Run in the rain

I was out of bed just before 5:30am feeling 90% better than I did the night prior. It’s funny how even though the night before was by far the worst of it, I knew I’d feel better come morning. Lucky for me I whizzed though all the phases/symptoms quickly. I even had enough energy to do my exercise routine with a smile and some left over for my walk with Ykraps. When I returned to the house I made some coffee for Mindy, took it upstairs, and paid her wake-up visit. Next, I found my way to the deck to meditate under a dark, cloudy, cool sky. It was nice. After ten minutes outside in total peace, I went back inside to begin food prep. First I made my lunch then began making our breakfast. It took all the spare time I had to complete lunch and breakfast. I am always thankful for it later though. Thankful for eating a healthy, nutritious breakfast, and thankful for taking the time to pack a healthy fulfilling lunch. I went through the rest of my usual steps in preparation for a day at work. At work my progressed at a typical pace. I left for a run later than usual. It was almost 1:30pm. The weather was cloudy and about 70 degrees - definitely not summery and more like spring. At about the halfway point the sky opened up and began to dump buckets of rain. It rained so hard that one couldn't see ten feet in front of their face. But I was already warm from 2.5 miles of running so the rain did little to -pardon the pun - dampen my run. I got drenched. About the only ill affects of a rainy run like this are wet running shoes, but like anything else, they eventually dry. My afternoon whizzed by. I had thought about stopping at Echo Park to finish the drywall patch job, but because I wasn't leaving until almost 6pm, I didn't. Instead I headed straight home. At home, Mindy had already walked Ykraps and had dinner all but ready. We were having- you guessed it - wings. They were good. It took until almost 7:40pm to get the house back in order. About that same time Mindy got the kids ready for bed. I watched Glenn Beck until the Browns final preseason game came on. After watching about 15 minutes of the Browns game I logged onto ESPN.com to check on the Vikings game against the Cowboys via gamecast. They were ahead 7-3 and driving to score again. I ended up spending the next two hours observing the game via the gamecast. And just like kissing your sister, the game ended in a 10-10 tie after one overtime period. I headed to bed after that.

August is Waning

A large heap of Silly Putty - no kidding! I didn’t sleep very soundly but didn’t really expect to given the bug. And even though I was under the weather, I found my way downstairs to begin my daily prep by 5:40am. Mindy told me just before I headed down that she wanted to be up at 6:00am. My head was in a fog and I still had my cough. My outlook on life was a little gloomy but it often is when I am ill, which doesn’t happen all that often. Any little problem or trouble seems almost insurmountable when I’m feeling less than whole. I proceeded with my usual routine after walking Ykraps. I went with my coffee onto the deck where I began meditating. Something clicked inside my head that I had better wake Mindy. And if I were going to wake Mindy, I should take her some coffee. I did. That took about three minutes. Soon I was back outdoors with a clear mind and ready to meditate. After coffee I went to the PC briefly to read the Daily OM. Coincidentally, today’s OM was about illness and how it is trying to tell us something about ourselves that’s generally amiss. After a short stint on the PC I went to the kitchen to begin preparing my lunch and breakfast. I made tuna fish since it was Wednesday – my usual fish day. It took all of my allotted time and a little more to fix my lunch, Mindy’s snack, and both of our breakfasts. I had to hurry just a little. I bidded Mindy and the kids a good day before heading off to the shower since they’d be gone by the time I’d be out. I dressed casually but nicely for a Wednesday. In fact, I looked pretty damn good for feeling like shit! J I medicated myself again this morning before leaving the house and I took my nasal spray and antihistamine along in my gym bag. My nose started to run just before leaving the house. I knew I had a fresh box of tissues in my office for just such events. I arrived to work a bit early. It took everything I had to stay focused. My head felt like it was pickled in snot. I felt warm and sleepy too. If I could’ve, I would’ve closed my door and napped. I was feeling horrible. Nonetheless, I kept after it all day. I did my best to keep my chin up and to be a productive role model. I left for my run around 1pm knowing that a run would clear my head and mask the symptoms associated with a cold. The temperature was ideal for a run – about 72 degrees under mostly cloudy skies. I loved it and completed it with out any trouble. But then again, I didn’t expect any. Like I said, a half mile into a run – once I begin sweating – you forget all about being under the weather. You just can’t tell. I was looking forward to eating my lunch. But I knew that I would crash soon after returning to my office and sitting in my chair. I’ve down this road many times. I worked through the afternoon at times feeling like I couldn’t possibly make it. Somehow I did. I drove home feeling miserable! I wanted nothing but to snuggle up in my bed and go to sleep. This was Wednesday so that meant an evening alone with Mindy. She was a saint too. She knew that I didn’t feel well and had already walked Ykraps by the time I got home. She insisted on taking care of my lunch containers and running clothes too. That allowed me to rest. She asked if I were hungry for some El Vaquero. Even though I was sick, I was up for some chips and salsa. She ordered by phone and left in the Trooper to fetch our food. She was gone about twenty minutes. During that time I updated my blog. When Mindy returned with the goods we gathered in the kitchen to consume the eats. She had an entire entree'. I had only chips and salsa but ate plenty of them despite feeling much less than stellar. By now I was in full head cold mode. My nose was running, my body ached, I had a slight fever, and still had mild cough. If nothing else over the last ten years I have had only a handful of colds (two in the last 8-10 months). Each one, however, has been short lived. I guess that tomorrow I will rise feeling better now that I am passing through all of the phases so quickly. After we ate and cleaned up the small mess, Jim Manken returned the children. They were happy to be home. What I noticed most were Jacob's jet black feet he said he got from playing barefoot on blacktop. I don't know that I've ever seen such dirty feet. It wasn't long before Mindy coaxed them upstairs for a bath. No one argued whether one was needed tonight. After their bath I read them a bedtime story, Do Pirates Take Baths? I wasn't going to be too far behind the kids. I was feeling really bad. I medicated myself with the same stuff from the night before and then headed off to bed before 8:30pm struck. Mindy came too.

Not feeling so hot

Feelin' Pukey! The days continue to get shorter. It’s depressing. I woke a little late this morning but nothing too ridiculous. I was up and downstairs by 5:45am. Once again, I had a dry throat and cough that was dragging me down, but the body aches were thankfully gone. We had numerous waves of strong storms roll through over night, so I couldn’t see spending time on the deck in meditation. I chose instead to try and find peace at my old comfortable spot in front of my reading chair. And since my head was in a fog, I nearly fell back asleep in doing so. I failed to mention that the kids joined us in bed a couple different times due to the thunder and lightning. I made Mindy a cup of coffee and took it to her around 6:10am. I went back downstairs and made my lunch and the two of us some breakfast. Mindy and the kids left for school at 7:15am – right on schedule. I finished showering and dressing. Before leaving for work myself, I took some of the cough syrup Mindy had located for me. She said the stuff was very effective and would last nearly 12 hours. I took it. It was supposed to taste good like oranges, but instead it tasted like ear wax. It was nasty. More importantly however, it did the trick on my nagging cough. Work was a challenge and perhaps even more so due to feeling under the weather. Despite my condition I pressed onward and left for a lunchtime run somewhere close to 1pm. I took the Trueman Rd/Home Depot route just to mix it up a little. It felt really good. When I returned to my office I was pretty much glued there until just after 515pm when I decided to call it a day. Instead of going straight home, I once again headed to Echo Park to work further on the drywall patch job. The holes were patched but now I had to feather it out to make it transparent to the untrained eye. I arrived around 5:45pm. I wasn’t there long. I was on my way home by 6:05pm. Traffic through the Hilliard Rome/Renner Rd intersection was at a crawl – as usual. I arrived home somewhere close to 6:20pm. Mindy had already walked Ykraps and has dinner just about on the table. We were having roasted chicken, Green beans, and salad. I wasn’t feeling that great but I still ate everything on my plate. After dinner I did the dishes. It took all the energy I could muster. I felt as though I was being punished. That was the first sit down dinner just Mindy, the kids and I had had alone in a long while. After dinner Mindy proposed bathing the kids and reading their story sinceI felt so crappy. I appreciated that. I did go up and tuck them in just the same. I like it as much as they seem to. After returning to the downstairs, I snuggled up in my reading chair with my book that I am admittedly reading very slowly. Iread about 20 pages. Mindy headed up to be bed just before 9pm. I stayed downstairs and read even longer. At about 9:30pm i headed up are medicating myslef like an old man. I took some cough syrup, an anti-infalmmatory, a decongestant/anti-histemine, and sprayed some Nasonex up my nose. Geesh! I wanted ot do all I could to ensure a restful night's sleep. Just as I bedded down, Bella came calling. She insisted on snuggling her momma for a few minutes. Mindy let her get in our bed for just about two minutes. She was surprisingly fine with that and went back to her own bed with little or no fanfare. I was out!

First Day of School!

And so it begins... A journey through the American educational system. They'll likely be few of these moments while at school in front of the student body. He'll never live it down. I tossed and turned a few times through the night but still managed a rather restful night’s sleep. I woke again with a scratchy throat - a clear indication that I had either late summer allergies or what’s more likely – a minor cold. In conjunction with my scratchy throat, all of my limbs ached as if I had been doing strenuous yard work, which I hadn’t. It was 5:35am by the time I made my way to the kitchen. I found my walking shoes and quickly laid myself against the sofa to begin my sit-ups and push-ups. I willed myself to complete my workout and then found Ykraps to begin our day by taking our morning walk. The sky was dark but socked in with clouds. This was obvious by the absence of stars. It was humid and about 70 degrees. Even though the weather was somewhat summery, there was a tinge of autumn in the air. Maybe it was my imagination. But either way, I know that day is coming soon. It usually comes the first week or two of September. Two years ago it reared its ugly head the day before my grandmother died, and last year I think it was a week or two later. Last year we were blessed with an extended summer to be sure. I was comfortably boating well into October. The first cold snap hit the day of the Steve Weiss Charity golf outing. After our walk, Ykraps and I returned home where I made a hot cup of coffee. I enjoyed that coffee on the deck in silence alone with the crickets and cicadas. Today was Jacob’s first day of school. Soon his life as he knows it will be forever altered. His will be a little different in that he’ll have the benefit or curse (depending on how he looks at it) of riding to scho0ol with his mom and seeing her periodically through the day. It’s probably a good thing that this will carry only through his kindergarten year, because come the fourth, fifth, and sixth grade, a guy can get beat up for being the teacher’s kid. Soon I could hear both Mindy and Jacob upstairs stirring about. And soon they were both downstairs getting ready for that very special day where a little boy becomes more of a man. I could tell that Mindy was equally as excited about this day. He had his camouflage lunch box crammed full of goodies. His mother was doting all over him. Damn! After making breakfast for Mindy and I, she readied to leave by 7:15am. But not before I managed to snap a couple of pictures that could very likely live on in infamy. I would have called in late to attend the school but Jacob’s father was doing so and I didn’t want to dampen anyone’s experience. Mindy took her digital camera along too. Mindy waited until the final minute to wake Bella for the trip to Grandma Sharon’s (not their grandmother – just her nick name). When Bella looked up at her mommy form the potty Mindy shrilled at the swollen eye Bella was sporting. I went to get a look myself. All the fuss got Bella going. She burst into tears and Mindy fell all over herself about it. I gestured to Mindy to instead down play it. She quickly got the hint and tempered her surprise. Bella calmed quickly. As I hoped into the shower, they all left. I had a peaceful house for the next twenty minutes. I dressed nicely for work and pulled out the drive myself around 7:35am. In turn, I arrived to work early by about ten minutes. I needed all of those minutes to reacquaint myself with my own office since I had spent the last two weeks working out on the floor with my team members. Work went rather well but we were busy, of course. The morning just flew by. Sometime mid-morning the rain began to come down and it continued up and through my run. I had to run in the rain. The temperature barely topped 70 degrees against a steady down pour. The rain was fairly warm, however. It felt good to have the rain against my skin through the entire run. By the time I had finished I was soaked. And at least temporarily, the cold/allergy symptoms had subsided. Back at my desk I ate while I worked. I spent the remainder of the afternoon working at a frantic pace. It always seems to get that way come quitting time. I found my way out of the office sometime near 5:10pm and made my way home without any stops. At home it would be a quiet evening with just Mindy and I. She was already walking Ykraps when I gave her a call. And when I got home she was finishing up some laundry and cleaning up what little mess was left around the house. We wasted little time deciding on dinner. We ate the leftover burgers from the night before. In fact, we were completely done with dinner by 6:15pm. After dinner, I played a little guitar while Mindy tended to some school papers. I think that she was doing some grading, although I am not certain of that. What I was certain of was my desire for a nap. So, I threw two pillows on the floor and took a nooner. It felt wonderful. After about 20 minutes or so I rose as I heard the front door open. It was only 6:40pm but the kids were already back from an evening with their dad. That was about one hour or so early. The kids were in a good mood and shared stories about their day. Mindy bribed them upstairs for an early bath and pajama party. I spent the time updating my blog. After their pajamas wee on, I joined them upstairs for story time. We finished the Disney counting book. After the reading I helped tuck them in and headed back downstairs. Again, I grabbed my guitar and played softly for about thirty minutes or so. Mindy joined me on the sofa for the eventual beginning of Monday Night Football. Tonight’s game featured the Bengals and Packers. The Bengals after only about three bad plays destroyed the packers in every phase of the game. Carson Palmer and company looked terrific. At one point with 2 minutes remaining until halftime, the Bengals lead 31-0. At about 9:30pm Mindy and I headed to bed with the promise of watching part of the second half from bed. And as she often does, Mindy wrestled the remote from my hands at the first snore. Tonight I didn’t fight it.

Only Grace

I woke a couple of times through the night, but fell back asleep each time. I finally rolled out of bed somewhere close to 7:30am. As I did, Mindy told me that I had been snoring loudly despite being on my tummy. Probably had something to do with all the vodka I drank yesterday afternoon. As I headed downstairs, I asked Mindy what time she wanted up. She said by 8:00am. Mindy was singing a solo at church and I was going to go along to watch. We’d have to leave the house by 9:45am. To make this happen I had to have my run done by 9:15am. I left the house for my run at 8:40am. I ran my usual Sunday route. I made it back home by 9:15am. Mindy was finished showering when I returned. I, in turn, got in the shower and readied for church. We left the house at 9:45am and were there before 10am. Service didn’t begin until 10:30am but Mindy wanted to practice her song ahead of time. To the choir room we went. The song is title, Only Grace and originally performed by Matthew West. Mindy had a karaoke CD to sing to. She did well in her private rehearsal but I wondered how she’d do later in front of the entire congregation. 25 minutes or so into the service it was time for Mindy to perform. Mindy got up confidently, walked to the front, adjusted the mike, faced the congregation, and began singing her song. She sang like an angel. I was moved and impressed. That took some balls! The entire church service lasted almost 1.5 hours. Their services are much more personable than most others, probably due in part to the comparably smaller congregation/church. Always a well though out & entertaining message from Pastor Steve. After church we scurried home and warmed some leftover pizza. We were both really hungry. I mean, hey, it was noon and all that we had eaten were a couple pieces of cantaloupe before church. After pizza, Mindy got ready to pick-up her mom for a shopping adventure. I dawned my home project uniform and gathered my tools for a day in the shed. The goal: move all non-motorized yard tools from the garage to the shed. To accommodate this change, I had to first hang 2X4 horizontally along the interior shed walls just as I had done ten years prior in the garage. A couple hours later I had successfully moved all the yard tools to the shed. I have plenty to do to finish the project but felt good with my progress. My goal is to clear the garage of all unnecessary stuff and powerwash the floor and steps. It rained pretty hard during my outdoor project but I was lucky enough to be able to do a lot of the labor in the shed itself. When I finished the sun came out in abundance and it got really humid as one might have expected. My next project was to work on the boat. First, I wanted to adjust the idle, which seems to slow and often stalls. Second, I wanted to check the work I did last week – the new belts, the solenoid, the air filter. Everything looked good from last week. Also, I was able to adjust the idle up a little, or so it seemed. Hopefully, now the stalling issue has been solved too! While working on the boat, daughter Lindsey and lil’ Rocky pulled up. Not long after mindy and her mom returned. Although we never discussed it, I figured that Gloria might be joining us for dinner. I would’ve urged Mindy to invite her except for the fact that I didn’t want her to see all the dysfunction often on display by Lindsey, sad to say. Minutes later Jim returned the children after their weekend. While everyone else got settled inside, I finished working on the boat and eventually gave it a thorough washing inside and out. I finished just in time to start the grill. We were grilling burgers. As a side, we had a fresh garden salad and baked beans. I cooked tow hot dogs to appease Jacob who didn’t want a burger. I had to relight the grill to ensure that his hot dog was burnt. He was happy. Today we serve Jacob on demand for tomorrow his life changes for 13+ years. He begins kindergarten. He’s stoked! Mindy and the kids took Gloria home after dinner. Lindsey and lil’ Rocky left to go play with Kaileigh. I took the boat back to storage alone. It was nice. Mindy and I arrived back home at almost the same time. It was bath & story time for the kids. Mindy insisted on reading tonight’s story. I sensed this was special one and it was. It was about the first day of school. Mindy’s as excited, or possibly even more, than Jacob. After the kids were in bed, Mindy and I retreated downstairs to print off a few pics and to share a bowl of popcorn. We were in bed before 10pm after a very busy but fun weekend. Matthew West, Only Grace There is no guilt here There is no shame No pointing fingers There is no blame What happened yesterday Has disappeared The dirt has washed away And now it’s clear Chorus: There’s only grace There’s only love There’s only mercy And believe me it’s enough Your sins are gone Without a trace There’s nothing left now There’s only grace You’re starting over now Under the sun You’re stepping forward now A new life has begun Your new life has begun Chorus: And if you should fall again Get back up, get back up Reach out and take my hand Get back up, Get back up Get back up again

A very dry run... a bad start but a good end

I rolled out bed at 7:30am hell bent on getting on with my weekend. The last place I want to spend my valuable weekend is sleeping in bed. Mindy asked to sleep in, so when I left the room I pulled the door closed so that any noise I made would be of little consequence. I choked down my vitamin and began exercising. I felt really good and didn’t feel any of the allergy-like symptoms I had felt most of the work week. Without a doubt, I felt well rested. When I returned form a morning walk with Ykraps I had my coffee and some quiet time on the deck. I read all about the Vikings lopsided victory over the Baltimore Ravens too. By all accounts, we gave them a butt whoppin’. My flowers front and back, were all starving for water. And for a moment I thought about watering them both before going on my morning run. In then end, I decided that it would suit me better if I ran first. That way, I could relax while watering the flowers knowing that my run was already under my belt. It was a good run too. I took my weekend route down Trabue to Hague. When I returned I grabbed another cup of coffee then set out to water the flowers. I took my time watering all the pots, beds, and baskets – front and back. It was now 10am. I decided to gush the hose against the bedroom window in hopes of waking Mindy from her lengthy summer slumber. It worked. She was downstairs at the door moments later telling me how I startled her in her sleep. Oops! For the next hour Mindy prepared our breakfast of sausage and scrambled eggs. Today’s eggs were topped with peppers, onions, and cheese. The peppers were from our garden ( chili, habanera, and bell). After cleaning up from breakfast I began rounding up our boating supplies. I sat the tools by the garage door and readied a cooler with pop, water, adult beverages, and ice. I threw in some snack food too. It was 12noon by the time we were ready to go. I had originally hoped to be floating by now. We loaded the Trooper and headed towards Lee’s RV’s to pick-up the boat. Once we attached the boat I realized that I had left the tools in the garage. I toyed only for a moment with leaving them behind and chose instead to return home to get them. After all, it’s only a little over a mile from the freeway on-ramp and I wouldn’t be bale to forgive myself if we broke down without tools on board. We went back by the house and raised the garage door to grab the tools. Mindy decided to use the restroom quickly while at home. I waited anxiously. After pulling away from the home for the second time we had only a quick stop to fill the gas tank of the Trooper at Thornton’s. Soon we were on our way. I felt all along that something was missing but chalked it up to our much later than usual start. At 1pm we finally arrived at the Alum Creek Marina. The marina was fairly crowded but not too long of a line for putting in the boat. We pulled off to the side to begin prepping our boat. As we prepped for launch, several more-prepared boaters passed us as they typically do. Still, we took our time with our usual routine of removing the top and loading our gear. You can’t be in a hurry here or you’ll forget something important. After we were all but ready, Mindy asked where I had put the cooler. You’ve got to be kidding me? I was certain that I had put it in the Trooper, but after a couple of looks, it was obvious that we had left it behind at home. How? One will never know. After the shock and stupidity wore off – well, wait a minute, the stupidity didn’t wear off. We decided to walk over to the marina store to look for a cheap styro-foam cooler, ice, drinks, and snacks. They had plenty of the latter, but only one cooler. That cooler was $50. No thanks! We walked separately back to the boat. I was frustrated and wanted nothing more than to be floating on the lake. Mindy concocted and idea that sounded reasonable. I put the boat in and go for a ride alone. Meanwhile, she’ll take the Trooper and go buy the necessary stuff to keep us content. I thought about it for a moment but decided against the pain of removing the trailer and all that noise. In the end, we drove back home to get the cooler and decided that instead of returning to Alum Creek that we’d head instead to Griggs Reservoir. Back at home, there the cooler sat right in the middle of floor. It would have bit us if it were snake. How we didn’t catch our faux pas we’ll never know. Before shoving off I asked Mindy if she were sure she wanted to go. She was, so we left. It didn’t take long at all to get to Griggs. But then again, it shouldn’t. It’s right around the corner. With little fanfare, we put the boat in and it started right away. Soon we were headed up river to our favorite spot well north of the Hayden Rd bridge. The river, while crowded, wasn’t nearly as busy aw Alum, but it never is. Still, we had to be careful since there are so many skiers up there. We anchored and sat for about 3 hours luxuriating in the sunshine and warm August air. The only down side to the river is that you can’t swim, and I was really looking forward to floating around on our new rafts with a cold drink. However, aside from that, the river was superb. Come about 5:30 we pulled anchor and crossed over for a quick stop at the old Wright family docking spot. I showed Mindy our old picnic area and took her back to the falls and pond. We didn’t stay long at all, especially after the trespassing shooting in Worthington this week. The sky was darkening to our south and the day was fading. It seemed even later than it really was. By the time we pulled out and readied the boat for home, it was 7:05pm. After we got settled in at home and had put everything away, Mindy went up for a shower. While she showered, I went and picked up a Minnelli’s pizza. We didn’t stay up late at all. While eating our delicious pizza, I had one beer and watched some football. Sometime near 10pm we went to bed.

Barley Friday ... Finally!

I didn't feel that well this morning but this is ridiculous! It was finally Friday and after a full five days of work I was more than ready for a relaxing weekend. I woke early enough – about 5:40am in preparation for my Friday. I wasted no time fooling around. My exercises were done and I was out the door with Ykraps before 6:00am rolled around. For lunch I made tuna fish, a salad, and some fruit. For breakfast I has the usual, scrambled eggs and cantaloupe. Mindy left for school with the kids before I was out of the shower. The house was eerily quiet when I stepped out to dry off. I enjoyed the remainder of my morning before heading off to work. I drove the Trooper again to work if for no other reason than to have available the necessary drywall repair tools should I choose to stop at Echo Park again tonight on the way home. Work was busy for Friday, but I went in expecting it to be. I worked hard, of course. There was little time for fooling around. I continued feeling less than stellar. My throat felt slightly swollen, my eyes heavy, and my shoulders stiff. Mindy wondered if I was feeling the effects of a ridiculously high pollen count. That may be although I’ve never succumb to allergies in the past save for an occasional bad response to cats. By the time I left for my run I had zero energy. This run would have to come purely from the heart. The endorphins generated by running did wonders for my disposition – they always do. It was extremely warm and once again very humid. The Septembery weather we had earlier in the week was nothing but a memory. As the day wrapped up, I prepared myself for departure. I left the office for the weekend at about 5:15pm. As I pulled way from work I felt a bit euphoric for it being the weekend at last. I made my way to Echo Park, the back way. It took all of about 35 minutes to get there. It didn’t take long. I was only there for about 5-10 minutes. After some little light sanding and another coat of mud, I was out the door. I called Mindy who had just arrived home with groceries. Jim had just pulled up to pick-up the kids. I let Mindy go so that she could get things in order. I decided to stop at Giant Eagle for a six pack of beer. I looked for Alpha King, IPA but they didn’t have it. I ended up selecting Mojo IPA. While there I picked up another batch of flowers for Mindy. By the time I got home the kids were gone and the groceries had been put away. Wahoo! After completing my typical Friday evening routine I leashed up Ykraps for a walk. Mindy came along too. I was just about 6:30pm when we returned from walking Ykraps. I couldn’t wait to take a nap. Mindy couldn’t wait to get a shower. I read myself to sleep but had a difficult time going out all the way. I gave up on the nap thing around 7:20pm and headed upstairs to ready for our night out at Barleys. We left for Barleys at 8pm. Even though the sky was clear, we drove the Trooper so Mindy could drive home if necessary. Bob & M.A. were still on vacation so we knew they wouldn’t be there. But we hadn’t been to Barleys for two weeks, so we were both really looking forward to it. Mindy ordered a Shiraz and I ordered a Double Dog Dare firkin. Jersey was working the bar in place of Janet who was off on vacation. Jeremy and Courtney were there and we talked with them for about an hour or so. There too were Mark and his brother Scott, Rick, Dan, Calvin, and Paul. Later Josh showed up with his father. I ate a huge dinner. I had six of ten Gates of Hell wings and a Cuban with cheesy fries. We had a very good time. We left Barleys just before 11pm for home. Once we were home Mindy initially insisted on hot tubbing but had a change of heart once she went upstairs. I think she had a little too much to drink (3 glasses of wine). We were asleep before midnight.

Big shoes to fill

Smokey the bear - I heard they tied these ropes to him to prevent him from starting anymore forest fires An owl nursed back to health on display at the O.S.F. G.D. Kaileigh in her cheerleading pose Oh boy! I woke late today. I didn’t get up until after 6am.In fact, it was 6:10am – 40 minutes late. To add insult to injury, I was still tired too. That’s hard to understand given that I had fallen asleep no later than 10:30pm, but I have been feeling tired all week. I woke Mindy when I got up because she had said she wanted up at 6:00am. She wasn’t too worried and stayed in bed even after I was up and headed downstairs. By the time I had exercised and walked Ykraps, I could hear the shower running so I knew that she was up. Despite my lateness, I carried on with all phases of my morning as normal. After all, everything I do is important or I wouldn’t do it. Mindy didn’t want a packed lunch because she has food leftover form the day before. That made prep easier/quicker. I had the house to myself again today after Mindy left for school with the kids. I like that time a lot, although today it flew by since I had so much to do before leaving. I arrived at work around 8:30am. The day went reasonably fast due in part to how busy I was. Still, I was extremely sleepy all day long. I left for a run around 12:45pm. The high humidity that’s been noticeably missing for the past week or two was creeping back in. The run went well. The afternoon went just as fast as the morning, and I didn’t get out of the office until almost 5:30pm due to some escalations. My after work plan called for heading to Mindy’s old house on Echo Park Dr. to patch the holes left behind by the large plasma television that once hung over the fireplace. The only problem was getting there. The usual route – Scioto Darby to Alton Darby is closed. I had to take Avery all the way to Roberts then back up to Alton Darby. It took 35 minutes to get there. I talked to Mindy while in route. She shared a scary story with me. It seems a car, attempting to miss the cones that are strewn all over Newell Dr, ran off the road and up and over the curb and into our neighbors deck. The scary part is that Mindy was seconds from being directly in his path, and if it wasn’t for not being able to find Bella’s shoes, she could’ve been history. The crazy thing about it is that the construction company performing the work has no warnings of cones ahead posted anywhere throughout the subdivision. Very irresponsible on their behalf and the city. I hope somebody sues them. I spent about 20 minutes there patching the holes. There were two big holes and several small screw holes. The larger holes required mesh drywall tape to hold the mud. I stopped at the Silver Horn Kroger in route to home to get Mindy some flowers. While there I bought some strawberries too. I bought Mindy some orange gladiolas. I arrived home around 6:45pm exhausted and ready to relax. The house was uncharacteristically in disarray and honestly that caused me some consternation. I tried finding some peace but it was difficult. Later I tuned into Thursday night football – Miami and Carolina. I was excited about seeing Daunte in his new digs although I am no longer a fan of his. Screw him! J I kept to myself through the rest of the evening. I ate two bags of popcorn while watching football and went to bed around 10:30pm

isleep iwake iwork iplay

I woke tired and a little later than desired but not enough to concern myself with. I went about my morning as if I had all the time in the world. And when I thought about, I did. I have all the time there is. I exercised then walked Ykraps. It was already after 6:00am when we hit the door for our morning walk. Today being the first official day of school for Mindy, she requested a 6:00am wake-up. I woke her. She went for a shower first. I wouldn’t have to pack a lunch today since we are having a potluck t his afternoon. I made 5lbs of taco meat the night before. I took the crockpot out of the fridge so that I wouldn’t forget it when I leave later. Just as the two prior days, I made Mindy some breakfast. She ate it along with me. She was already for work by 6:30am yet she didn’t need to leave until 7:15am. When Mindy and the kids left, I was in the shower. I had the entire house to myself. I could sing at the top of my lungs, crank the stereo, or simply yell at the top of my lungs. Once I was dressed for work, I took some time to chase down a means of transporting my crockpot. I found an old plastic milk crate that would work perfectly. That’s what I used. I drove the Trooper to simplify the transport, although I could’ve drove the BM’er. After some guitar playing I left the house with plenty of time to spare. I noticed along my way to work that gas prices had come down even further. It was $2.52 per gallon. I arrived at work and got right down to business. I found a means to plug in my crockpot to begin heating the taco meat. I had two meetings to attend before my lunch run. I left for my run around 12:30pm. I took the alternative route today for the first time in an awfully long time – over a year. I ran Britton to Davidson, and then east on Davidson to Trueman, and then all the way down Trueman past Home Depot to Hilliard Cemetery Rd. It seemed longer than it was. It was a 43 minute run. When I returned my feet were tired from the I-270 hill. After my shower and return to the office I began chowing on the Mexican potluck goodies. I ate two burritos, a taco, two bowls of chips and hot, hot salsa, and then tow desserts. I was stuffed! I knew that there would be no need for dinner tonight! When I left for home it was 5 o’clock on the nose. Mindy let me know that she was sitting on t he deck with her friend Shelly having a Mike’s Hard Lime. Shelly asked her to stand up for her at her wedding this December. Shelly was leaving just as I pulled up. I went about my shores and readied myself to walk Ykraps. Mindy came along, too. We spent a quiet evening without kids talking on the deck and exchanging backrubs – something we used to do much more frequently. I watered backyard flowers too, along with the biggest maple tree in the back yard. Last summer it lost some tiny branches due to the drought conditions. I didn’t want to risk the same happening again today. The kids returned shortly after 7:30pm. Jim came in and visited for a spell. Today is his 38th birthday. I wished him a happy one. After he left I put up Jacob’s new tent-like play center. While Mindy got the kids a bath, I blogged and edited pics. I didn’t read the kids a story because they chose additional play time instead. I did help tuck them in. After they were taken care of, Mindy gave me a deep back rub. It felt great. Just before 9pm, we got in the hot tub. It felt great! After hot tubbing I read my Mercruiser owner’s manual looking for some additional maintenance tips. Around 9:45pm I headed to bed.

What? No hug, No kiss, No goodbye?

Rocky dressed as royalty My princess This morning wasn’t as friendly as Monday. Despite a full night’s sleep, I woke tired and grumpy around 5:40am. But I didn’t dwell on my mood, instead I moved forward with my exercises and eventual walk with Ykraps. Again the morning sky was picturesque. The stars in the pre-dawn sky were brilliant and the sliver of a crescent moon in the eastern sky was bright & white. It was so clear that you could see the outline of the dark portion. Mindy asked for a 6:30am wakeup call. I woke her somewhere close to that with a hot breakfast waiting on the island counter. This marked the second day in a row where we were both readying ourselves for a work day at the exact same time. So far, we’ve yet to have any problems with process overlap. She likes to shower almost out of bed. I, on the other hand, like to complete my full routine before showering. That’s working in our favor. We had a break down of sorts when I went to leave for work. I snuck in five minutes of guitar then another five minutes for watering the backyard flowers. By the time I had finished it was past time to depart. I decided to bolt quickly. I later learned t hat Mindy wasn’t too happy with my decision since we didn’t talk or touch before I left. I later explained that I did call for her from the foot of the stairs. It turns out t hat she didn’t hear me beckoning. I thought little of it and left. I drove the BM’er and still had the boat starter in the trunk, which I planned to take back after my run this afternoon. Work was beyond crazy busy. And to make matters worse, I left my cell phone at home by accident. The only means of communication I had at my disposal was my Raspberry. At 12:30pm I left for my run. It was fantastic - warm, sunny, and no humidity at all. After my run I followed through with my plan to drive to Paul’s Marine on route 23. It’s a fairly long trek up thee and traffic is always heavy. Today was no exception. Too, I was a little concerned that they might try to hit me with an undisclosed restocking fee. Bottom line, they didn’t. Instead, they were very kind about the return. I also asked the about the belt loosening trouble I have repeatedly with the boat. The only thing we could come up with was to add anew lock washer to the bracket. I’ll do that. I was back at work by 2:35pm. The rest of the afternoon went incredibly fast. I called Mindy on my way home from work. She asked that I never leave the house without hugging her again. J She was at Meijer’s shopping when I called. She offered to pick-up the 5lbs of ground beef I needed for tomorrow’s Mexican potluck. I gladly accepted her offer. When I got home I hurried to finish all of my chores. Mindy got home just after I finished walking Ykraps. For some reason, I was tired all day long and really wanted and needed a nap. But Mindy bought Jacob and Bella lacrosse set and Jacob insisted on trying it out with my help. I told him it would be in the pond in less than five minutes. It wasn’t. Instead, it was in after his first throw!! Mindy fished it out as he cried. We tossed it a couple more times with it landing once gain in the pond. Jacob quickly bored of the effort and decided to try riding his two-wheeler again except this time with my help. We met in the garage where I saw that both tires were completely flat and that his seat was entirely too low. I addressed both before we set out to try. Jacob was insistent on trying it in the grass, but I objected for a smoother concrete surface, which would almost assuredly make it easier to control, but he was understandably worried a bout falling on the hard surface. He pouted and ran in the house. Bella came out and insisted on trying his bike herself. I allowed her and helped keep her up and steady. She didn’t last too long and eventually went for her scooter. Jacob eventually came around and decided to trust me. I was careful not to allow him to fall. It was pretty clear to me that he’s had little or no time riding a bike with or without training wheels. He needs lots of practice before he’s riding without help. However, as with a lot of kids, suddenly one day he’ll just seem to get it and go. He gave up after a few attempts. While assisting Jacob, my neighbor Carl came over to complain about his Roadrunner service. He’s certain that he’s not getting the maximum speed. Soon Mindy called out that dinner was ready. I went in. We were having chili dogs. While we were eating, daughter Lindsey came over with lil’ Rocky. We all hung out for about an hour, but not much longer. Mindy was insistent on getting the kids in bed by 8pm tonight, not only for their sake but also for ours. Lindsey left around 7:45pm. While Mindy readied the kids I updated my blog and eventually tuned in to the Reds game. After reading the kids a few pages of a new book, Mindy and I talked for about thirty minutes. We watched the last inning of the Reds crushing the Astros from our bed. They won 14-0! We were asleep by 10:15pm.

Losing my summer fast

I felt so rested that I was up at 5:20am and ready to get moving with my Monday. What was even more unusual was that this was following a four day weekend, which I typically have trouble readjusting to. After exercising and making my coffee, I left for a morning walk with Ykraps. The sky was as clear as it’s been all summer and there wasn’t even a hint of daybreak in the sky at that hour. The temperature was 57 degrees which felt cool after where we’ve been. I enjoyed my first cup of coffee from the deck and watched the eastern sky begin its transformation to daylight. Mindy asked to be woken at 6am to begin her first official day back at the grind. I packed my lunch and made Mindy a mid-day snack as well. Too, I made us both breakfast. I planned to drive the BM’er to work so I loaded my laptop, gym bag, and the starter I had purchased for the boat in the trunk so that I could take it back after my run. Mindy left with the kids at 7:15am leaving me alone on a workday for the first time in a long, long while Dad was bringing Glenn by to pick-up his luggage so that he could leave for home straight from Mom’s. . I left for work just after 7:30am. They hadn’t arrived yet. Work was busy. I set myself up in a cubical outside my usual office to accommodate a request made of me. It was good to see an engineer of mine who has been off for the last seven weeks for the birth of their third child. I left for my run at 12:30pm. I called Paul’s Marine before heading down to the gym to verify their hours of business. Good thing I called. They’re closed on Monday’s and it’s a 25 miles drive each way. My run went exceptionally well. It was very pleasant and a lot like September out there. Too, it’s beginning to look a lot like the end of summer and beginning of fall as the school parking lots are again full of cars and the sounds of the practicing band hangs in the air. The weather is superb but I hate to think that summer’s over – I just hate it! I wanna move! The afternoon was just as busy as the morning and even busier as 5pm approached – of course. I left for home at 5:15pm. I was home by 5:35pm. I was home alone since Mindy had open house tonight and the kids were with their father till 8pm. After completing my chores, I made myself a cheeseburger leftover from camping and then completed a few extra chores. I unloaded the dishwasher, folded a load of towels, and put a load of whites in the washer. Ever since Mindy’s been here, I haven’t done a full dose of laundry. It was nearly 6:30pm when I finished the chores. I had thought that I might dig into a project but I was tired and looking forward to some relaxation. Instead, I grabbed my book and sunk into my reading chair. After about an hour I woke feeling totally disoriented. After gathering myself, I began updating my blog and downloading the couple hundred photos I had taken over the past five days. Just as I finished uploading my blog entries, there was a knock at my door. It was neighbor Pat Schultz. I asked him in. He reported that Mindy’s kids were home too. Suddenly, I had a house full – Pat, Jamaican, Jacob, and Bella. I was still feeling a bit out of it. Jamaican didn’t stay long. And just after he left, Mindy arrived home. She was happy, just as I, to see Pat since we hadn’t seen he and Lisa all summer long. We visited for about thirty minutes. Pat shared an entertaining story about a neighbor, his mailbox, and the cops. Let’s just say that Pat is having issues with a few of his neighbors. It’s kind of like Housewives. Pat left as darkness set in. Mindy and I chatted about our day while she woofed down a steak and a glass of wine. She went upstairs to get a shower while I added some pics to my blog. After adding the pics I tuned into the football game. She read my blog. I was still tired despite my nap. I headed up to bed just before 10pm. I watched a little more of the MNF game before drifting off to sleep.

A $20 part

I was up at 7:30am for what had the makings of yet another busy day. After making coffee and exercising, I walked Ykraps under a mostly cloudy sky. Lindsey sand lil’ rocky had spent the night so there was little private time save for my run. As I was finishing my run the cloudy skies had already given way to sunshine. And when my shoes hit my own driveway, Glenn was just pulling up in Bob’s Colorado pick-up truck. Glenn was there to ready for yet another family party. This time it was Aunt Char’s. I wasn’t sure that Mindy and I were going to make it. We both had plenty of other things to get done and both of us were a little burnt on family gatherings. As Glenn left for Char’s, Lindsey and lil’ Rocky left for home. At the same time, Mindy’s kids were leaving to spend the entire afternoon with their dad. Suddenly, Mindy and I found ourselves completely alone for the first time in quite a while. I spent some time putting the rest of our camping gear away and then cleaning up the kitchen. Mindy was planning on a trip to the Flower Factory and possibly even a trip into school for more classroom prep. I figured that I would work on the boat. In the end, however, Mindy and I decided that it would be nice to see the family all together one more time since we won’t see them again until maybe Xmas. After a quick shower we hopped in the BM’er destined for Aunt Char’s. The gig started at 11am but we weren’t arriving until almost 1:15pm. I hadn’t seen my cousin Brian since last Xmas, and had never met Char’s new Beau, Tim. Charles and Melissa were there as were Mom and Uncle Chuck. My mother was still noticeably pissed after Glenn broke news to her that he wouldn’t be heading back to her place until a day later. But then again, she feels slighted on most of his visits these days. She lives 100 miles away while the rest of the family is all fairly local. We all left Char’s around the same time. Mindy had to get moving and I had to get on the boat thing. When we got home it was nearly 2:45pm. Where in the hell had the day gone? I jumped in the BM’er and Mindy in her van. She left for the Flower Factory and I left for Home Depot to get some Electrical connection sealant. I needed this to protect the new slave solenoid terminals. When I returned I began working on the boat. I took my time so to be sure and do the job right. One by one I removed the many brass nuts from the old solenoid. After cleaning all the connections I slowly and methodically began reattaching the wires to the new solenoid. Just then my Mom, Glenn, and Uncle Chuck pulled up to reluctantly drop Glenn off. He would be hanging out until leaving for an African Music concert sometime around 6:30pm. I continued working on the boat. After completing the mounting, I used the liquid electrical tape to seal the connections. I put on two coats and did a better job than what was done with the original. After finishing the mounting and re tightening the v-belts, I hooked up the water to the motor muff and gave it a rub and a whirl. It started first try. All subsequent attempts (10-15) proved equally as fruitful. Knock on wood - the starting problem seems to have been eliminated! Of them all, this one was the most frustrating since it has literally plagued this boat for twelve years. And to think, the starter, alternator, and battery have all been replaced as potential causes. It may turn out that the root problem was a $20 part. I’ll keep my fingers crossed! As I was wrapping up the boat thing, Jamaican brought the kids home. Glenn was kind enough to entertain them while I put things away. Mindy was still a good 45 minutes from being home. Among other things, Glenn attempted to give Jacob some bike riding lessons. Once Mindy arrived home, I had to take Glenn over to his good friend Scott’s home. I took the boat too figuring that I’d drop it off at Lee’s RV’s after dropping Glenn. Jacob came along too. He likes to help me with the boat. I knew when I dropped Glenn that that might well be the last I’ll see him for quite some time since he’ll be down at Mom’s through the duration of his trip. The next possible visit may either be a T.G. trip out there for me, or a XMAS trip home for him. We’ll see. We had a great time and crammed in a lot of fun over the last ten days. After dropping Glenn, Jacob and I headed to the boat storage facility. That went as expected. We were back home by 7pm when Mindy encouraged the kids to get a bath. While they bathed, I watered my front yard flowers. Despite a few recent showers, they were pretty darn dry. After the kids bath and after I finished watering flowers I went in to read a bedtime story to the kids. We read Good Night Moon. After the story, I fired up the grill. Mindy had defrosted a couple of steaks for our enjoyment, and had already whipped up tow garden salads. To complement the steak and salads, she whipped up some broccoli with melted cheese too. The steaks turned out terrifically. After dinner we hung on the deck for about an hour talking about the coming week, weekend, and the end of summer. It’s hard to believe it, but this marks the end of Mindy’s 12 weeks of vacation. She was a little melancholy. This also marked the end of my five planned summer vacations. Other than weekends, I don’t have any scheduled time off until Thanksgiving. Regardless, I still hope to make the most of the remaining summer weekends by getting the boat out a number of times as well as going on another camping trip or two. We do have Labor Day Weekend coming up in two weeks, although that’s usually a fairly busy boating weekend, especially if the weather’s nice. In addition to the end of her summer, I know that Mindy was a little put out by all of the drama surrounding my daughters. We agreed to not allow those issues to harm the life we’re building together. We headed to bed around 10pm. Mindy headed up before me. I stayed back and checked a few football & baseball scores.

Bob's thing

I was up and milling about the house well before 8:00am. Everyone else remained asleep. I was eager to stay on task and finish my routine and run before 10am. While enjoying some coffee with Mindy on the deck, Glenn woke up. It was only 9am (6am his time). Soon, I went in and dawned my running shoes and headed out for a run. I lieu of a home cooked breakfast, we opted for a trip to Bobby Evans. I was back by 10am and ready to get a move on since we were all headed to brother Bobby’s house for an afternoon cookout that was slated to begin around noon. Lindsey called and said she was coming over to my house before Bobby’s. We invited her to go along with us to Bobby Evans. We knew just how much she likes it. Soon we were headed out. We were seated in two booths at B.E.s. I sat with Glenn, Lindsey, and lil’ Rocky. Mindy sat with Jacob and Bella. Soon, everyone was enjoying their entrees. At noon we left for home, but not before I headed next door to pick-up some El Vaquero Chips & Salsa to take to Bobby’s cookout (not to be confused with Bob Evans). After we arrived home, Daughter Ashley called to see if she could ride to Bob’s with us. Sure! We waited for Ash. A little after 1pm we left for brother Bob’s. I noticed along the way that gas prices had dipped to $2.58 a gallon. J At Bob’s, the food was all laid out when we arrived, but I was still pretty full from breakfast. Others seemed to be hungry and began stuffing themselves almost immediately. Despite a very gloomy weather forecast – one that called for heavy showers through the day, the sky continued to brighten all day long. Come late afternoon, it was sunny and warm. Of course the weather didn’t stop the kids from getting in the pool. They swam all day and all evening. I hadn’t seen cousin Dodie & Randy since last Labor Day at her yard party, and aside from running into Connie and Alysia at Wal-Mart back in the spring, I hadn’t seen her since Labor Day either. Pregnancy seemed the theme at Bob’s – Ashley, April, and Adams girl friend. Next year the party will include at least five new babies. OUCH! As the afternoon/evening wore on, we played several rounds of cornhole. I was not on my game. A little later Ashley and Lindsey got into a spat. Ashley wanted to leave but her car was a t my house. Mindy gave Ashley a ride to her car. We stayed at Bob’s until about 10pm. The kids were getting cranky. Once we were home I logged onto the internet to follow the Vikings/Steelers game. I followed it via gamecast up through mid-4th quarter. It was 17-10 when I went to bed, which ended up being the final score too. Glenn stayed at Bob’s.

A little bit of this and that

Pizza & Pina Coladas I woke a couple of times before dawn to the pitter-patter of rain drops beating against the tent roof. Great, I thought. My boat’s broken down, and now the weather falling apart. Can’t win! I got up around 8:00am despite the clouds. I expected everything to be wet, but once out of the tent I was surprised to see nothing but dry ground. Must have been nothing but a few sprinkles. It sure sounded much worse smacking against the tent. Just like the morning before, I readied the day’s first pot of coffee and then readied for my run. After I drank a fast cup of coffee I left for the run since I wanted to get cracking on fixing the boat. As I ran, I could see that the sky was brightening and a few breaks of blue were visible. That helped me to feel better. Once I was back, Mindy insisted that I eat before shoving off to Paul’s. I was determined to go, however. I took her advice and woofed down some eggs before leaving. I left by myself since everyone else was relaxing with their food. I was eager for some alone time anyhow. I found Paul’s right about Rt. 23 and Orange Rd. At the parts counter I requested both v-belts and decided to ask about a starter too. I described the symptoms and the fact that the starter had already been replaced once before. The gentleman at the counter told me it sounded like the slave solenoid. In the end, I bought the two v-belts, a starter, and a slave solenoid. All totaled, it was $313. He told me I could return the starter if the solenoid fixes the issue as long as I didn’t mount it. I took that to heart and decided on my return that I would simply replace the belts to get us back in the water for the day and do the solenoid and starter over the weekend at home where I could be more patient. The slave solenoid was only $23 where the starter was $200. I replaced both belts rather readily. I felt pretty good about the status. Mindy prepped and loaded the boat cooler and then everyone began tearing down camp. Tommy and Heather informed us that they would not be boating since they needed to be at work by 4pm. It was already after 12 noon. We finished tearing down camp and loading our vehicles by 1pm – the stated deadline – and then headed over to the camp dock. We bidded Tommy and Heather adieu. After launching, the boat started right off. I was somewhat relieved, although I knew there remained and issue since each time I tried to start the engine it required two or more tries to engage the starter. We headed out for another day of water fun. The sky was a little grayer than I would’ve preferred yet it was still a vacation day and still plenty warm, so we had a good time playing leisurely in the water once again. After about two hours floating about the lake the sky darkened and then it began pour heavily. At the same time, we were prepping to depart the cove for the open lake so that Glenn & Mindy could ski. It rained really hard for a bout fifteen minutes – enough to soak us and all of our gear. But by the time that Glenn had put on the skis and was ready to go, the sky brightened. And to make skiing conditions even better, most of the light boat traffic cleared. Glenn skied very well. He took completed two long runs. Next it was Mindy’s turn. She didn’t fair quite as well, but then again, she doesn’t possess the experience that we have either. I’ll say t his much, she’s a trooper. She tried until she finally got up, albeit for just a brief moment – barely long enough to say, “I’m up!” After Mindy’s skiing we headed toward the dock and called it a day. It was almost 5:30pm. After trailering the boat and securing it for travel, we headed for home. We were home by 6:15pm. For the next 45 minutes we unloaded all of our gear and put most of it away. At 7:00-7:15pm we called it a night and chilled out with a couple of Minnelli’s pizzas and some homemade pina coladas. We stayed up until after 10pm and eventually got in the hot tub. After about thirty minutes in the hot tub we called it a night and everyone went to bed.

At least the Boat Floats

I woke somewhere near 7:15am after a rather restful night’s sleep on my Coleman air mattress. I whipped out 50 push-ups and dressed in my running gear. My first order of business after brushing my teeth was to get some coffee going. Soon everyone else began waking. I had my first cup of coffee down when they woke. We took our time around camp and I took off for a run around 9am. It was a beautiful morning as the sun was shining brightly over the lake. When I returned from my run breakfast was all but ready. While eating I noticed a strange body moving about in Tommy’s tent. I later learned that it was Heather, Tommy’s girlfriend who showed up late last night after the rest of us were sound asleep. After everyone ate we prepped the boat and coolers for a day on the lake. We hit the lake at 11:30am. We sat at the dock after launching for several minutes while I struggled with starting the boat. Eventually we got it going. We decided to tube right away. First Jacob went and did a great job. We were surprised by his bravery and eagerness. Next, Tommy went and demonstrated some of his old form as he swung from side to side. Next, Mindy went with Bella and then alone. She did well too. After everyone tubed ( Glenn and Heather didn’t want to), we headed toward the swim cove. There were only two other boats back there, and we made our way to the very back as usual. We floated, swam, and soaked up the sun all afternoon. Everyone had a good time. Heather helped Jacob fish some later in the afternoon. Some time around 2:30pm we called Dad’s cell to see if he and Bob were coming up as planned. He was just now putting in and that Bob was already on the lake. He’d first find Bob and then find us in the cove. They showed up around 3pm and hung with us for about an hour. We all had a good time playing in the water. As everyone departed the cove, I detected that familiar whine of a loose alternator belt. This time however, it stopped abruptly as we gunned it. I asked Tommy to check to see if the belt was still on since my battery voltage dropped to 12 volts on the gauge. As feared, it has snapped off. We flagged down Dad and asked that he follow us to the camp dock to ensure that we got back safely. So, not only were we having starting troubles, but now we were having belt issues. GREAT!!! Can anything else go wrong with the boat? Once we were back to the dock, Dad took off on his own. After we trailered and retuned to camp we began readying for dinner. I was not very happy with all that had unfolded with the boat. There just seems to be constant problems with it recently. I decided that tomorrow morning I would go find all the parts (2- v-belts and a starter) to get the boat fixed once and for all. I was grumpy for the rest of the evening. Around the campfire I remembered that Paul’s Marine was just a few miles down the road. Assuming that they’d be open, I figured I would head there and purchase ‘genuine’ Mercrusier parts come morning. Once I had formed a clear plan, I was finally able to relax a little. Mindy had already headed off to bed, I joined her in the tent about 30 minutes later.

When Wednesday's Friday

Wednesday being the third day of the work week is generally referred to as “hump day”. Today, however, it represents a false Friday. Because of this, I woke with an extra skip in my geddiup. Although I didn’t really want to, I went about my morning routine as usual. I took the time necessary to pack a lunch and make my breakfast. The Trooper was attached to the boat so I planned to drive the BM’er to work. Mindy had to work today too. Her van was packed to the ceiling with most of our camping gear, so she had to use a shoe horn to load the kids. Mindy called me a couple of times throughout the day noticeably stressed because she was feeling the pressure of the fast approaching first day of school and her classroom’s not quite ready for prime time. However, by days end she had a bunch done and made arrangements for her helpers to do some stuff while we camped Thursday and Friday. I left work at 330pm after a team meeting. Before heading home, I made a quick stop at Kroger to get cooler ice (3- 22lb bags) some beer, and some cookies. We began loading the coolers and packing the remaining gear into both of our vehicles. Soon Glenn and Ashley arrived, albeit separately. Ashley would be staying at our house while we camp tending to Ykraps. We were all loaded and ready by 5:10pm. Tommy was already at Alum Creek and had set up camp on G-22. Mindy took a quick shower since we were twenty minutes ahead of plan. We left the house at 5:35pm destined for Alum Creek. Glenn, Jacob, Bella, and I rode together in the Trooper pulling the boat. Mindy had solitude in her loaded down mini-van. We arrived at Alum Creek at 6:25pm and immediately began setting up. Set up is always a little stressful, at least for me, trying to get everything just so. By 8pm we were settled and we all took a walk through the woods, by the fishing pond, and down to the beach. When we gathered back at camp we cooked some chili dogs and made the kids some smores. After a couple of beers we bagged it for the night. We were in bed by 10:30pm.

Cheap Gas?

I flung a leg over the edge of the bed and then onto the floor. It was official. I was awake. It was ten till 6am – twenty minutes later than my preferred rise time. Nonetheless, I went about my routine as usual and without any rushing around. By 6:05am I concluded my exercises and was leashing up Ykraps for our morning walk. The sky was clear and the temperature extremely mild. The deck was still wet from significant rainfall we had Monday evening. Subsequently, I spent little time outside on the deck. Thee rest of my morning went just as planned and like most other work days. The only significant difference was that my pre-work guitar playing took place indoors due to the wet deck. I drove the Trooper even though the conditions were ideal for driving the BM’er. I drove the Trooper because I planned to pick-up my boat on the way home from work later this afternoon. Work was work. I left for a run at 1pm. The weather was ideal. The temperature was 82 degrees and the humidity was low – less than 40%. The run was almost effortless. I allowed my mind to drift everywhere during my run. After my run I left the building for about 30 minutes destined for the Dublin Wal-Mart to pick-up a few items to help make our camp trip more comfy. I bought a another folding camp chair and another queen sized air mattress for the kids. I was back before 2:30pm The afternoon went by quickly due in part to a barrage of things to do. I left the building just after 5pm. I took the back route home - down Old Dublin Rd. Traffic was backed up about a half mile at the Scioto-Darby/Old Dublin Rd traffic light. That took about 7 minutes. Soon, however, I had my boat attached to the Trooper and was headed home. Before heading home, I stopped to gas both the Trooper and the boat. Gas was at a summer low of $2.67 per gallon. It’s disgusting to think that that price seems low. Because my tanks are located on opposite sides of the vehicles, I have to pump, pay, then drive, pump, and pay. I was home by 6pm. The kitchen was in a bit of disarray due to the camping groceries Mindy had out. We planned to spend the better part of the early evening packing for our camping trip. After a family walk with Ykraps, we began the tedious process of loading the vehicles for camping. We used Mindy’s mini as the primary tote packing it full of our gear. By the time it was all said and done we had everything but our food coolers and personal gear in her van. Lindsey and lil’ Rocky came by to visit and to get some gas and lunch money. There was a little drama there as Lindsey explained the problems she’s experiencing getting along with her mother. She expressed a desire to come stay with us. Yikes! I did my best to calm the situation and avoid dealing with the details t his evening, since it’s never good to solve a big problem when emotional. Lindsey left a little after 8pm and Mindy dispatched the kids to their beds around 8:30pm. I read a bedtime story. Mindy and I spent about thirty minutes on the deck before heading in for bed ourselves. We have a busy day tomorrow and could use plenty of rest.

Tavaris Who?

I woke Monday at 5:30am to what appeared to be a cloudy morning. I couldn’t be certain, however, since the sky was still pitch black. What I did know was that there were no visible stars. I was a bit surprised since the last I had looked at the forecast we were expecting nothing but blue skies for the next week or so. We need rain bad, so I wasn’t upset with the cloud cover. Once I finished my exercises and ventured outdoors with Ykraps, I could see that we were indeed under a blanket of clouds. When I got back home I checked out the weather online and there is a chance of storms today, although only about 40%. I went through my usual routine of meditation, prepping my lunch and cooking my breakfast. I also cooked Mindy’s breakfast since she would be heading into school this morning to ready her class for next week’s first day of school. I covered it with foil when I went upstairs to shower. After showering and dressing I played guitar before leaving for work. The kids just love it, and so do I. Mindy was expecting Daniel to come over to baby sit the kids while she goes into work today. Won’t Glenn be surprised when he wakes to find a cute young blonde sitting in the family room! Work was a little stressful, but it was a Monday and we all know that they’re always a little trying. I managed to escape for a run just before 1pm. The temperature was warm – nearly 86 degrees and the humidity high. The heat index was back in the picture and hovering around 90 degrees. The sun was still, for the most part, tucked behind clouds so it was tolerable out of doors. Also, there was a fierce wind blowing in from the south/southwest that kept the beading sweat cool against my body. The afternoon was busy but manageable. I enjoyed tuna fish for lunch. I hadn’t made it for a couple of weeks. A storm finally blew in around 3pm. It rained steadily but not too awfully hard for about 30 minutes. Bottom line, it rained enough to cool things off but no where near enough to benefit the lawn and flowers. I left for home just after 5pm. I was excited about my Monday evening at home since the first Viking game would be on television. Just as I walked in the door Ashley called and asked if she and Lindsey could visit. I told them sure, but that their Uncle Glenn wasn’t there. They also said that they would be interested in eating dinner with us. I broke the news to Mindy. After walking Ykraps I began removing the books from the book shelf still sitting in the middle of the living room. The plan is to move it to the spare bedroom. The girls arrived with lil’ Rocky a few minutes later. Ashley seemed disappointed that Glenn wasn’t there but I had warned them. Soon dinner was ready. We had baked chicken breasts and strips, stuffing, and green beans. Despite Lindsey indicating that he had eaten earlier, Rocky ate a couple pieces of chicken and some stuffing. He was also well behaved, good natured, and funny. After dinner I talked a little with Ashley. She told me about her upcoming baby shower being hosted by her maternal grandmother. She indicated that Rosemary suggested she not invite Mindy to avoid any potential problems. I had to laugh. I assume she meant trouble with Kelly. That’s too bad, but judging by Kelly’s unstable character, I can certainly understand why Ashley would prefer to avoid the situation all together. I would later share the story with Mindy. Soon the girls left and Mindy and I carried the book case and books upstairs to the guest room. Soon after, the kids returned home just as the Viking game was getting under way. Mindy allowed them to watch the first series with me but then required they ready for bed. Soon they were being tucked into bed. They willingly sacrificed their bedtime story for football time. J I still went up to tuck them in. The rest of the evening was spent watching the new look Vikings. They looked strong defensively, and the first team offense, while it looked vanilla and choppy, they also looked pretty good. In the end they lost but that was after the third teams were dueling it out. Plus, we had an easy field goal attempt to tie at the end of regulation but the coach went for the win to avoid prolonging the agony. I was entertained and proud of the effort. I went up to bed as the game ended. I didn’t fall asleep for another 45 minutes for being so wound up, but that always happens during and after Viking games.

...In a Little Canoe

I woke a couple of times through the early hours of the morning but ultimately didn’t roll out of bed until 7:15am. I had to get up and get moving because we had committed to having breakfast ready for dad, Glenn, and ourselves at 9am. I moved quickly to exercise, make coffee, and walk Ykraps. Once again, the morning sky was spectacularly blue and the temperature ideal. After some coffee time alone, Mindy made her way downstairs and joined me for some chitty chat. I didn’t spend too much time relaxing because I had to be back from my run before 9am. I readied and left before 8:10am It was beautiful outside. Again, I took my weekend route down Trabue, by the golf course and south on Hague Ave. It was a nice run. I saw my Dad at the corner of Hague and Trabue. He must have been on his way to my house. When I returned home, he was there, Glenn was up, and Mindy had breakfast all but ready. I took a quick shower to wash off the stink and sweat. When I came down stairs everything was ready. She made French toast with thick Italian bread and Maple bacon. It was fantastic! After we ate we shared stories on the deck. My dad invited all of us to Bobby’s for a 1pm birthday party for Tammy – her 11th. Glenn wanted to try my friend Diane’s flat bottom canoe in the pond. She had asked permission to leave it behind my shed for her convenience as well as for Mindy and I to use if we wanted. I wanted to give it a run too since after twelve years I have never been on the pond. Glenn was fully dressed complete with wallet, camera, and boots. I asked if he wanted to take any of that off and offered a swim suit. He declined. Dad and I went down to help him launch. Something told me to bring my camera. He got it fine, but once he pushed off and tried oaring away, he began shifting quickly left to right. Within a matter of seconds he was out of control. The next thing we knew, he was in the pond. I reminded him that he had his camera. After regaining his footing he struggled to hand me his camera. I could not stop from laughing and took a couple of pics. Glenn was not too amused at his own dilemma. Dad and I were still laughing as he removed himself form the pond. And of course he blamed the poor boat design. Understanding that it was a flat bottom canoe, I had a better idea of its handling limitations. His demise further raised my desire to do it myself. Wisely, I went in and put on a swim suit, water shoes, and life vest. Plus, I was careful to not be shifting my weight around. I successfully launched and quickly understood how easily it could tip. I kept myself low in the hull to help prevent any tipping side to side. I had a nice paddle around the circumference of the pond. It is much shallower than I expected but very tranquil despite the new homes built on the other side. When I returned, Glenn decided he would try it again. He too now better understood how to prevent and control the small canoe. After he returned, Mindy thought that she might give it a go. I gave her a few tips and she was off. She did real well managing the canoe as well as her balance. We continued to laugh at Glenn’s expense all afternoon. If you could’ve seen the look in his eyes! Dad and Glenn left for Bobby’s around 12:50pm. Mindy and I took a bit longer. But we had to stop at Target to pick-up a card and a few other things. We arrived at 1:35pm. We drove the BM’er too. At Bob’s we helped ring in Tammy’s 11th b-day. We had ice cream cake and sang happy b-day. We stayed until 3pm. We had to leave in order to be home for the return of the kids and to make it to Mindy’s sister’s by 4pm for her niece’s b-day party. Soon after we arrived home, Jim arrived with the kids. The kids were happy to be home and to see us. We wasted little time getting ready for the second b-day party. We were on the road to Jodi & Larry’s by 3:45pm. Sunday (cont.) Jody and Larry were celebrating their eldest daughter, Julie’s 24th birthday. They were hosting all of Jodi’s siblings, Gloria, and Larry’s brother Terry and his wife, Louis. They were serving cold subs, pasta salad, and macaroni salad. We were there for about 2 hours. After singing happy b-day and having some non-traditional b-day cake (cheese cake and brownies) we readied for departure. On our way home we stopped by Mindy’s first home that she bought on her own back in the 90’s. It’s located on the old Wee Bonnie golf course. It was one of the nicer homes in the division. At home all four of us walked Ykraps. When we got back Mindy readied the kids for bed and then I read the bedtime story. Once the kids were asleep, Mindy and I spent about thirty minutes on the deck. We stayed out until we could no longer take the mosquitoes. Inside I tuned into the Cincy Bengals’ game. At 9:30pm we headed up stairs to bed.

Midway thru the day

I woke Saturday morning at 8:00am after allowing myself to return to sleep numerous times. I wasn’t hung over but instead just tired. I was pleasantly surprised at how beautiful it was outdoors, which was apparent by a simple glance. The sky was as blue as can be. A check of temperature revealed that it was only 65 degrees. Ideal! I did my usual exercise routine, walked Ykraps, and returned for coffee by 8:30am. I spent a few minutes alone on the deck then went and woke Mindy to join me since it was so damn pretty out. After some coffee and sunshine Glenn woke up and joined us on the deck. After about fifteen more minutes, I headed in to ready for my run. I left at about 9:35am. I took my usual weekend route and was happy to be running in such ideal conditions. The air held a slight chill even against the warm sunshine. When I returned, Mindy had just finished warming the breakfast burrito mix she had concocted the day before. I was hungry! I had only one since I knew we would be eating fair food in just a couple of hours. As we all prepared to leave for the fair, Lindsey called and asked if she could come over to visit since her and her mother were arguing. I of course obliged. When she arrived I let her know that we were going to fair and that she could stay at our home if she wanted, or perhaps even join us. She chose to join us. So despite planning a kidless day at the fair, we took Lindsey and lil’ rocky along. I hadn’t been to the Ohio State Fair in 24 years. That changed today. We stopped at the Grandview Kroger and bought 4 adult discount tickets for $24. It was $5 to park and about a quarter mile walk to the gate. It was a beautiful day for the fair. Low humidity, about 83 degrees, and sunny skies. We entered off of 17th ST. After entering we immediately went looking for our favorite fair food. Glenn wanted French sugar waffles; Mindy, frozen chocolate bananas; Lindsey, fries; and me, a gyro. We spent time in the sheep barn, the hen & rabbit house, and the Dept of Natural Resources area. After about three hours we were ready to bolt. On the way out we bought Jacob some pirate flags to aid in his bedroom décor and a blow-up Batman for lil’ Rocky. After not attending the fair for 24 years, it certainly hasn’t changed much. Sure, they’ve remodeled the grand stand and added some new features, but all in all, it’s still the fair! We arrived home around 430pm. Most of us were tired from the sugar buzz and all the walking. Mindy, Glenn, and I took to different room so for naps. Lindsey and lil’ Rocky watched Nemo for about thirty minutes before leaving for home. After my short nap I got up to cut the lawn. It took about twenty minutes before I was wide awake, but once I was at it, I was fine. I finished the lawn just after 6pm. Glenn left for his 30th high school reunion (Columbus West class of 1976). I pulled the BM’er out of the garage for a bath. Mindy came out to talk with me while I washed it. She headed in just before I finished to take a shower. I watered all the front yard flowers which were once gain, dry as a bone. We left to meet a group of Mindy’s friends for dinner at the Grandview Brazenhead around 7:45pm. Carol, Brittany, and Corey were there when we arrived. They had already eaten. We ordered beers and burgers. Not long after our food arrived, Keri and her boyfriend Kevin showed up. We hung out until about 10:30pm. Both Mindy and I were very sleepy. Off in the distance we could see some fireworks being detonated; we supposed the fair. We were home and headed to bed by 11pm. Glenn still wasn’t home. We figured he was having fun at the reunon.

Deanna Sweeney

I woke Friday to what appeared to be an overcast day, although darkness prevented living proof. Despite drinking a few beers the night before, I felt no worse for the wear. I went about my morning routine and stayed on schedule to be at work by 8am. As I left for work, the kids were eager to wake Glenn, who was sleeping in the guest room. Mindy had promised to make his breakfast sometime around 10am. When I spoke with her mid-morning, she let me know that they had decided to head to the hilltop pool later in the afternoon. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t very conducive to swimming. The high temp wasn’t expected to top 80 degrees and the sun wasn’t shining. Glenn hung out around the house with Jacob while Mindy went grocery shopping. I was surprised that Jacob warmed up to him so quickly. Meanwhile, work was very busy and we were lightly staffed. I finally got out for my run around 1pm. As I stated earlier, the sky was gray and the temperature in the upper 70’s. As the day wore on, the excitement of the coming weekend began to take hold. We would be visiting Barley’s tonight and attending the fair tomorrow. As 5:10pm arrived, I packed my gear and headed for home. Once at home, I did my usual thing then found my way onto the deck to visit with Glenn and Mindy. At first, I turned down a cold beer, but later decided that it sounded good. I just didn’t want to be buzzed driving to Barleys. Some time around 6pm my dad showed up on the deck and stayed for a visit until practically 8pm. At 8pm we readied for Barleys. We arrived at Barleys at 8:30pm. Today’s firkin was Pale Ale. I had the Double Dog Dare Imperial IPA, but Glenn ordered the firkin. We introduced Glenn to numerous friends and hung out for a couple of hours. Around 10pm a couple showed up that looked awfully familiar. It was Kevin and Deanna Sweeney from the band, No Such Fate (formerly known as The Deanna Sweeney Band). Deanna is a good friend of mine. And in a unique twist of fate, it turns out that Deanna is a friend of Mindy’s older brother and sister. Apparently they played in the school band together and hung out quite a bit. Her maiden name was Deanna Ward and lived right around the corner. Small World! We tentatively agreed to attend their live performance next Friday at On The Rocks (OTR) in Dublin. After loads of fun, we bagged Barleys and headed for home. There we got in the hot tub and drank another beer along with a few shots of raspberry vodka. Mindy was beat and buzzed. She went to bed at 12:30am. Glenn and I stayed up until just after 1am. Actually, Glenn stayed up longer than I.

The Honey Raspberry Ale has arrived!

I woke at 5:35am and found my downstairs by 5:40am hammering out my sit-ups, push-ups, and curls. The house was quiet save for the soft music coming form the stereo. As I walked Ykraps, I thought through my day, which would include leaving work an hour so early to fetch brother Glenn at the airport. I mentally reviewed what my day might look like and what hurdles, if any, I might have to overcome to make it happen. At the time it didn’t’ seem as though there would be any major issues. My morning went much more like normal. There were no abrupt interruptions, and no loud invasions. Instead, I enjoyed some solitude against the back drop of a mid-summer’s morning. After packing my lunch I made Mindy and I breakfast. Mindy was already awake getting ready for her first official day of work. She had a “school retreat” scheduled for today, which sounded as if it were going to be a ‘pump-me-up’ session. A friend of hers, Daniel, was going to watch the children at our home. I left for work at 7:50am after a few minutes of family guitar time on the deck. Along the route to work I caught wind of the terrorist plot that was foiled abroad and the subsequent security elevated alert. My thoughts immediately turned to Glenn and how his flight might be impacted. He was leaving Portland destined for Columbus at about 5:35am PST. I arrived to work just after 8am under partly sunny skies. The weather forecast called for a slight chance of showers during the day but otherwise summery. Work was busy but not too bad. I made a concerted effort to stay on task so that my leaving early wouldn’t compromise my workload. I never relented. I worked hard up until 12:30pm when I left for my lunch run. The sky was overcast but the temperature warm. It was significantly more humid than the day before, but because the sun was tucked away behind clouds, I broke only a mild sweat. I returned from my run with about 25 minutes to spare before a meeting I was looking forward to attending. The meeting ran up until 3:15pm, and we accomplished everything I had hoped. I tied up a few loose ends and departed for the airport. A quick glance out the window revealed that it was raining rather steadily. And while I was happy for the rain, I was a little perturbed that it was raining right now, since I figured it would hamper traffic to airport & dampen our immediate plans for after the airport. As expected, traffic was backed up at every turn. As the story goes, anytime you are in a hurry, you can expect traffic jams. Today was no exception. Lyman Dr – back-up. I-270 traffic was thick as thieves, and I-70/670 east was no different. It took 40 minutes to arrive at the airport parking garage where I drove all the way to the top in an attempt to avoid circling for a spot on a lower level. Too, I figured I wouldn’t have to remember which level I were on if I parked on the roof. Compared to other airports, port Columbus is not user friendly getting form the parking garage to the terminal. You have to take an elevator down, then cross a lengthy walkway, then take an elevator up. I got off at baggage claim since I was ten minutes later than the schedule flight arrival time. I also knew that the flight showed an eight minute earlier than scheduled arrival time. I was certain Glenn would already be at baggage claim. He wasn’t. I wasn’t sure if he had already retrieved his bags and was gone or if he hadn’t yet made it to baggage claim. The flight monitor indicated that it landed on time and the luggage belt had his flight number displayed, but there were no bags and no passengers. My best guess was that they hadn’t yet deplaned. I went up to the terminal where I witnessed a fairly extensive line at the gate security check point. Some half-assed security officer made a few of us folks waiting passengers step back away form the aisle. Why? Still no sign of Glenn. I walked back down to baggage claim to see if he had somehow slipped by, but I didn’t see how. There wasn’t hardly any arriving traffic just yet – plenty of outgoing, though. Baggage claim was the same as I had left it. I was now convinced he hadn’t yet made it down. I went back up to see that there were lots of folks exiting passed the security check point. And after about three minutes, Glenn became unmistakably visible in the distance. I snapped a couple of photos. We greeted then turned quickly for baggage claim. Glenn surprisingly reported that he had no issue getting my beer here as carry-on despite the heightened security and the “no liquids” ban currently in place across the country. Apparently, his flight left Portland just before the alert was issued. We spotted his unique pack quickly and soon were on our way out of the terminal to my awaiting Trooper. Back through the maze. We paid $2 to leave the garage. I had been there a total of 37 minutes. Our first stop, we agreed, would be Greenlawn Cemetery. It was now just before 5pm and the traffic was tied up at the usual tie-up points. We did our very best to avoid the traffic snarls which equated to us adlibbing our way across town. We cut through German Village and found our way to Thurman/Greenlawn Ave. A mile head was the back entrance to the cemetery. We set out first to find Tiffany’s grave site which was in section 121. We quickly learned that there is little rhyme or reason to the layout, and they’re certainly not in any numbered sequence. After retreating to the posted map at the entrance we found our way to the section in question. After finding the section, we had difficulty finding Tiffany’s site. We called brother Tommy who was at the funeral and he guided us there. It turned out that we were right, but since it’s was so fresh there were no markers in place yet. It seemed so lonely and sad there. We spent about ten minutes about the area and took a couple of pics. Soon we got back In the Trooper and began looking or grandma’s site in section 90. Just like with Tiffany, we had trouble locating the section. And let me tell you, it is so easy to get lost in there due to there being 25 miles of roadways spread out over 444 acres. We ended up at the 62 entrance where a cemetery worker decided to ask if we needed help. He guided us there. Once we were close we both remembered the area. I was a little surprised at the condition of the site – little grass, lots of weeds, and uneven unkempt ground. Too, someone has purposefully painted the surface of many of the tombstones in a back protective type paint. I didn’t care for that. There was an empty plastic V-8 at the foot of grandma’s grave that apparently has held fresh flowers a time or two. There were none there this time, however. We took some pics and by about 600pm we began making our way out of the cemetery. As we approached the RT 62 gate, we saw that it was closed. We turned and left out the Greenlawn Ave exit. I’ll bet that I put five miles on the Trooper in there. We had made arrangements for Tommy to stop over later and so I called Mindy to let her know. She was wanting to put some food in the oven – We agreed on wings. Once home and after the tour, we settled down and had a beer. Mindy already had wings baking in the oven. Soon, Lindsey called and came over with lil’ Rocky. Not long after, Tommy arrived. Suddenly, we had a house full. I fired up the grill so the wings could be grilled for the final ten minutes and through the application of hot sauce. They turned out well and tasted rather good. The Buffalo sauce we used wasn’t that good, though. I think it was Kroger brand. It needed used up. Come 8PM Mindy asked me to red to the kids as they readied for bed. After they were down, we all went back down stairs and talked for a couple of hours. The last hour was spent on the deck. It was a lovely night but the mosquitoes were out in full force. At 10:30pm we called it a night. Tommy left for home despite being invited to stay, and Glenn went to the guest room. Mindy and went to our room. I tuned into the NFL preseason game that was underway, St Louis vs Indianapolis.