More Dirt

I tossed and turned through most of the night never once sleeping as deeply as I am accustomed to. It was 5:35am when I rolled out of bed. I forgot to prep coffee so I had to spend a few minutes getting that going. No problem. Despite being a tad sore and tired, I felt pretty good, especially after glancing outside and seeing another glorious day unfolding. It cooled to the low 60s overnight. It was 64 degrees. After a little time on the PC, I delivered Mindy’s coffee. Downstairs I followed my usual model of stretching and mediation before leaving for my run. I wore just shorts, socks, and shoes. I was quite comfortable, too. I was back early – about 7:12am. I put our trash can back in its place before heading in. Mindy had a big plate of eggs awaiting my return. Mindy & Bella left at their usual time. Jacob and I followed our usual routines. We were at the bus stop at 7:57am. I took my camera along and took a couple photos. As soon as the boys boarded their bus I returned home to wrap up some last minute details before heading off myself. I planned to ask my boss if I could work from home that afternoon, but found out he wasn’t in. He was dealing with car issues after returning from his vacation. He was checking email, however. Add to that, two of my peers were off for various reasons. I still asked and my boss agreed. Cool! I called Jones Top Soil and ordered another 14 yards of dirt for afternoon delivery. I worked diligently in my office until 12:45pm. It was sunny and warm – 82 degrees – when I left for home. As soon as I got home I booted up my laptop and got busy with work. I didn’t want to leave anyone hanging. The dirt guy called around 1:15pm and showed up around 1:40pm. He dumped the 14 yards in about the same place his peer did Saturday. I left the dirt lie and returned inside to work through the afternoon from the kitchen table. Mindy & Bella got home around 4:30pm. Mindy left Jacob at Noah’s for a while longer. I stayed busy with work until 5:00pm. Afterwards, I ventured to the recliner to take a brief nap. I was suddenly overcome with sleepiness. I didn’t sleep long, however. I got busy moving dirt. Kenny again promised his help after work, but I started by myself. My arms got weary fast shoveling dirt into my trailer. Thankfully, Kenny came over after my first load. Mindy left to fetch Jacob. The kids were once again crawling all over the dirt pile. It took Kenny and I a couple trips to regain our rhythm, but we ultimately did. Once Mindy got home she helped by shoveling up our spillage helping keep the large pile neat and tidy. Jake, Kenny’s stepson, worked the tamper. I was very impressed with his efforts. He stayed after it through the evening. We worked until dark and got all but about two yards loaded, dumped, and contoured. It finally looked close to what I had envisioned. It only took twice as much dirt as I originally envisioned. J Already, I could see the errors of my planning and how I might’ve done it differently given the chance. But all in all, I accomplished the main goal of giving myself firm footing on the west side of the house. I was more convinced than ever that I should use sod versus sowing seed to complete the project. I don’t have the patience to watch seed grow all summer. But we’ll see. It was completely dark by the time I had the tools all put away and headed into the house. Mindy saw to it that the dirt was covered with a tarp. Word has it that rain’s on its way tomorrow. I may not get to the remaining dirt moved until the weekend, and that’s if the forecast is decent. I hadn’t yet looked at the weekend forecast. Inside, I wanted more water and some food. I hadn’t eaten much all day other than nuts, cheese and a few Triscuits. I was also craving soda, so I chugged some Diet Coke from a two-liter bottle. However, before eating anything of substance, I badly needed a shower, just like everyone else. All four of us were covered with dirt head to toe. That was truly a family project. My shower felt incredible. After my shower I devoured the remains of a submarine sandwich Kenny & Crissy left at our place Friday night. It was from Sparano’s on Hague. It was tops, perhaps the best sub I’ve ever tasted. Note to self! In the end, the sub left me tired. We agreed to turn on the AC this time, even though it was expected to cool considerably on Tuesday. We headed to bed around 10pm.