OTR

1) Todd & Dan 2) The weekly firkin 3) Jeff & Tom 4) Mindy 5) Chuck 6) Dan & Paul (butt crack) Well, I lived! I slept for almost eight hours and woke knowing that the cold I have harbored since New Year's Eve was on its way out. But believe it or not, the mind numbing feeling that the codeine laced cough syrup left me with still lingered. I was plenty well enough to begin and enjoy my day, but the effects remained. My mind felt numb directly behind my eyes and any quick movement one direction or another left me feeling a bit woozy. I was happy it was Friday and to celebrate, I began my day with a round of vigorous exercise. The beautifully clear skies and full moon that we've enjoyed for the past couple of days was nothing but a memory. Outside it was cloudy & wet, but no rain was currently falling. The temperature at 6am was 57 degrees. That's amazing! Ykraps and I enjoyed the spring like temps as we completed our morning walk. Back home I poured two cups of coffee, one for Mindy and one for me. I placed Mindy's on my night stand while at the same time waking her. After a brief hug I went downstairs to carry-on with the rest of my morning routine. I grabbed my coffee and sat at the computer where I read the Daily OM. Today's message was about simplifying schedule - essentially knowing when to say no to allow that greater "yes" that burns inside to emerge! I checked email and read the Yahoo headlines before proceeding with food prep. I didn't need to make an entire days lunch since I only ate my salad during my codeine coma. That shaved a few precious minutes off of my prep time. I made scrambled eggs topped with cheddar cheese and a side of pineapple and cantaloupe for breakfast. Jacob and Bella were soon downstairs and readying for their morning at Grandma Sharon's, although Bella would be going to preschool around 10am. They left the house near 7:20am as usual. I proceeded to the shower. Once I was ready for work I took a few extra minutes to pay some bills & do some banking. I emailed Tom's cell phone number to work email address so that I could call and hopefully arrange our evening. I left the house near 7:45am. Mindy left me a greeting card behind my personal washbowl pretty much apologizing for the codeine poisoning - I think. But really, she should've bought me flowers! I arrived to work just after 8:00am. I was in a jovial mood. I had a lot to be thankful for. I was feeling better than I had all week and it was Friday. Work was moderately busy but light for a Friday. Come 10am I gave Tom a call but got a ring/no answer. Not too much later I received a call from him. We hadn't talked in over two years. It was refreshing to hear his voice. We chatted briefly locking up plans for later this evening. I assured him that I would pass the word onto others. After our call I did just that. I called a buddy of ours at Chase (Jeff), and then sent a email to all others letting them know when and where we'd be meeting. I was gradually feeling better and better. I left for my run just before 1pm. We had received buckets of rain all morning, but I was hopeful that it would stop for my run. As it turned out, it was raining when I left out the door, but it stopped just before the halfway point and didn't start up again. I got only marginally wet. The temperature hovered around 60 degrees. It was quite warm for January 5th. I over heard someone saying that we're on pace to set a record for the least amount of snow fall over a two year period. If that happens, it won't break my heart. But jus the same, I realize it'll take just one big snow storm to bust that up. So far this winter we've had only a trace of snow and that was on December 7th, I believe. A look ahead shows us in no danger of snow or sub freezing temperatures either. I finished my run and returned to my office feeling pretty darn good. Surprisingly, I could still feel the effects of the codeine. What I need is another eight hours of sleep, I think, to completely shake it off. The rest of the afternoon whizzed by. I was looking forward to a restful weekend with Princess and my friends. Just before leaving work I sent daughter Lindsey an email reminding her of her insurance bill, and then talked with Mindy. She asked that I pick-up a pizza for the kids and Ashley on my way home. I left for home at 5:10pm. I called Minelli's as I pulled out of the parking lot and onto Britton Rd. I arrived at Minelli's at 5:30pm and my pizza was ready. I was home five minutes later. The kids were excited to see me as was Mindy. As she often does, Mindy helped me with all of my work gear. I grabbed a slice of pizza as I leashed up Ykraps for his evening walk. It was a rather quick walk. Back in the house I ate some more pizza. Jacob was crabbing about the pizza I bought. He wanted a cheese only pizza. He goes back and forth. And since I thought I was buying pizza primarily for the kids, I bought only one - pep and cheese. I ended up eating more than I thought I would. About 6:20pm, Ashley arrived with Olivia. Mindy readied for our evening out while Bella and I lounged in our bed watching none other than Sponge Bob (she watches the same video every single day). I held Olivia for a spell and so did Mindy before we left. She's so precious! We were headed to OTR (On The Rocks) a bar in Dublin off of Franz Rd. It's an old hang out of mine and a the starting point for an evening out almost every Friday for a couple of years. I haven't been there in well over a year and maybe only twice in the last three years, however. We arrived around 7:00pm. There sat Tom in an old familiar seat. He was there with Jeff, Todd, and Dan, all co-workers or ex-co-workers of mine. The bar was sparsely populated, unlike days of old when it was standing room only. As I looked around there were a few familiar faces scattered about. I gave Tom a man hug and then shook hands with everyone else. I followed up by introducing Mindy to everyone and then took a seat.. Eventually I made my way to the bar to order drinks. Their selection was weak. I ordered two Guinness Stouts. As our evening progressed, a few other current and former co-workers arrived (Chuck, Eric, and Chris). We hung around for the bands first few songs. We were there a good two hours. Mindy and I said our goodbyes and left for Barleys around 9:45pm. Brother Tommy called minutes earlier to tell Mindy he was heading to Barleys. We ended up meeting him there. When we arrived, he was sitting with friend Bob enjoying a beer. Also there was another co-worker, Matt, whom I had told of tonight's activities. He was hopeful that the OTR crowd was right behind, but they weren't. He and his girlfriend Stephanie hung with the Barley's crowd for awhile. he eventually left and headed towards OTR in hopes of catching the others still carrying on. We hung at Barleys eating wings and barbeque and drinking tasty libations until nearly 11:30pm. When we arrived home Olivia was asleep and Ashley was surfing MySpace. We paid Ashley and soon she was on her way. We went directly to bed. Mindy's stomach was bothering her.