Pushing a Billy-Goat

Thank god for Advil! I was wise enough to choke down a couple Advil before jumping in bed last night. But aside from feeling a tad groggy, I was fine come morning. I was up & downstairs early. It was only 7:15am. After starting a pot of Starbucks I completed a round of exercises followed by a brisk walk with Ykraps. It was nice outside – sunny & 50. I had lots of alone time and used most of it to update my blog. Getting up early has it advantages. I worked on my blog until 8:58am when I finally declared it time to run. I heard Mindy stirring around but she remained upstairs. I figured she’d be up when I got back. It was an excellent run and in premium conditions. Kenny was already outside working in the yard using a ‘Billy Goat’ to gather leaves. The weather promised sunny skies and temps nearing 70 – it would be an ideal day to work in the yard. For me, however, that wouldn’t be in the cards. Instead, I planned to paint the wall and stain trim. Besides, we have one red maple yet to drop leaves. I plan one more raking and want to wait for it to drop completely first. Mindy was up when I got back from my run. She was planning to leave for yoga around 11am. While I prepped to paint, we had a pleasant conversation about our relationship. Mindy’s good about keeping our relationship inline. She never lets it stray too far out of kilt. Plus, she’s never been one to hold back from communicating here needs. She readied and left for yoga just as I was starting to paint. Since it was such a small area, it didn’t take long at all. While the first coat dried, I started staining the two pieces of trim. I did the staining from the deck. After an hour or so I put a second coat of paint on the wall. I already knew that it would take three coats to cover perfectly. Through the early afternoon I kept up with the paint and stain. Mindy got home from yoga around 130pm. We made plans to party with the neighbors and watch the OSU game against Iowa. Kenny planned to grill steaks after the game. Sounded good to me. Mindy and I kept busy in the house all afternoon. She organized the pantry while I finished painting and staining. I also put away all of the tools I got out for the repair. I took a shower around 3pm and returned downstairs feeling fresh just before kick-off. We ended up watching the entire first quarter from home but headed to the neighbors immediately after, and around 400pm. I took my growler of Barley’s Pale Ale still left from Wednesday night. We had fun watching the rest of the game with the neighbors, Kenny & Chrissy. Mike & Julie were over too. They’re always fun. The Rose Bowl and Big Ten championship were on the line pending the game’s outcome. And while the Buckeyes took what seemed like a commanding lead into the 4th quarter 24-10, Iowa came storming back just like they have against several of their foes this season. Needless to say, the Buckeye nation was reeling! Iowa tied the game with just a few minutes to spare, and both teams played ultra conservative in the waning moments seeming bent on taking the game into overtime. Iowa got the ball first and the Buckeye defense drove them backwards 20+ yards and out of field goal range. They didn’t score. As expected, the Buckeyes conservatively ran it up the middle a couple of times before trying at 40 yard field goal with our back-up kicker. The stadium, as well as those at Kenny’s house, erupted as the kick sailed straight through the uprights. Buckeyes won 27-24 and guaranteed themselves a trip to Pasadena and at least a share of the Big Ten title for the fifth year in row. Very sweet! Kenny started grilling the steaks a short time later. And I headed home to walk Ykraps. It was almost 7pm. Having already polished off my growler, I took a couple more beers back to Kenny’s with me. During yet another trip, Mindy brought back a bottle of wine – Yellowtail. The steaks were delicious. Kenny has the art of cooking steaks down to a science. We enjoyed some homemade pasta salad, too, complements of Mike. After dinner everyone got a little jiggy – kids included. Peobena and Kapel came over. Kapel will be taking his medical specialization boards this coming Thursday and is planning a big blowout at his place Friday. Noted! Everyone was having a ball as the evening wound down. Mindy and I headed home I’m guessing near 11pm. But honestly, I don’t know what time it was.