afternoon. Instead, he had some dreadfully bad news to deliver, which caught me completely off guard. He said that it was about Tiffany, and that she had off’d herself, or something like that. I was stunned and sad all at once. After asking, he went on to tell me how. Instantly, my heart began ache for her and those closest to her. And I would be lying if I said that I didn’t feel just a little guilty. I mean, could I have intervened somehow? Could I have been the ‘white night’ so to speak. Is there something I could said, given, or did that would’ve helped turn her otherwise bleak outlook on life around? These and a million other thoughts raced through my head.
In an instant my thoughts turned to my own three daughters. I asked myself such things as how sure I was that they feel loved, cherished, and appreciated, and then I asked myself what I could be doing that I am not. I thought about how I might intervene in their lives no matter how dark or how complicated their problems seem, because when they’re gone, they’re gone. Certainly don’t ever want to face woulda, coulda, shoulda.
Honestly, looking back, Tiffany barely stood a chance at escaping the poverty and hard life style that she had been raised in and had become so accustom to. And, yes, we hear stories all the time of people escaping such turmoil and becoming free of their pasts and moving on to accomplish great things. Could she have? Absolutely, but she needed a few breaks that she either wouldn’t take or never got. Under that brash exterior laid a very tender heart. She’ll be missed.
I struggled through the rest of my morning but didn’t share what I had learned with anyone. I said a silent prayer, and took her memory with me on my run. All I can do now is try to find something in her short life to use as a positive lesson.
As expected, my run was a hot one. It was about 95 degrees with the humidity topping 60%. That put the heat index at 107. The final mile was grueling. I could feel no breeze and the sun baked on my neck and shoulders. My body was covered in a thick sweaty glaze. The two ponds along Davidson Rd. were tempting targets, but I didn’t partake. I toughed out the final mile and made it back in one piece. And just as one might imagine, it took a few extra minutes to cool down. As I showered I promised myself an early morning run on Tuesday so to avoid the extreme heat.
I was a little down but wouldn’t allow the day’s dreadful news to destroy me. I kept telling myself to be strong and find something valuable and life sustaining from the entire situation. I took the final minutes of the day to catch up on my weekend writings. The next thing I knew, it was 5:15pm. I quickly wrapped up for the day and made my way to the BM’er and home.
I had left the top down in the BM’er and the leather seats were hot. Even with the A/C on full blast, it couldn’t overcome the extreme heat. Truly, I would’ve been much better off with the top up. But … that’s a sin! I arrived home to an empty house. Since it was a Monday, Mindy had taken the kids to her old home and to her ex. From there she was going to the grocery. I would have an hour or so completely alone! After doing my normal chores, I decided to spend my time updating my blog by adding some pics to some of the past week’s entries. Just as I was finishing, Mindy arrived home with groceries and more stuff. After carrying everything in and helping her put things away, I retired for a short nap in my reading chair. I slept, I think, for about 15 minutes. When I got up it was almost 7:30pm. Mindy was enjoying some California rolls and wanted share. I had two but didn’t particularly care for them. I watered up and headed for the garage to begin my yard chores. I figured if I stayed at it I could finish tonight.
After wacking and edging I began to mow the sides and easement with the push mower. Just then Jim pulled up with the kids. After a little meet & greet I got back to business. I worked hard to finish what I had started. Surprisingly, the grass and flowers are drying out even after the torrential rains we had as recent as Thursday night. But that’s what temps in the 90’s will do. After I finished mowing and blowing, I drug out the sprinkler to water the front yard flowers that almost never get manually watered anymore. The impatiens in particular needed a drink badly.
Just as I set the sprinkler for optimum coverage, my old neighbors, Daryl and Jennifer, pulled up with their two boys, Cullen and Holden. Caitlin was at camp Jennifer reported. I hadn’t talked with the two of them for a long, long time. Daryl, I hadn’t seen in almost two years, and Jennifer, last spring for just a minute at Straders. It was good to catch up. They were in awe of the changes to the landscape. But don’t feel sorry for them,. They have a beautiful mansion between Mill Run and the river. They are both successful doctors. They stayed for about 20 minutes talking and walking around the yard. It was completely dark when they left and all of us were being eaten by tenacious mosquitoes.
Once Inside, I took a very quick shower to wash away the yard debris. When done, I helped Mindy put the kids back to bed. They were up unusually late – 9:45pm. After they were out, we went back downstairs where I popped some popcorn and Mindy had a bowl of cereal and a glass of wine – ewh! We found our own way to bed around 11pm.
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