Think of Laura

Hooray! Friday already again. The work week moved pretty fast. I was up and at my routine by 5:50am. Late again. It was 71 degrees with an expected high of 80 under partly cloudy skies, not at all what one would expect for late August in Ohio. I disabled the irrigation system on Wednesday evening after all the rain, and didn’t plan to turn it back on until after the weekend. The lawn is still soggy in many places. I headed out for a run at 6:55am after doing my normal routine of exercise, walking Ykraps, meditation, and stretching. Judging by the forecast, the days of running shirtless might be coming to an end fast. Expecting lows in the mid 50’s over the weekend. This day, however, I was able to run shirtless again. After my run I prepared some lunch and eggs. Nothing different than any other day, really. In route to a shower, I took Mindy coffee. Mindy was not heading in to school today. Instead, she was planning for one last shot of summer with the kids. However, at the time she wasn’t sure what they’d be doing. I was ready for work by 8:05am. Mindy joined me downstairs for coffee prior to my departure. I suggested that she and the kids go to the zoo. She seemed a little distant, I recall. I wasn’t sure why. I left for work around 8:20am. I drove the Trooper. Work was mellow for a Friday. Good thing too. From a leadership stand point, we were operating lean. My boss’s grandmother passed away so he was out. In fact, I arranged to have flowers delivered on behalf of the team. I also gave Myron the go ahead to build the Viking cornhole boards for me. I didn’t leave the building for lunch, and didn’t eat my packed veggies or fruit either, though I did eat a container of nuts and a few chunks of cheese. The afternoon moved kind of slow. I would be on-call over the weekend so I spent a fair amount of time preparing myself – making sure I was aware of any potential time bombs. That’s always a good idea. I left for home at 5:15pm. I talked with an old friend, Sean Meehan, during my drive home. He invited Mindy & I to a Labor Day cookout at Randy Large’s place. I couldn’t commit for not knowing our plans, but promised to try and make it. Mindy and the kids went to the zoo, just the three of them. She reported having a nice time. But this being a kidless weekend, they were gone by the time that I got home. Mindy had plans to join her bff, Laura, who now lives in Jersey for dinner at Bob Evans. Laura was home for the weekend. She was expected to arrive at our place around 5:30pm. She arrived while Mindy & I were walking Ykraps. After a brief conversation the two of them left for Bob Evans. I was grateful for the alone time. I used it to nap and surf. Unlike most other days, I took a nap in our bed, and it felt great. I probably got up before I was fully rested, but still got about 20 minutes. Mindy got home around 7pm. I was playing on the PC and listening to music at the time. Laura didn’t bother coming in. She hopped in her car and buzzed off. Mindy was in good spirits after their visit. She was also looking forward to an evening at Barley’s. We left for there a short time later. Barley’s was fun. Lots of peeps and lots of good beer. I stuck with Centennial all night long. I think I had four over about 3+ hours. Bob & Mary Ann were there for the first time in a while. Neighbors David & Becky, too. Mindy reminded me to eat something somewhere along the way. She was right. I hadn’t eaten much of anything all day long. However, I did snack on some Cheezits while she was at dinner. After my third beer I ordered a Cuban. It was delicious. That might be my favorite sandwich in the entire world. We left Barley’s some time after 11pm. I was surprised it was that late. Mindy drove. I checked the results/details surrounding the Viking/ K.C. preseason game while Mindy hurried off to bed. They won, although it sounds like Brett Favre had a luck-luster debut. Mindy was already asleep when I joined her about 15 minutes later.