Elevated Once More

It was Saturday and roughly 3am when I was jolted from sleep with a bad dream and a dull headache, no doubt a byproduct of the five beers I drank earlier. I choked down three Advil and jumped back into bed. I didn’t wake again until almost 9am. At that point I woke more out of fear that the day would slip away. Honestly, I was still quite sleepy. I was also confused about the whereabouts of my clear plastic eye covers. I was sure that I had them taped on before bed, yet they weren’t on my face come rise time. After brushing my teeth I proceeded downstairs to start coffee and my eye drop regimen. After a half hour of work on my eyes I did my exercises. Vision-wise, my up close was good but my distant still askew – about like Friday. I sipped coffee and then finally sat down at my PC, but only for brief spurts. I was able to function quite well without glasses. Very encouraging! Mindy got out of bed somewhere near 1030am. She was slow to get moving. It didn't sound like she was gonna go to yoga after all. We talked and laughed about our Friday night antics. We had fun hanging out at Barley’s with our peeps, and then later at Kenny & Chrissy’s. After a little cajoling, Mindy decided to head to yoga after all. I knew it would do her some good all the way around. She loves what it does for her physically and spiritually. She left just before I took off on my run. I’m guessing about 1130am. It was sunny and 40 degrees at run time with the day’s high expected to top out in the mid 50’s. It was a nice run. My calf pain was minimized to a very mild, dull ache, but I still kept my run to three miles. Throughout, I remained mindful of the sweat forming around my brow – a big concern after LASIK - occasionally wiping it away to avoid it rolling into my eyes. I was ravenously hungry after my run. To that end, I whipped up a quick turkey and cheese sandwich. That helped a lot. Before my body had a chance to go sedentary, I headed for a much needed shower then did another dose of eye drops. Mindy returned from yoga around 115pm. She wasn’t home long before she declared it necessary to have her hair colored/streaked by niece Lynn-Lynn. Figured to be gone a while. I was good with that. I had no plans beyond some reading, napping, and spreading fertilizer. Daughter Ashley phoned as Mindy was preparing to depart. She shared some disturbing, yet not too surprising news about her sister and mother. After reading some of “Excuses Begone!” I headed out to spread fertilizer. I wore sun glasses per doctor’s orders. I spent no more than 30 minutes doing the chore including the prep and clean-up. There’s a ton of other early spring yard work needing done but this wasn’t the weekend to do it. My eyes needed time to heal. They’re the priority and rightfully so. After the brief chore, I headed back inside for more reading and hopefully a nap. It felt awfully good to snuggle up in the big chair with my book and a blanket in complete peace. I was able to read, by the way, without any problem, something even Dr Beran didn't think I'd be able to do without reading glasses. Mindy returned home around 530pm with her hair highlighted in reds, browns, and blondes. It looked nice. We made dinner plans for the Elevator and readied to go around 700pm. This time we planned to get a table and enjoy a full blown meal. I remembered to take my camera this time too. Mindy drove, my vision still not ready for the roads. As I am sure Mindy would agree, I didn’t do too well as the passenger. I found myself giving driving lessons on the fly. And then, when Mindy did her version of parallel parking I about cried. She wasn’t pleased. We both got over it. The wait was stated to be 30 minutes. I didn’t mind. That gave us an opportunity to sit at the bar and sip a microbrew. This time I went with the Bear Ass Pale Ale. Mindy went with the Procrastinator Stout. Our conversation centered around what if anything we might be able to do to help with the latest daughter dilemma. I had enough time to order a second beer, this time an IPA. Mindy was still working on her first. Meanwhile, the Elevator was packed. Finally after about a 40 minute wait were taken to a table. No worries! We started with calamari. It was delicious, prepared similar to, but not exactly like CBC’s. Actually, I preferred it to theirs. Next, we ordered our entrée’s. We both went with dishes they’re noted for, filet mignon cooked at your table on soapstone. Mindy went with a 7oz filet. I went with a 4oz, but with shrimp and scallops too. Both came with a side and a salad. The idea is this. They bring you your meat branded with their logo and slightly warm, but still uncooked on a plate along with a soapstone measuring approximately 8”X10” and heated to 500 degrees along with a variety of sauces for dipping. You then cook your own meat one bite at a time, or to your personal liking. A bit unusual, but also cool. Mindy cooked and ate her filet so fast that our server quipped that she must've tossed it away. I had only just begun. Crap! Not too long into dinner I started having indigestion problems and struggled to eat my meal comfortably. It felt like the muscle at the entrance to my stomach was cramping and releasing over and over. It left me very uncomfortable. Somehow I mange to finish all but my mashed potatoes. For relief, I got up and walked around. Not sure what that was all about! As agreed earlier, Mindy grabbed the check while I waited just outside the front door for her. I stopped on my way out and read an article about the origins of the soapstones they use to cook the meats. It was posted in a frame close to the front door. We headed for home. I was anxious to get into my PJ’s and dose my eyes with drops. We arrived home just before 10pm. I had to stay up until 1020pm doing the eye drop regimen.