Slip n' Slide My Grass Away

Up just after 5:30am, I felt pretty good and was ready to tackle my day. I noticed in passing that the deck was wet, a sure sign that it rained more overnight. And while engaging in exercise, I saw that the wind was whipping it up pretty good outside. I checked the weather forecast and radar like I often do before heading out with Ykraps. Turned out, there was a thunderstorm warning for our area, but from the looks of it, Most of it was tracking just to our north. Folks up in Marion/Mansfield were getting hammered. Ykraps and I headed out for our walk. It wasn’t raining but it was very breezy and cloudy. On a clear day, it would’ve been broad daylight, but today the cloud cover was so thick that it was still pretty dark, even eerie. A constant barrage of lightning flashes could be seen to our immediate north and west. But at the time there was little to no accompanying thunder. The storm clouds were moving swiftly, too. Back at home I checked the radar again to see if a run in the next 30 minutes looked feasible. At about the same time heavy rain pelted our area along with strong winds and lightning. A large red swath of the storm dropped south from the larger body and was getting us pretty good. I watched from the front & back doors. I expected to hear tiny feet scampering across the upstairs floor as the kids made their way into our bed with their mommy. They typically do in thunderstorms. Today, however, I didn’t hear any such movement. There was no way I was gonna get my run in as normal, but the immediate forecast called for improving conditions after 7am. I decided to wait it out on the sofa. I tried going back to sleep, but the best I could do was hit that tweener stage between consciousness and sleep. The rain continued longer than expected, but the once heavy downpours turned into a steady light rain. But what concerned me more than heavy rain was the incessant lightning. As the sky brightened I could see the storm clouds with greater definition. They were scary looking. I eventually dressed for my run once the radar proved the worst was behind us and the storms to our east. I could see a brightening sky directly to our west. It must’ve been about 7:30am when I finally headed out for my run. It was only sprinkling at the time. The majority of my run has me facing the east. The sky out that way still looked quite scary and even had me questioning my thinking a few times. What I saw were ongoing lightning strikes and heavy rain. But the few times I faced back to the west I felt secure enough to continue. The sky was bright, and there were even a few small breaks of pale blue. During the run there were a few cloud bursts, and even one where the rain drops were as big as dimes, but it didn’t last. All in all, I stayed fairly dry. As luck would have it, the storm fired up again once I was back home and making my eggs. I felt fortunate to have gotten my run in. It was already after 8:00am. I knew that I’d be late for work. I woofed down my breakfast then dashed off for a shower. I was showered and dressed for work by 8:20 something. I made great time. I wouldn’t be that late after all. By the time I made it to work the sky was showing signs of much better weather ahead. The forecast called for clearing skies and upper 80s. Work was very busy, and it only got busier as the day progressed. I had planned to visit Home Depot again at lunchtime only this time to return the oak 1X2” I bought the day before to repair our patio benches. I wanted to exchange it for a 1X3” after discovering that the bench slats are an odd, in-between size which would require ripping the 1X3”. However, because we were so busy, I turned around in the parking lot and went back inside to help keep the ship moving in the right direction. I decided I’d simply live with a slightly narrower bench slat. The afternoon’s activity was constant, countless escalations. I did my best to remain calm and drive the issues to closure. At 5:15pm I phoned my peer, who’d be on-call over the weekend, to give him a heads up. I wanted the transition to be seamless. I didn’t leave for home until 5:50pm. I phoned Mindy, who said that we’d be ordering pizza for dinner. I was OK with that. It sounded like she and the kids had a fun day playing. Good for them! I arrived home just after 6pm. Mindy shared more about their day and prepared to walk Ykraps with me. At one point, while glancing out back, I noticed a large area of the lawn looking completely matted and muddy. Mindy admitted having the Slip n’ Slide out for all the kids. I was pissed because the yard was already saturated from the heavy rain. Damn it! I gave Mindy an earful even while we walked Ykraps together. My thing is that I work hard to make and keep our yard looking top notch only to have others tear it up without giving it any thought. Back at home, I really didn’t want to get a close-up look fearing that it would only make me angrier, but I did. Turned out, the grass wasn’t ripped out but it would take some doing to get it back in shape. I didn’t want to fool with it then, however. I went back inside. Back inside, Mindy ordered pizza and then went to pick it up. I took a much needed nap in the recliner, something I love to do, especially on Fridays. While Mindy was gone, Rene showed up. I kept sleeping. She engaged the kids while waiting for Mindy’s return. Mindy mentioned earlier that Rene might be visiting. Mindy was back in less than ten minutes with the pizza. When I finally upped from my nap everyone was outside in the yard. I helped myself to some pizza and eventually cracked open a HopSlam. It was quite warm and humid, nevertheless, we ate our pizza from the deck. During dinner, we exchanged vacation stories with Rene, who spent the week we were in Mexico in the Outer Banks just up the way from Jacob & Bella. At one point I suggested that Mindy fetch one of the small fans just to keep the outside air circulating. Instead, we moved inside. Rene got a call from a friend and left about 30 minutes later. Not long after, Tom Clark called. Mindy invited him over. He was at Barley’s and wondered if this was a kidless night. Nope! Tom showed up about an hour later. Earlier, Bella had asked if she could spend the night with Emily, a few houses down. We agreed. Well, she wasn’t there but an hour or so when the phone rang again. This time it was Teri, Emily’s mom, calling to say Bella wanted/needed to come home. She said her ear hurt. Actually, though, we suspected she was home sick. Tom, Jacob and I sat and talked, joked over the growler of Barley’s Pale ale that Tom brought. Against Mindy’s will, we gave Jacob a very small sample in his drink cup. He seems to like beer. He asked for more later. As you might expect, Bella was quite the pill when she got home. She cried repeatedly. Mindy gave her Tylenol and eventually had her lay with her ear on a heating pad. That at least calmed her. Meanwhile, Tom, Mindy, Jacob & I continued sitting around the kitchen table having a good time sharing stories. Tom shared some childhood stories, most of which I’ve heard before but enjoyed hearing them again just the same. Before Tom left, which must’ve been around midnight, Mindy invited him back for our Father’s Day event this coming Sunday. Sounds like he’ll be coming. After Tom left we all went to bed. We were surprised that Jacob stayed up so late. I could tell he was toast, however.