Dad Using Google?

I woke a couple times through the night but managed to fall back asleep. I woke for good just after 5am excited about the day ahead. I leaped from bed at 5:15am to start my day. I felt incredibly good. I planned a complete set of exercises: sit-ups, push-ups, and curls. After doing my sit-ups I always check the forecast from my PC. Tuesday was no exception. Just before getting up to do my push-ups I heard a strange sound right outside our front door. Moments later I spotted someone on our porch and eventually knocking. What the *&^. Who would be knocking on my door at 5:30am? On closer inspection, I saw that is was step-brother Shawn. Haven’t seen him for several months – probably a year. He looked stressed. I answered the door cautiously. He mumbled something about dad, and then about relapsing and wanting/needing a couple of bucks. Also stated that he’s never asked me for anything. Nope, sorry. Not helping/enabling. He stormed away as I watched from the door. He was driving my old Astro minivan that dad recently helped him get running. He drove away recklessly. I felt a bit overwhelmed by his unwelcomed visit. I finished my exercises and leashed up Ykraps. I carried a sharp kitchen knife just in case. I prepped and delivered Mindy’s morning coffee just as I would on a normal work day. I shared the drama of Shawn’s 5:30am visit. She said she woke and saw a car turning around and pulling away, but didn’t hear the knock at the door or our verbal exchange. Back downstairs, I updated my blog and read some headlines. I prepped for a run at 6:30am. I went to the shower to let Mindy know that I was leaving. I took her to her, too, and locked the front door behind me when I headed out. The sky was a mix of thin, wispy clouds and clear blue patches. We weren’t anticipating any rain. My run went really well. I couldn’t wait to get home and get busy with my yard work. I felt so free! Jacob was waiting by the front door and unlocked it for me when I got back from my run. Mindy still made my breakfast. It felt terrific to have already exercised, played, ran, and eaten, and all before 7:30am. Mindy & Bella headed out just after 7:30am. I played on the PC before seeing Jacob onto the bus. As soon as he was gone I got started with yard work. I took my time piecing in the transition to the existing lawn. I wanted it to look really good. That took no more than a couple of hours, but there was still so much to do. For the rest of the morning & afternoon I patched sod into some other key areas, prepped the surface for the new stream side patio, relocated a sprinkler head that was right up against the concrete drive making edging nearly impossible, and used my spud bar to unearth a rock with a 2’ foot diameter. That spud bar is a great tool! And after scooping up the last shovel of topsoil from the drive, I gave it a thorough rinsing with the hose. Still only mid-afternoon, I raked the front and side flower beds one last time to get the rest of the spent mulch up. I got most of it a month or so ago, but the rains over that time have unearthed more. From all the beds, I raked enough to make one more wheel barrow full. I dumped the spent mulch at the base of the kids’ tree swing, where they often drag their feet. The last thing I did was water in all the sod. Jacob got home first, around 4:00pm. He did his math homework right away – estimating. He did good, missing only one problem. After reviewing, he corrected the mistake. His penmanship leaves something to be desired. After a snack, he was off on his bike. Mindy and Bella got home earlier than expected. Mindy was supposed to be participating in some performance improvement conferences. This marked the first time that she could pull into our driveway since last Sunday night. Mindy started grilling chops on the grill almost immediately. She also invited my dad to dinner. He accepted. Dad arrived sometime before 5:30pm. Because I hadn’t yet walked Ykraps, he joined me. He spent the day at the cemetery dressing up Sheila’s grave site. He tried to explain how the plot’s laid out with their joint monument. He reached for his cell to show me picture but soon realized he didn’t have his phone in his immediate possession. Dad has been all techy recently. Mindy kidded him about it, and even eluded to him getting a PC. Said he’d like to use it for researching things (Google). We talked a little bit about Shawn. Apparently he showed up at Dad’s prior to coming to my house that morning. When that didn’t net results he moved on to brother Bob’s. It’s a real mess. I won’t go into anymore detail. Soon our dinner was ready. During dinner, Dad shared that he was fully packed and ready to leave Wednesday afternoon for Florida. We asked if there was anything we could do to help in his absence. Nope, everything’s covered. Mindy left to run Jacob to soccer practice at 6:15pm. By then I had the dinner dishes all but cleaned up. Dad and I walked out into the yard to look over my crafty work. We also pushed Bella on the tree swing. Dad left by 6:40pm. We wished him a safe trip. Afterwards, Bella and I headed to the park, she on her bike and me on foot. She’s still learning to ride a bike, and that’s with training wheels. Because of that, it took a while to get there – about ten minutes. We stayed there playing until 7:05pm. We headed back home. Mindy & Jacob got home around 7:45pm. Both kids readied for bed. I knew Idol had started but was still on my PC. I saw the tail end of Adam Lambert's rendition of Led Zeppelin’s, Whole Lotta Love. Nice! Down to four contestants, it’s getting harder to call, but after the night’s performances, I think that Danny’s going home. We watched Fringe next. Another good episode. Next week is the season finale. We headed to bed promptly at 10pm. I was already starting to drift from the sofa.