Walkinathong ... boy was I embarrassed

Pretty much a repeat of most other mornings this week, I was up a few minutes ahead of 530am. And just like those days, I was quickly downstairs and ready to begin my calisthenics. However, after failing to do so the night before, I had to stop and prep the coffee maker before getting started. I checked the weather forecast soon after sit-ups. Supposed to be sunny and seasonably warm (about 70). Next was push-ups, they went easier than usual, no doubt a result of taking two Advil the night before. That’s some great stuff. Coffee finally done brewing, I prepped a cup just ahead of taking Frankie out for her morning romp. I took her out on a leash. Thankfully, she was prompt tending to her business. We were back inside at 603a. After a quick treat for Frankie, I moved to meditation and stretching. At mediation’s completion, the funk I was steeped in most of the day Wednesday was a thing of the past. I felt great. Stretching went well, too. Meanwhile, I was on track for an early run. I delivered Frankie and coffee to Mindy at 625a. It wasn’t another five minutes before heading off on my run. It was 53 degrees, so I wore long pants and a winter wicking shirt without a jacket. I was quite comfortable for the duration. I ran the full 4.1 mile track. Despite a clear forecast, we were under a thin veil of clouds, which prevented daybreak from becoming apparent until the very end of my run. Before heading inside, I inspected the freshly laid sod out front. Looking really good. The two days of gentle rain Monday and Tuesday were just what the doctor ordered. Inside, the kids were already up and at the breakfast table. Bella reminded me of the day’s walkathon at school. I’ll be there, I confidently replied! That made Bella happy. She said I needed to be there near 10a, but added that I could be a little late. Just before she left for school, Mindy reminder Bella to take a bottle of water. I headed off to the shower at 730a. Like the rest of the week’s mornings, I was still ahead of schedule by a few minutes. Downstairs again before 745a, I used the extra time to tinker with the Windows Live attachment the irrigation company sent me. I was able to successfully view it at home. Think it has something to do with Flash. I copied the letter into a word doc then sent it to myself at work so I could edit and then send it back for the changes. Nothing major, just a bit more detail. The kids, Frankie and I headed out at 755a. Chrissy was out with the girls this AM. Kenny left early for work. We chatted briefly, Chrissy sharing her frustration with a co-worker who is always on Facebook and never seemingly working. I just listened, didn’t interject, but thought to myself that those types of people usually get their due in the end. I allowed Frankie time to relieve herself after the kids were on the bus, but she was more interested in sniffing around the bridge. Never went. I toyed with driving the BM’er but opted out last minute. It was still cloudy directly overhead, but could see nothing but blue skies directly to our immediate west. Those thin clouds, however, weren’t moving very fast at all. I arrived at work just after 830a. I walked down to my boss’s office after getting situated. We talked for a while. I shared my need to take an early lunch to meet Bella for her school’s walkathon. He was fine with it. I left for the walkinathong at 945a arriving just ahead of 10am. Bella’s group wasn’t yet outside, Looked like kindergartner’s and perhaps 1st graders only. OK, was I ever embarrassed. There I was in my thong waiting for everyone else, only to realize that I must have misunderstood. :)

Bella and her fellow 2nd graders weren’t long. I waited no more than 3 or 4 minutes. Bella was very excited to have me there. She asked if we could wait for Makayla, who came out another minute later. She was happy to see me too. We walked around the ¼ mile track with a group of their friends 12 times. They had a sound system blaring youthful tunes, a fog machine, and the Texas Roadhouse armadillo on hand to help make it a fun, exciting event for the kids. In total, there may have been another 4 or five parents, but not too many. I consider myself lucky having the freedom to do such things with the kids. I took a couple photos during our walk and immediately texted them to Mindy. I begged out just before I figured they’d be calling Bella and the other 2nd graders to line-up to head back inside. Each grade had an hour with about 15-20 minutes between each grade. I arrived back at the office at 1110a. I let my boss know that I was back. It got really busy for the duration of the day. Seemed like mid-summer workload-wise. I talked with Mindy around 4pm. She was on her way home from school. Thanked me for the pix and text. Asked about dinner. I suggested we take Bella out for her birthday dinner. Mindy nixed the idea at first only because Jacob would be at soccer and would miss out. I deferred to her, but didn’t necessarily agree. After all, Jacob does all sorts of activities without Bella. Mindy called me back minutes later with a change of heart. Bella wanted to do dinner at Bravo. We haven’t been there as a family since my birthday two years ago, although I was there a few months ago with my boss and peers. I suggested we simply meet there since it’s just a mile or so from my office. Mindy agreed. I stayed at work until 540p to give Mindy enough time to get ready and head that way. It’s a good 6 or 7 miles from our home, not to mention the almost certain rush hour traffic on Riverside Drive she would encounter. Geesh! Bravo was even more crowded than I guessed it might be. Packed! I found one of just a few spots remaining. Mindy pulled in seconds after me and might’ve gotten the very last spot, which just happened to be right next to me. I was surprised to see that it wasn’t that crowded inside, although the patio was packed. We were taken directly to a table. Mindy & I ordered water with lemon while Bella went with lemonade. We ordered some cheese stuffed ravioli’s as an appetizer. They brought bread & oil gratis as well. The appetizer was really good. I ordered a bowl of their tomato bisque after remembering how good it used to be. For my entrée, I ordered chicken parmesan. Mindy & Bella ordered lasagna Bolognese. Mindy ordered a side salad too. Our server left a couple crayons at our table for Bella. The table was topped with a large sheet of white paper over a white linen table cloth. Bella used the paper as her personal canvas, just as I suppose it’s intended. Dinner was good. By the time we were ready for our bill, we had nearly every square inch of the white paper tablecloth covered in crayon, between our artistic drawings and math questions for Bella. I agreed to get the check. We headed home separately. Mindy & Bella planned a stop at Wendy’s to pick-up dinner for Jacob, who was at soccer practice. I beat those two home by about 10 minutes. During that time I freed Frankie, prepped Friday’s coffee, and checked email. Jacob arrived home minutes after Mindy & Bella. I updated my blog while the kids ate. Yes, that’s right. Bella got some Wendy’s too, even though she didn’t finish her Bravo lasagna. I didn’t spend anymore than about 30 minutes on the PC. I joined everyone in the family room around 8-830p to watch Thursday night college football, Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma State. Mindy took Frankie out a couple times after she scratched at the back door. Mindy & the kids headed off to bed relatively early. I stayed up to watch more of the game. Behind early, Oklahoma State came back and took the lead. When I went to bed they were up 28-21. It was near 1030p.

Leaving Early for Golf

I got up right before 530a but only because I had to. I could’ve quite easily slept for another two hours. I tried my best to cast aside the sleepies and focus instead on the new day, but it was a struggle. Likewise, Frankie showed no interest whatsoever in leaving her bed pen. I didn’t force it. I left her rest while completing my calisthenics, coffee, meditation ,and stretching. I slogged through my entire routine, including delivering Mindy’s coffee, just before 630a. It was nice to see a clear sky overhead, though the temperature quite cool – only 46 degrees. After Tuesday, I knew I needed to adjust my running attire some. I went with a thin, long-sleeved wicking shirt and my fleece pull-over. The run went well. I ran the full 4.1 mile track comfortably. Mindy had fried eggs awaiting my return. Frankie had just crawled out of her pen, and Jacob was preparing to take her out. I volunteered to do the duty since I was already dressed for it. She and I headed out after a few seconds of play. She needs that before going out productively. Back inside, I sat down to my hot breakfast and fresh fruit. It was good. I purposefully left a little on my plate for Frankie. She loves eggs! Just before she left, Mindy reminded the kids to come home on the regular bus, and then to tidy their rooms. This was a Rachel day. Bella made sure to remind me of her walkathon set for tomorrow AM (Thursday). Wants me to join her. I will definitely try to make it. I headed for a shower while the kids tidied their rooms and brushed their teeth & hair. We regrouped downstairs around 755a. The kids headed out to the bus stop a couple minutes ahead of me while I put coffee and breakfast away. I joined them already in progress. Kenny was out with the girls and brought Woody along, too. The pugs played as they always do. The bus was punctual – always is. Kenny and I discussed the possibility of afternoon golf. I planned to take my clubs and try hard to get away sometime after 4p. I agreed to give him a call to confirm plans mid-afternoon. I arrived to work on time. I received the email I requested from Nationwide Irrigation via Windows Live detailing my auxiliary water meter repair. Unfortunately, I couldn’t open it at work. I forwarded it to my Droid (gmail), but it wouldn’t open it either. I forwarded the email home. I’d try it there later. I didn’t feel 100% all day. I was overtly tired and a tad bit queasy. I battled it all day long. At one point I caught myself staring blankly at my PC, my eyes heavy and tired. Somehow I pulled out of it. I got an email from Bob I. indicating that both he and Bob B were up for golf. I didn’t want to contact Kenny until I knew with almost certainty that I could get away. My boss was cool with it. He knew I hadn’t gotten away for Wed/Thurs golf for a couple months. I never complain about it either. Work comes first. Has to. Kenny sent a text mid-afternoon inquiring about golf. I responded favorably. Meet at Phoenix at 430p. We were set. My afternoon was crazy busy. I was a little stressed about trying to leave early with so much going on but forged forward with my original plan anyway. I called Mindy around 345p to let her know my intentions. She said she hadn’t even considered that I might be golfing, but sounded happy for me. It felt good to slip out at 410p. Kenny called just as I was entering I-71S from 70E. He was practically there. Let him know that the Bob’s were meeting us there too. I arrived at Phoenix at 435p. Kenny picked up our green fees and cart. I think I heard that it was only $15 each – good deal! We went off the back, which was our preference anyway. We all hit sound drives, though mine the shortest. I’ve been doing that lately. On my 2nd shot, I completely mishit my 3-wood bouncing the ball pretty much right in its place. Yikes! My third shot wasn’t on the screws either but left me close enough to hit a sand wedge on, but still out about 30-35’. Bottom line, I sunk the putt! Wahoo! I wasn’t on fire by any means, but played fairly well until hole #17, the par three that overlooks the clubhouse, a creek, cliff and hill. If anything was hurting me tonight it was oddly enough my driving, but that happens every so often. I was hitting my new irons fairly well. Anyway, hole #17 ate me up. I ended up with a triple – 6. Ugh! Hole #18 is the one with a 200+ yard pond fronting the fairway. I hit another weak tee shot in the drink. Crap! I took a drop in the designated zone. I smacked a long 3-wood but push it left and into the trees. Not good. Suddenly, I was lying in four and hitting five into the green. But when we walked out to everyone else’s 2nd shots, we discovered my second shot – my 3-wood shot- lying in the middle of the fairway about 60 yards out. Hmm – a favorable tree bounce. Sometimes good things happen to good people.  I hit my SW to within 15’ and two putted for a double. Darkness was fast approaching, but Kenny suggested we try and sneak in a few more holes. Hell, I was game, but Bob and Bob were not. They went on. Kenny and I went on and played holes 1-3. I played those bogey-par-bogey, striking the ball well on each, and that includes that dam par 3 #2 that more often than not eats my lunch.  It was all but dark as we headed to our vehicles. Kenny thought he spotted his mom’s 2nd husband, who he fondly refers to as Poppa Pao. Lucky for us, it wasn’t him, lest there might’ve been a scrum in the parking lot. I arrived home at 8p super hungry. I was fairly disciplined with my food consumption, eating some of the tasty chipotle hummus and pita chips I picked up at Giant Eagle the day before. I did eat a very mall piece of pizza leftover from Bella’s dinner, too, though. I washed it down with a glass of 2% milk and a spoonful of peanut butter. More importantly, my hunger was nicely satisfied. I helped the kids get their showers going while Mindy helped Bella with reading. I took Frankie out after hearing her scratch at the back door. She only pee’d. Back inside, I was eager to get in my comfy sleeping clothes and then choke down a couple Advil. I still wasn’t feeling that great and was feeling a tad achy, too. Mindy took two also. It’s a party! While relaxing on the sofa, I tuned to the Reds game on Fox Ohio Sports Network. They were behind 1-0 and then 2-0. Mindy headed to bed at 9p sharp – too early for me. I stayed up until 1030p. The Reds lost.

Hummus Beer & Skis

I was up a little early again today, but only by a couple minutes. It was still raining. I could hear a gentle rain tapping ever so lightly against the family room skylights. I slipped into my exercise shoes, refilled my water cup, took a Dexilant, and started my sit-ups at 530a. After sit-ups, but ahead of push-ups, I checked the weather forecast and headlines. Supposed to rain through mid-morning with the high temp barely making 60. The Reds lost and the St Louis Cardinals won, so their magic number remained 1. Frankie didn’t seem in any hurry to vacate her pen. I left her alone while I enjoyed coffee and completed both meditation and stretching. But after delivering Mindy’s coffee and preparing to run, Frankie suddenly expressed interest in going outside. Briefly torn, I decided to take a few minutes to walk her out back in the light but steady rain. She was reluctant in the rain, but finally pee’d. She hurried faster than usual back up to the deck. I worried that she might poop in the house, but I didn’t want to re-pen her either. I delivered her to Mindy, who was already in the shower then I promptly left for my run. Because it was cool and rainy, I wore not only a winter wicking shirt and long running pants, but a pullover fleece too. That proved a tad warm a mile or two into the run, but all in all it still went rather well. I ran the full 4.1 miles. Mindy had a towel hanging on the banister waiting my return. Mindy shared that Frankie pooped in our room. Yeah, I was worried that she might. She’s gonna have to get used to taking care of her business in inclement weather. Mindy made scrambled eggs topped with cheddar cheese. They were good. Bella wanted some too so I shared mine. I enjoyed the fresh strawberries, watermelon, and pineapple. Mindy soon left for school after advising the kids to bus home with Noah. Mindy reminded me that I would most likely have some time at home alone while she takes Bella to gymnastics at 530p. Cool! I was out of the shower and ready to go by 753a. We headed out shortly thereafter, me and Bella with umbrellas in bloom. I did my best to provide Jacob some cover, too. Kenny was out with the girls. Said he planned to pour concrete at a job site later in the day. Was betting on the forecast being correct. Good luck! After the kids were on the bus, I walked Frankie in the back yard just in case she needed to go again. She didn’t take advantage, however. I left for work after making sure I had the ski keeps in my back pack. I hoped to pick ‘em up at lunch. I arrived to work on time. I spent the lion’s share of the morning in another meeting with a peer finalizing our holiday coverage schedules. It took us a while to get it all sorted out. Before taking off for ASBCO, I called the irrigation company to let them know that the instructions they gave me for repairing the water meter seemed to work. I also asked if they would be kind enough to send me written proof that I could give to the water company. I arrived at ASBCO at 120p. Our skis were there and ready. Looked good. Sharp edges and waxed bottoms. I tried on a new ski jacket but didn’t like the feel. I had to chuckle when she quoted me the same line they used ten days ago – everything in the store 20% off through tomorrow. Does tomorrow ever come? I headed back towards work but decided to make a brief pit stop at the nearby Giant Eagle for some good beer, tasty hummus and pita chips. Beer-wise, I ended up going with a six-pack of the tried and true CBC IPA and a 22oz bomber of Lagunita’s Hop Stoopid IPA. I also picked up a 4-pack of the Sam Adams Imperial Stout for Mindy. I found two types of hummus, Chipotle and a Cilantro Jalapeño. I grabbed one of each. I also found the pita chips, garlic and whole wheat. I bought one of each of those, too. I made my way back to work by 215p. The afternoon went smoothly. It was still cloud covered but the rain had finally ended. I was quite busy through the afternoon all the way up until my departure time of 530p. Mindy called me when I was less than a mile from home. She and the kids were just leaving for gymnastics. Mindy shared that she & Jacob planned to shop for Halloween costumes during Bella’s class. I arrived home just as Mindy & the kids were departing. Mindy asked that I tend to the pork chops she had baking in the oven in her absence. I carried in our snow skis then my haul from Giant Eagle. I also took care of my lunch dishes and then Wednesday morning’s coffee set-up. I used the quiet time to update my blog and play on the internet. Kenny stopped over at some point to get Jacob’s math planner so he could give Lillian her math assignment. She left hers at school apparently. As requested, I removed the foil covering the chops and turned them over at 645p. Mindy & the kids got home around 730p. She dished up dinner quickly. Jacob was anxious to show me his new costume – a horned monster with a guitar. Mindy bought me a Viking helmet. I ate meat only – no potatoes. The chops were delicious. We finished dinner later. Mindy had the kids readying for bed while I cleaned up the kitchen. Mindy took Frankie down to the neighbors for some play time. She might’ve played down there for 30 minutes. After dinner and clean-up we watched the Nation Geographic channel programming about the gulf oil spill – depressing. Periodically, I switched over to the Reds game. It was tied 2-2 after 7 innings. Win and we clinch a play-off berth. Mindy headed to bed around 915-930p. I stayed up to watch the rest of the game. Somewhere along the line, I fell asleep. I woke around 1030p and saw the Reds players celebrating with champagne, beer, and cigars. They won in dramatic fashion – a walk off homer bottom of the ninth.

Barley's on a Monday?

I woke just ahead of 530am, so instead of playing roulette with the clock I went ahead and rolled out of bed and started my day. I felt pretty darn good after another decent night of sleep. Most notable, the weather, it was cool and cloudy with a light rain, ideal conditions for my freshly laid sod. God loves me! I completed calisthenics in short order then turned my attention to Frankie who seemed less than eager to head outside due, I'm sure to the light rain. However, being the good dog that she is, she took care of business quickly. We headed back inside to get her a treat and me some coffee. I checked the weather forecast and then the final score of the SNF game. The forecast called for all day rain and temps barely above 60. The Jets won the football game. They’re the Vikings next opponent, although the game isn’t until Monday, Oct 11th. The Vikes have an early bye week. I read some of Glenn’s blog too. I moved to meditation and stretching around 605a and finished around 625a. While dressing for my run I folded the rest of my clean running attire. I must’ve spent more time in the laundry than I thought. It was already 635a and I still had to deliver the pug and coffee. By then, Mindy was already mid-shower. I didn’t get out for my run until after 640a, but it’s all good. There was a steady, light drizzle from the outset, but it hardly phased me. I was dressed for it, wearing a warm winter wicking shirt for the first time all season. I ran the full 4.1 mile track. I didn’t get back home until after 720a. Jacob had just come back inside with Frankie after her second romp. We enjoyed our brief breakfast time together before Mindy departed for school. The kids were reminded to bus home with Noah. Jimaken would then be picking them up for his Monday dinner with dad date. Mindy wasn’t out the door 2 minutes before I was off to the shower. The kids and I organized ourselves for the bus at 755a. Like many days of late, Bella was lagging a bit behind. I grabbed and used the new umbrella that I bought at the Andersons probably two months ago. I don’t think I’ve used it but one other time. Hasn’t rained in eons! Kenny was at the bus stop with Makayla. His ex-wife soon pulled up to drop off Lillian. We chatted briefly before and after the kids boarded the bus. I had Frankie out with us too. Woody wasn’t out. I walked Frankie along the front yards before heading back inside – a lot of sniffing but no action. I spent a few minutes organizing all of my work related gear then headed out. I planned to drop my dad’s trailer by his place on the way in despite knowing it would make me a little late to the office. The drop went smoothly. I took the back way in to work, up Old Dublin Rd and then into Hilliard. I arrived at 840a. The work day was fairly tame. I was in a meeting with a peer for most of the morning. It was a frustrating yet productive meeting. I really wanted to head to ASBCO to pick-up our freshly tuned skis, but once again forgot the ski keeps. Maybe tomorrow. I ended up skipping a formal lunch break, but did eat my packed lunch while working at my desk somewhere near 130p. Mindy called later afternoon to remind me that it was a Jimaken night and then asked if I wanted to do dinner out. She offered up three choices: CBC, Elevator, and Barley’s. The only one that sounded remotely good was Barley’s. Anyway, we didn’t have to decide while on the phone. Instead, we’d decide later when I arrived home. She also asked that I stop at the Mill Run CVS to pick-up her blood pressure script. OK - yes. I left work for home just ahead of 530p making a quick pass through the CVS drive-thru along the way. I forked over $5 for the pills. I arrived home around 550a. Mindy and I quickly settled on Barley’s, both of us agreeing that their food sounded best. We headed out after a quick brush-up. Frankie wasn’t too keen on us leaving again so soon.  Mindy's teacher Pal, Kari called while we were in transit. invited herself, Kevin, and Garrett to Barley's with us. Mindy happily agreed, but did caution them that we were on a tight schedule - would only be there until 730p. The lot was perhaps a bit more crowded than we expected. After all, it was a Monday. But then again, Monday is wing night. We arrived well ahead of Kari and Kevin. We ordered beers but waited to order food. We met a new server, Carrie, being trained by Tina, who is actually fairly new herself. Seems nice. Talked with Diedra as well, who shared a bit of bad news. Her father had a mild heart attack last week, and then they had to put down the family dog. The good news was that her dad was doing lots better. Kari & Kevin soon arrived with Garrett in tow. He's only 9.5 months old. Haven't seen Kevin since we visited in the hospital the day after Garrett was born. We all placed our food orders. Mindy ordered muscles and hummus. I ordered K.C. wings and a bowl of their garlic potato soup. Kevin ordered their new Cuban, and Kari there meatloaf. Service, food, and beer were really good, but that's why we visit so often. Kari & Kevin brought an assortment of baby food for Garrett. He's tiny but ate an unbelievable amount of food. Mindy & Kari each ordered a dessert, which they shared with Kevin and I. Garrett was lucky enough to get few bites too. Mindy picked up our tab separately. We parted ways around 740p. Jacob phoned to let us know that they were just leaving Jimaken's place. Perfect timing. The kids arrived home while I was upstairs putting on my comfy sleepin' attire. Had to be close to 8pm. Mindy decided to let the kids skip baths. We tuned into MNF between 8-830p - Green Bay vs. Chicago. I tucked the kids into bed before 9pm. Mindy headed off to bed around 915p. She asked how long I'd be. I guessed 10-1030p. And by the way, it was still raining, albeit lightly. perfect for the grass and flowers - minimal run-off. I fell asleep briefly and woke right at 1030p and headed up to bed. Mindy didn't budge.

You Old Sod

I woke moderately early – about 7am. I didn’t feel nearly as good as I did Saturday, but then again, I didn’t drink 30 beers Friday night either. In reality, I drank only five Saturday night and that was over a span of about 4 hours. Because it was Sunday, I didn’t do calisthenics. I did plan to run, of course. I made coffee then took to the PC to catch up on all the college football finals. Frankie seemed tuckered and in no hurry to vacate her pen. I left her be while I enjoyed the quiet house. I sipped down two cups of coffee before readying for a run. I didn’t want to head out too late. I had a lot I wanted to accomplish, including tearing out the old dead grass between the walk and street and then resodding. As hoped, the weather forecast was ideal for the project.– partly cloudy today then two days of moderate rain. After a quick stretch, I headed off on a run. I did the usual three mile Sunday keeping it inside the subdivision. I was a little surprised to find Mindy up when I got back home. Apparently Frankie had just crawled out of her pen, too. The kids were just getting up as well. I didn’t wait too long before heading out front to rip out what remained of the old grass I sprayed with Round-Up a couple weeks ago. Before heading out, I woofed down two bowls of Wheaties. I was hopeful that the dead grass would come easily with the help of a stiff rake and/or dethatcher. And thankfully it did, although my arms still got one heck of a workout. I measured the area to determine the correct amount of sod I’d need. It measured 130 square feet, or 6.5’ by 20’. While raking away the dead grass, I snagged several tree roots, which I decided to expose and remove. I ended up revealing roots as big around as 3” in diameter and then tons of hair-like finger roots just below the dirt surface. This is the same area that I reseeded only two years ago. That time I used neighbor Carl's rototiller and then topped it off with two inches of new topsoil. All those roots might very well explain why the turf browned out so easily once summer's heat hit. The Autumn Blaze maple I have planted there seems to have a root system similar to that of a silver maple. I realize, too, that my aggressive root removal may very well kill the tree in the end, but so be it. I can’t have the tree killing my lawn, or worse yet, heaving my walk someday. Satisfied that I had the area prepped as well as I possibly could, I headed inside to call Strader’s to make sure they had enough sod on hand. They did. The price she quoted was $1 cheaper per square yard than it was last spring when we sodded the area we built up out back. That made me happy. Quick math told me I’d need roughly 15 pieces. I headed over to dad’s to get his trailer, but not before filling my air compressor tank, so I could make sure the trailer tires were properly inflated. Dad was home as made apparent by the presence of both vehicles. I knocked on the door to which he quickly responded. We walked out back together to empty the few tree limbs currently resting in the trailer. I checked the air even after dad said they were good. I added air to both bringing them to 50 PSI. Off to Strader’s. It’s a relatively quick drive up Riverside Dr to Bethel Rd. I pulled around to the area where they typically keep sod. Looked real nice, and they had plenty. Sweet. I headed inside to pay. I decided to get an extra piece – 16 to be exact. I paid for a 3.8 cubic ft. bale of Canadian peat moss, too. The cashier dispatched a couple employees to the sod area to load my trailer. Three Mexican-looking fellas showed up. They very quickly rolled and tossed18 pieces into the trailer. They didn't seem to speak English. After loading the sod, I drove around the corner to the area where they kept the peat. I loaded it myself. After a thankful nod, I headed home. I was gone less than an hour. Once home, my first order of business was spreading the peat evenly and then putting down starter fertilizer. I raked it in really well before laying the first piece of sod. The sodding went pretty quick. Carl stopped over to chat, but I kept working while talking. He shared the problems he’s having with his newer PC. Kept referring to this guy named Dale that’s been trying to help him. We were well into our conversation before it finally occurred to me that he was saying Dell, not Dale.  It took 14.5 pieces of sod to complete the job. While I was watering it in really well, Mindy and the kids left for soccer. They planned to do Sunday dinner at her mom’s, too, but would be coming home first to get Mindy’s latest apple pie, the second one she’s made in less than a week. I an effort to get sodding done, but also finish the tree house, I wouldn’t be joining them. I kept a watchful eye on the auxiliary water meter while using the water. Seems to be working fine after the ol’ tap, tap, tap. Seeing no sign of Kenny, whose hel pI needed with the tree house, I decided to mow the front lawn. It was twice as long as the back, and if I didn’t get to it then, who knew when my next opportunity would be. I cut it pretty quickly. It was only Wednesday when I last cut it 94 days ago). I decided to cut the upper back too. Looked good when I finished, save for all the leaves coming down. I had just headed inside for a brief break and settled down in front of my PC to check on the Vikings’ score when Mindy and the kids returned from soccer to fetch the apple pie, recycling, and Frankie. Must’ve been near 5p. Bella shouted out, “guess who won?” I assumed she was referring to Jacob’s soccer game, but she meant the Viking game. I saw the score – 24-10 Vikings’. Wahoo! Mindy apparently followed via her Droid while watching Jacob's soccer game. As soon as I finished the lawn I watered all the backyard flowers and topped off the hot tub. By then, it was 530pm. My body ached head to toe, and I was a muddy mess from handling the sod. A hot shower was just what the doctor ordered. Ahh! It felt incredible. Back downstairs, I took Frankie out for a backyard romp. She took care of business. Now about 6pm, I tuned into NFL football with the volume down low and grabbed my most recent book and then snuggled up in the family room chair. That felt great, too. I read, napped, and watched NFL for the next 90 minutes. Mindy and the kids got home from Sunday dinner at 730p. They asked how much I got done on the tree house. None. As hard as I worked, I could’ve felt sorry for myself for their asking, but I didn’t. They just want it done, just like me. Mindy had the kids ready themselves for bed with showers and jammies. She declared 830p bedtime. Bella and I shared a bowl of popcorn just prior. She and Frankie love it almost as much as me. Aside from some cheese and lunch meat, that served as my dinner. Mindy declared herself ready for bed at 9pm. I, on the other hand, was determined to stay up a while longer watching SNF – Jets vs. Dolphins. I watched until 10p then headed for bed.

Early Golf, Tree House, Buckeyes, & House Warming

Photo: Thorn covered tree at Split Rock.

I woke briefly around 515a happy to realize that it wasn’t a work day. Hooray! I did, however, want to be up by 6am in order to complete my routine and still make our 9am tee-time at Split Rock. I allowed myself to fall back asleep but got up for good at 555a. I felt terrific after almost 8 hours of sleep and no beer the night before. I completed my exercise routine then took Frankie out back for her morning romp. It was chilly, but also gorgeous – clear skies and a bright ¾ moon. Back inside I enjoyed coffee and internet ahead of a stretch and run. I chose to leave Frankie roaming the house when heading out for my run. It was way too early to take her to Mindy. It was only 7am. I wore shorts and a thin, long-sleeved wicking shirt. I definitely could’ve used a thicker running shirt or perhaps even a jacket. I didn’t warm up until a mile or two into my run. I ran just three miles. I was back home by 730a and promptly headed off to the shower. Mindy woke despite my efforts to keep quiet. Frankie was crying at the foot of the stairs. Mindy asked me to go ahead and bring her up. OK. I wasn’t long in the shower. I dressed in shorts and two (a long and a short sleeved) wicking shirts. I figured I could peel one or the other off if I got too warm later. Mindy got up and followed me downstairs. She fetched her own coffee while I made a breakfast sandwich and prepared for golf. I planned to take/use my new clubs, but as it was, they were still in the box. I fetched my golf bag from the Trooper and replaced my irons with the new set. Still not sure what I’ll do with the old ones. I was ready to go by 815a. I called Kenny to see if he was ready. Yep, ready and waiting. Mindy advised that she and the kids might be grocery shopping when I got home later. Kenny & I hit the road at 820a after making a quick stop at Circle K for gas. Making excellent time, we arrived at Split Rock around 845a. Bob B. was already there, as expected. The course didn’t appear to be too busy at all. Excellent! As we headed to the 1st tee box, I made a quick stop at the practice green to gauge the putting speed. I probably took 6-8 practice putts. Meanwhile, it was absolutely beautiful – clear blue skies and I’m guessing around 56 degrees. As is often the case, my drive was right down the center of the fairway and just 150yds off the green. I hit my new 7-iron for the first time, pulling it just left of the green and right beside the cart path. I took a two club length move further away to avoid hitting off the rocky golf path. I double-bogeyed the hole. Number two is a 165 yd par 3 down a hill and over a pond. I hit a 6-iron landing over the pond but just short of the green. I ended up with a bogey. I expect it to take a while to get a feel for my new irons, determining their optimal distance and what not. They’re lighter than my older clubs and seem to have a bigger sweet spot. I put my second shot on the green 6 or 7 times, which for me is a good golf day. The day’s Achilles heel was my putting. I three putted more often than not. I wasn’t driving that well either, but by no means was it hurting me as much as the poor putting. As is often the case at Split Rock, there was little to no waiting. We finished our round in about 3.75 hours, or just ahead of 1pm. Kenny golfed rather well carding an 86. He finally straightened out what was ailing his driver. Bob B., on the other hand, had a horrible go of it. Yet despite his poor play, he kept his cool – always does. I carded a 97 after too many three putts. But I was happy, number one, just to be out golfing with friends on such a lovely day. And number two, to get a feel for my new irons. We headed towards home going west on Scioto-Darby Rd. I’ve always wanted to go that way to see where it dumps out. I knew Split Rock was fairly close to my mom’s old place on Ridgewway Rd but not sure how exactly to get there. After a lovely winding drive we ended up dumping out on Rt 62 by the Darby Tavern. From there, we hopped on I-71N and then I-270W towards home. I dropped Kenny at home around 130pm. After a few chunks of cheese and some ice water, I changed clothes and headed out to the tree house to finish the shingling. I took Frankie out with me and tethered her to the red lead. I cut another 21 hip caps then headed up to the roof to get the job done. Mindy & the kids returned home after an hour or so. Can’t recall where she said they had been, although I know not the grocery. She begged off for there while the kids stayed home with me. Jacob shared that he bought a paintball gun. I, in turn, felt it necessary to share that he couldn’t shoot it until we had a talk about the many do’s and don’ts. Apparently Mindy had given him a similar message. For the time being, I had him help me finish the shingling. I’m guessing it was near 3pm when we finished the roof. Without missing a beat, and still full of energy, I decided to get out my chain saw and cut the dead wood from two of the walnut trees along pond, something I’ve been planning for this autumn since early summer. To accomplish this, I needed my light extension ladder, too. I haven’t used my chain saw since the hurricane in September of ’08. It felt liberating to remove all that dead wood that had been on my list for so long. Probably not the brightest move, I didn't wear goggles and subsequently got saw dust in my eyes. I went inside and doused my eyes with drops. That did the trick, at least temporarily. Mindy returned home form the grocery at some point while I was busy sawing or carrying away all the debris. Meanwhile, I had the OSU game piped out into the back yard through the exterior speakers. The Buckeyes built a huge lead in no time flat, but I only caught bits and pieces of the action due in part to the noise from the chain saw. We planned to make Ben & Ryan’s house warming party, which as I understood, started at 630pm. I went in for a much needed shower around 530p. We planned to follow Kenny and Chrissy to their new house, somewhere near New Rome. While showering/dressing, I caught more of the OSU game. Meanwhile, the Buckeyes offense was pouring it on. I was surprised, however, to see that we’d given up 20 points to a decidedly weaker opponent. We walked down to the neighbors around 6pm to see if everyone was ready. We were still waiting on Mike, Julie’s husband, to arrive. He showed around 630p. We walked back home to load a cooler and get the Honda. We pulled down to Kenny & Chrissy’s but Mindy thought they had already left. Hmmm? Mindy had the invite in hand and used her Droid to find the street via mapquest. We found Ben & Ryan's new house with relative ease, but when we arrived there was no K & C. I called Kenny’s cell while we greeted everyone. Turns out, they were still at home. It didn’t take long for them to get there. We were perhaps half way through the home tour when they pulled up. Nice, well built older home. Lots of interesting features and little extras. Especially nice media room/bar in the basement, complete with a built in keg and tap. The appetizer spread was right up my alley. Lots of cheese, salsa, veggies, hummus (4 types) and pita. We sat by the food for the duration. They had a house full – guessing around 30 guests. Very few kids. Jacob, Bella and one other. We decided to call it a night around 930pm. At the same time, Kenny & Chrissy were spatting, and as we understood it, over kid issues from earlier. Chrissy ended up heading for home without Kenny. He said he was gonna stay and party. Mindy, as she often does, interceded and went back inside to talk with Kenny convincing him that he’d be much better off coming home with us and not making a mountain out of a mole hill. I am paraphrasing, of course. Surprisingly, he listened. We made room in the Honda and headed for home. Kenny headed off towards his house while we headed inside ours. We planned to head down to their place in short order, or after tending to some business. All of us, Mindy, me, the kids and Frankie walked down around 10p. We sat on the deck with Mike and Julie while Kenny & Chrissy “talked” inside. However, finding myself with a beer but n opener, I headed in to get one. It was really chilly. After about 20 minutes on the deck, we decided to head back to our house inviting Mike & Julie to come along. Julie tried her damnedest to kill or lizard. She knocked his terrarium over spilling him and its contents onto the floor. Mindy, or one of the kids captured the panicked lizard and quickly tossed his home back together, albeit haphazardly. We hung out for an hour or so joking, laughing, & snacking. Mike & Julie headed back down to Kenny & Chrissy’s, where they planned to stay the night. We offered our spare room should they have needed it. We headed to bed directly after they departed. We were all getting very sleepy.

Trading away Friday at Barley's for Bella and Minelli's

I felt pretty good directly out of bed. I was up on time and quickly downstairs engaged in calisthenics. After push-ups, I headed out with Frankie. It was incredibly warm and clear, July-like, and already 73 degrees. I did my meditation and stretching between 605a-and 625a, and then delivered the pug and coffee shortly thereafter. Because it was so warm, I opted to run shirtless, which will almost certainly be the last time this year. The forecast for the next ten days looks more seasonable with highs only approaching 70 and low’s near 40. I ran the usual 4.1 mile track and was back at the house for breakfast by 715a. During breakfast, I asked Mindy if she still planned to do the teacher outing after school. She did, but clarified that it wouldn’t be until 730p. In other words, she’d be coming home first after school. Jacob, meanwhile, would be going to a Blue Jackets preseason game with his daddy. Sounded like it would be Bella and I hanging at home. I was off to the shower soon after Mindy left for school. The kids and I met downstairs around 755a and headed out for the bus stop a few minutes later. I was hoping that Kenny would be at the bus stop with the girls but it was Chrissy. I wanted to measure his interest in Saturday golf. I mentioned it to Chrissy, but shared that I would call Kenny later. She was OK with it. She said that Mindy invited her to go out with her teacher pals, but that she’d most likely pass and instead get her nails done. Hey, me too! I tinkered with the idea of driving the BM’er but the forecast called for a chance of rain late in the afternoon or early evening . I drove the Trooper instead. I had a few things on my agenda aside from work. Included amongst them, resolving my $550 water bill and broken water meter, and then picking up our snow skis from ASBCO. I arrived at work on time. The morning went rather quick and rather well. My boss asked about doing our birthday lunch, but both of us found reasons not to. He wasn’t feeling well and neither was I. Suddenly, I felt tired and a slight bit dizzy. I hoped I wasn’t getting the cold many others have been stricken with recently. Happily, I felt better after eating the apple I packed for my mid-day snack. I called the water company mid-morning in an attempt to resolve/discuss our huge water bill. The young lady that took my call was quite pleasant, and after listening to my situation and then reviewing my historic usage she agreed that something had to be amiss. However, she was quick to clarify that homeowners are responsible for the maintenance of auxiliary water meters. This I had already assumed. She wasn’t sure about a credit, although agreed that one was likely due. She said it would have to be approved by a manager, and then put me on hold. She returned a couple minutes later to share that a credit would most likely be applied, but only after I have an approved contractor repair/replace the bad meter. They would then re-inspect the auxiliary meter and then, depending on what was found to be the culprit, they would decide the amount. Fair enough. She asked that I call back once it is fixed. I called Nationwide Irrigation next, the folks that installed my auxiliary water meter. I had to leave a VM, and judging from past experience I figured I would have to call back more than once to get a response. But good fortune shined down on me. Meghan called me back minutes later and seemed very empathetic to my cause. She confirmed the facts then said she’d advise Chris, her husband and owner of the company, call me back. She did say that they’ve never had one of those meters fail. Chris called me back minutes later. He was most pleasant, and also wanted to confirm the facts. Shared that he hasn’t had one of those Badger meters fail before, but was more than willing to send a guy out as early as next week. Said it would cost me $200 installed. He also shared a couple things I could do prior, which included taking the meter apart and looking for some obstructions. After listening to his instructions on taking it apart I stopped him and advised that while it sounded good, I wouldn’t be attempting it. I shared that I envisioned myself with the meter apart and uttering, “what the hell was I thinking!” We both laughed about it. He then shared that I could simply try tapping on it with a small hammer while running the water. That I would/could try. Before we terminated the call I asked about the possibility of replacing my original primary meter, the one that sounds like a freight train when the irrigation system runs. Said he could do it. I know that would make Mindy happy. After our call, I felt ten times better about the dilemma, and certainly less hopeless. My afternoon got kind of busy. I decided to skip making a trip to ABSCO to pick-up our skis. I figured I would do it next week sometime. I received an email from Bob B. asking about Saturday golf. Said he booked a 9a tee-time at Split Rock. So far it was just him. Before responding back, I called Kenny. He was a go. I let Bob B know that we were in. Should be fun. The forecast was calling for sunshine and 70 on Saturday. Perfect! I ate my lunch at my desk like I usually do. Mindy called mid-afternoon to share that she was already on her way home. We reviewed evening plans as well as my Saturday golf plans. Figured to be leaving the office at my usual time – 530p. To that end, I took care of a bunch of administrative tasks during the late afternoon, and then readied to depart for home at 520p. By the time I arrived home, Jacob was already gone for the hockey game. Bella, meanwhile, wasn’t in too pleasant a mood. She was sulking over Makayla backing out of coming down to play after Kenny & Chrissy insisted she go with them to Lillian’s soccer practice. Bella then repeatedly asked what she and I would be doing after her momma left. I suggested we get a pizza. She was afraid that I would play on the internet the entire time. I promised that I would not. Mindy prepared to leave around 7p. Bella whined and pouted as Mindy left for her teacher outing. I felt bad for her, but also a little put out. Mindy wasn’t gone five minutes when her mood improved. We played cards – trash, I believe. It was fun. We played three hands. Bella won twice, me once. We ordered two pizzas a little after 8pm from Minelli’s. We left to fetch ‘em 15 minutes later. Once again, I wasn’t feeling 100%. I felt tired and a bit squeamish. I didn’t eat that much pizza despite buying a large and extra-large. In fact, Bella might’ve eaten more than me. After pizza, we played/laid on the family room floor while watching a college football game. Jacob must’ve gotten home around 10p. Said the Blue Jackets were losing when they left. Mindy still wasn’t home. I wasn’t really sure when she would be. I fell asleep on the floor while watching TV. I remember hearing Mindy come in and getting the kids ready for bed, but have no idea what time it was. I remained sleeping on the floor. It felt terrific. I woke again around 2am and headed up to bed.

Autumnuponus

I was up on time despite sleeping rather poorly, at least compared to the incredible sleep I’ve grown accustom to over the last month or so. The storms from the night before were long gone and had once gain given way to clear skies. I noticed what appeared to be a full moon in the western sky. After exercise, I headed out with Frankie. It was warm, somewhere in the 60’s. The day’s was once again expected to surpass 90, and quite possibly break the record high of 91. I enjoyed my coffee during and after our time outdoors. I had to carry Frankie back to our yard from Kenny’s. Sniffing for Woody I suspect. Meditation and stretching went extremely well. I felt great just ahead of my run. It was just after 630am when I headed out the front door. It was absolutely gorgeous this first full day of autumn under a full moon and warm temps. I ran the full 4.1 mile track in shorts and a short-sleeved wicking shirt. I was back home earlier than usual thanks to a start about five minutes ahead of usual. Mindy was still frying our eggs. I poured Bella what remained of the OJ. I wanted some too but let her have all that was left. We enjoyed our breakfast together, the kids both having a slice of Mindy’s fresh apple pie. It looked better than good. Mindy left for school at 730am. She let me know that I would most likely come home to an empty house since she’d be driving Jacob to soccer practice. She asked about the possibility of Thursday golf. I planned to take my gear but wasn’t holding my breath. I haven’t been able to get out after work in a long, long while. Off to the shower. The kids and I reconvened in the kitchen shortly before 755am, and headed out to the bus stop minutes later. Frankie and Woody played while we awaited the bus. The girls, Bella, Kayla, and Lillian fed the ducks old hot dog buns from the bridge while waiting. The bus arrived on-time. Chirssy and I chatted briefly before parting ways. Frankie took a dump in David and Becky’s front yard to which I quipped a present for the Gipper on this their last day of ownership. The kitchen was messy. I took a few minutes to tidy up before heading out. Couldn’t bear to leave it in disarray. I drove the Trooper despite a very favorable forecast – sunny and in the 90’s. I arrived to work on time. The morning went smoothly. I spent the first couple hours in a meeting with my boss. While away, I missed a call from Golf Galaxy. I was exited to check my VM. Yep, my new clubs were in! I also received an email from the Bob’s asking about evening golf. They were planning to play Split Rock. I reluctantly shared that the prospects of evening golf weren’t good, but that Saturday was a possibility. I made no mention of my new clubs. When 1pm arrived I left for a lunch break and headed to Golf Galaxy. It didn’t take long for them to fetch my order. I opened the box to scope out the clubs before signing off. Look good! I signed and left. I decided to stop in Macy’s furniture essentially next door just to browse. Haven’t been there in almost a year, best guess. I looked at sofas and recliners and saw some I liked. Who knows, perhaps we’ll finally replace our ratty old stuff someday soon. I headed back to the office. It had to be 90 degrees – the air extra thick and warm. Back at work, I ate my packed lunch by 215pm. I planned a team meeting for 230p and hoped to keep it brief, maybe 30 minutes. The meeting was good, but we went well beyond the 30 minutes I had hoped. We met for nearly an hour. I really like my team. After my team meeting I chatted with my boss for a few minutes before heading back to my office to tie up loose ends. It was already near 4pm. Fast day. Mindy phoned on her drive home from her after school dental appointment. My dad got the kids off the bus. She asked about golf and dinner. No golf and no formal dinner necessary for me. She reminded me that she and Bella would almost certainly be gone when I arrived home. I left the office near 530p. It was a warm balmy evening. For the first time in a while, I felt really tired during my drive home. A nap sounded really good. I toted my new clubs inside along with the rest of my work gear. I took care of some minor chores and then released Frankie from her pen before settling into the living room recliner to read and ultimately nap. I didn’t get through 3 or 4 pages when sleep naturally came over me. It felt so good! I didn’t sleep long, however. Just a brief cat nap. After some quiet contemplation, I leaped to my feet eager to take care of some watering chores. The day’s 90+ degree heat left most of our flowers crying for water. I watered everything well. I even dead headed the geraniums hanging over the hot tub pergola. Suddenly with a new burst of energy, I decided to investigate the $550 water bill mystery. It didn’t take long to discover a problem. I took a mental note of the current readings on both the primary and auxiliary remote water meters then headed inside to compare those readings to those documented on our recent bill – a reading from September 3rd. As expected, the primary meter had advanced a bit further ahead, but curiously, the auxiliary meter, the one that measures water used by the irrigation system, hadn’t advanced at all. Hmmm? That is impossible. I double checked both the meter and the bill. Yep, same reading. I knew enough to head to the basement to check the actual meters as opposed to the remote readings. Both meters reflected the identical readings I gathered from the remotes. Great! That meant that my auxiliary meter was faulty, and not recording the water that would otherwise be deducted from sewage charges, which comprises about 70% of the City water bill. No wonder my bill was so high! What’s worse, I am pretty sure that I am responsible for the meter, not the city. I then pulled my last six water bills (1.5 years worth) to try and decipher what my bill should’ve been had the meter worked properly. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to determine that there was a problem. For the same period last year, we used 104 CCF of water in total. Of that, only 33 CCF for the home (billed with sewage). The other 71 CCF on the auxiliary meter (irrigation system). The same period this year we used 103 CCF and all but 32 was billed with sewage charges applied. I was able to guesstimate that the aux. meter must’ve stopped working around the beginning of July. In addition, I could see that from my last six bills that my average household usage was between 30-34 CCF per quarter. I would need to be armed with that data when calling the water company for some love tomorrow. I thought about the water bill dilemma for the remainder of the evening. I had to laugh at the predicament. I realized there was absolutely no incentive for the water department to have mercy on me. I had no tangible proof beyond numeric history. Why couldn’t it have been the main meter failing? Of course not! Mindy and Bella decided to shop and do dinner after dropping Jacob at soccer practice. They didn’t get home until after 8p. In fact, Jacob was home before them. I ended up reheating the buffalo chicken breast that Mindy made for dinner the night before. It was really good. Jacob wanted some too. After Jacob ate the chicken he asked me to make him a plate of nachos. OK, you’re a plate of nachos! Bam! I shared what I learned about the water bill mishap with Mindy. On top of all that drama, our cable TV service, including Roadrunner, had been out since I arrived home. Bella was beside herself not being able to watch TV. And Mindy, oh boy, she tried rebooting her laptop numerous times until – Duh - I shared that it wasn’t working because the cable was out. And the thing is, she KNEW the cable was out. Said neighbor Lisa had it posted on her facebook – saw that via her Droid-2. I was just a little lost not being able to surf from my PC, but also because we couldn’t watch the Thursday night college football game. I used the time to stretch and lay flat on my back on the family room floor. Admittedly, a lot of my thoughts turned towards our water bill dilemma and how I might best navigate/manage through it. The kids were in bed around 850pm. I tucked both in. Unable to play solitaire or play on facebook, Mindy headed for bed shortly after 9pm. I remained flat on my back on the floor thinking. It felt really good. I laid there until the sleepies arrived. That was near 10pm. The cable, meanwhile, remained out despite Time Warner estimating a 9p restoral. I headed to bed after placing Frankie in her pen.

Hot, Sweaty, Stormy - Summer goes out with a roar - literally!

Even though I wasn’t working, I still rolled out of bed fairly early. It was just ahead of 6am. It was imperative that I treat the morning as if it were a work day so I could have my exercise and run out of the way prior to Mindy departing for school. To that end, I busted out my calisthenics then took Frankie out. I remembered it was trash day, too, so before doing anything else I placed our can at the curb. I enjoyed coffee then delivered a cup to Mindy. She was already out of the shower and busy getting dressed. I headed off on my run right before 7am. I hadn’t checked the temperature but knew it was warm. I still wore a long–sleeved wicking shirt which proved a tad warm. I later learned that it was 66 degrees. No wonder I was warm! More than once I thought about tearing off my shirt but ended up keeping it on. I ran the full 4.1 mile track. Mindy’s Honda was already gone when I got back to the house. It was quiet. Frankie was in her pen, although the door still open. The kids apparently weren’t yet awake. There was a note on the microwave from Mindy advising that my breakfast was inside and that she had an early meeting. I sat down at the PC with another cup of coffee enjoying the solace. Jacob was up minutes later. Bella wasn’t far behind. She was curious of her mother’s whereabouts. School, I explained. It was already 805a. We were expecting the neighbors (Jake, Makayla, and Lillian) around 815a. It was my turn to manage the late start. Turns out, they didn’t show up until almost 825a. Once they were there and settled, I headed out to organize myself for a busy day in the yard and tree house. I pulled the John Deere and trailer from the shed, and then loaded the three bundles of shingles I still had from 6 years ago when I built the shed. I planned to use them on the tree house. I dropped the trailer back by the tree house then headed back inside. It was already time for Jake to catch the 7th grade bus – 850a. He headed out. The others weren’t scheduled to be out to the bus stop until 1005a. I decided to mow the lawn while waiting. I did the tractor piece first, backwards from my usual process. Kenny stopped over to give me a key to his shed so I could have access to the air compressor and an AC outlet. He then bolted for his job site. Still only 920a, I got out the push mower and was able to cut all but a small area of the front lawn before it was time to get the others on the bus. Just before heading in to get them, neighbor David stopped over. Said the walk through was scheduled for 1130a today. I walked back and showed him the tree house, which again, straddles his property line. He was very impressed. Asked if it was really for Kenny & I .  Time to get the kids. I hollered in the front door that it was time to go. The kids were slow to get moving but eventually filed out. Bella was the least put together. She hadn’t yet fixed her hair or put on her shoes. Once at the bus stop she pouted about Mindy not packing her lunch. Said she’d starve. When asked if she could simply buy, she cried that she hates their pizza. Odd, Bella hating the pizza? It must be awful. She ran back inside to grab a Lunchable and juice box. She felt better once she had some food for lunch. As soon as the kids were on the bus, I headed back to finish the lawn. It didn’t take too long. I finished mowing in five minutes, but I still had to whack, edge and blow. I finished that by 1040a. I took a very minimal break before starting to shingle the tree house. Last minute I decided to take Frankie out with me. I drove her spiraled stake into the ground within eyeshot of my work place. I placed a bowl of water nearby expecting it to reach 90 degrees. I installed shingles for the next 3 hours. Lots of cutting given the small area and the hip-style roof. And wouldn't you know, I smacked my thumb with the hammer right off. I decided not to use Kenny’s nail gun. As luck would have it, I was about 3 or 4 shingles short with what I’d have to make a run to Lowe’s for more, but I already assumed that. And actually, what I had went further than I expected. IN addition, I still would need cap shingles for the hips. I took Frankie inside and secured both sheds before driving off to Lowe’s. I chose to visit the Georgesville Rd store. For whatever the reason, the Hilliard Lowe’s routinely is out of a lot of stuff. At Lowe’s I grabbed a bundle of Driftwood dimensional shingles, and then a bundle of the same color only in the 3-tab variety to make the caps shingles. They sell cap shingles pre-cut, but they’re ridiculously expensive. I would’ve needed two boxes at $44 ea. The bundle of 3-tab shingles was only $20. I picked up a small box of longer roofing nails too then headed back home. I was back on the job by 3p. It was quite toasty. I decided to leave Frankie in the house. I put down the last few shingles then turned my attention to the cap. Mindy arrived home just ahead of the kids’ school bus – about 355p. I stayed busy working on the roof. It had to be around 445pm when a huge and sustained wind blew up. Surprised and caught completely off guard, I glanced skyward only to discover dark gray clouds moving our way and fast. The wind was fierce, and what I later learned was 60 mph. Accompanying the fierce wind was this unexplainably loud rumble – not thunder. It dawned on me that it might very well be a tornado. And here I was, not only up in a tree 16’ above the ground, but also amongst lots of old trees that were swaying, bending, and creaking in the storm. I made my way off the roof and out of the tree house in a hurry. I was in full panic. In an instant, I had to decide whether to tough it out amongst the trees or make a dash for the house. I decided to run for the house. Just as I was approaching the deck I heard a faint scream, faint only because of the winds loud roar. It was Bella making her way towards the house from Emily & Evans. She was hysterical. My first instinct was to keep moving for the house, but I stopped and waited for Bella at the foot of the deck. We both thought we were in a tornado. Presumably safe and Inside, I hollered for Mindy. I was aggravated that she didn’t think to warm me of the approaching weather, knowing full well that I was out in the tree house. Jacob looked dumbfounded as Bella and I were causing all sorts of commotion. He shared that Mindy was already in the basement. Oh really? Leaving us to fend for ourselves. I later learned that Mindy was none the wiser and down the basement rummaging through the deep freezer for dinner meat. I still gave her an earful for not being attuned to the horrendous weather. She wasn't too pleased, and Bella still crying hysterically didn’t help matters. I quickly tuned the TV to the radar which was just announcing a thunder storm warning and then a tornado warning. The tornado warning sirens sounded soon after. We tuned the TV to WCMH-4 for a better local spin. Sure enough, they were sensationalizing the storm. Appears we were on the southwest tip of the ‘pink’ area (the worst of the storm). They announced that that is where tornados typically form. They never did confirm any tornados – just warnings. But I’ll tell you this much, I have never in my life heard wind like that – a loud unmistakable roar, and it wasn’t the sound wind makes when it gushes through trees either. This was something far different. It might’ve rained for 10 minutes but even then only lightly. Word had it that areas to our immediate north were getting pounded with heavy rains, wind, and hail. Itchy, and still in my tree house grubbies, I was anxious to get back out on roof to finish. Once the rain subsided I headed back out. Kenny came over at the same time. He offered to assist, but the rain started up again. I decided to call it a day. I had had enough. Kenny helped me get everything put away in the shed, including my tractor. I headed inside for the night. Inside, Mindy was starting dinner. I headed off to the shower. It felt good to get that itchy roofing material off my skin. I ached head to toe, most likely from crawling around on the roof and lugging the shingles up the ladder. After my shower I took two Advil to help ward off any potential carry over into tomorrow. Dinner wasn’t ready until 630p. I said wasn’t hungry earlier, still reeling from the storm, but by the time it was soup, I was ready to eat. Mindy prepared skinless buffalo chicken breast topped with cheddar cheese. As sides, she made broccoli rice and the red skin potatoes and carrot concoction we bought at Whole Foods Saturday. Dinner was delicious! She out did herself. I was careful not to over eat. I am already down to 172lbs, and it’s no coincidence that my stomach symptoms almost nonexistent. I did kitchen clean-up duty while Mindy & Bella started making an apple pie from scratch. After finishing the clean-up, I took Frankie out back for an evening walk. Chrissy was out with Woody at the same time. She asked if Frankie could come in and play. I agreed and promised to send Mindy over to get her later. All the kids, save for Bella, headed out to the tree house until dark. But once Mindy & Bella had the pie in the oven, Bella joined the others. Mindy headed down to get Frankie around 830pm. She was back quick. The kids readied for bed over the next half hour, and then were tucked in soon after. During that same time, I watched the Science Channel, though the episodes were all reruns, and reruns I’ve seen two or three times previously. Mindy headed for bed just after 9pm. I planned to stay up at least until 945pm. Feeling too lazy to read, and seeing that the Reds were losing 10-1, I opted to watch trash TV – SouthPark. I made a bowl of cereal and watched about 10 minutes. It was stupid. I gave up, put Frankie in her pen, and headed up for bed.

Siding & Sheeting

Up close to 535am and downstairs preparing to do sit-ups a few minutes later. Just ahead of that, I glanced out the back door towards the sky. Another clear sky morning. After push-ups, I prepped coffee then headed out with Frankie. I didn’t bother with the leash, rarely do early mornings. She was quick and well-behaved. No running off. Like most mornings, I headed back inside to meditate and stretch. Frankie wanted some attention at the same time. I did my best to placate her while also getting the peace I needed. Just ahead of 630am I delivered the pug and coffee upstairs to Mindy. By 635am I was heading out the door for my run. It was 54 degrees. I was quite comfortable in shorts and a long-sleeved wicking shirt. Feeling absolutely superb, I ran the 4.1 mile track without incident. Somewhat rare these days, Mindy took the time to make scrambled eggs, which I appreciated. I enjoyed my fluffy eggs with a variety of fruit, too. Just before leaving, Mindy gave Jacob the option of attending gymnastics with her and Bella after school, or staying home with Kenny and the kids. Not sure what he selected. I was soon of to the shower Because it was such a lovely morning, and expected to remain that way all day, I planned to drive the BM’er. After the kids were safely on the bus I headed back home to make last minute preparations. It was a lovely drive into work. Gas in the BM’er was running low, but I had more than enough for the day’s commute. At the time I rationalized a fill-up later on the way home. The work day was very manageable. Like most days, I didn’t bother taking a formal lunch break, choosing instead to plow straight through. Sometime during the day I asked if I could make Wednesday my on-call comp day. I would have actually preferred Thursday, but Mindy reminded me of the 2 hour late start slated for Wednesday. We didn’t want to ask the neighbors to keep our kids again. My boss agreed to Wednesday. At the bus stop earlier in the day, I had told Kenny that I might try to get away early to help him side the tree house, but since I now had the following day scheduled off, I didn’t even bother asking. In hindsight, I probably should’ve called Kenny to let him know my plans. As it was, however, the arrangements were tentative. Everything quiet and under control, I left work at 520pm with plans to hurry home and work on tree house siding/sheeting. I had no idea what if anything Kenny might’ve gotten accomplished throughout the day. Mindy and Bella scooted off to dance while I changed quickly into my tree house grubbies. Kenny was already out there preparing to cut some more siding. He already had about half the siding completed. Shared that the new homeowners were there at Dave & Becky’s place today. He stopped working on the tree house while they were there. He didn’t want to risk being confronted should they have questions about the tree house’s locale, which straddles their property line along with my own. No prob! We finished installing the cedar siding in about 90 minutes. It looks awesome! It was just after 7pm. Seeing no reason to stop, we moved immediately to sheeting the roof even as darkness was quickly setting in. Mindy & Bella got back from dance in there somewhere. She came out to check on our progress. She quipped how sexy Kenny looked in his tool belt. When she asked about dinner, I wanted nothing, but did request that she bring me a Resistance IPA. Why not? I was scheduled off work on Wednesday. We cut and placed the sheeting on the roof in less than 30 minutes. Ready for shingles. Kenny has to work Wednesday. I planned to finish the roof on my own. We put away our tools in the dark. Inside, I skipped a formal dinner and instead enjoyed more hummus, pita, and cheese. I took a quick shower to wash away the saw dust. Afterwards, I felt 100% better. I played on the PC and then tuned into the Reds game, but quickly tired and fell asleep. Mindy woke me for bed around 10pm. I followed closely behind. Once in bed, I couldn’t fall asleep, so I got up and headed back to the family room to watch the end of the Reds game. It ended up being one heck of a nail biter. While watching, I made myself a bowl of cereal. Betcha didn’t know I had such powers! The Red’s closer tried to give the game away in the bottom of the ninth but they somehow managed to hold on for a 4-3 win. I headed back to bed afterwards.

Ground Hog Returns

I was up at my planned rise time of 530am feeling well rested and ready to get after another work week. While brushing my teeth I heard the irrigation system sputtering (starting & stopping) once again in zone #4. Not sure why. It wasn’t long before I was downstairs grunting out 55 sit-ups and push-ups. In between those I checked the weather and the final score from the SNF game. The Colts crushed the Giants, pretty much as expected. The weather, meanwhile, was quite nice, clear, mild, and about 56 degrees. Warming into the 80’s by afternoon. Frankie and I headed outside together. She was fairly prompt with her business. Back inside I poured coffee. Forgot to mention that I failed to prep the coffee maker the night before. Had to do it right before sit-ups. Coffee was delicious. I enjoyed a cup while sitting quietly at the kitchen table in dim lighting. Very nice. Very relaxing. It was shortly after 6am. Time to do meditation and stretching. Both went extremely well. I can’t say enough about the benefits I garner from each. The meditation helps align my thinking with my ideal state of being, and then the stretching awakens and warms my physical self. I end the session feeling eager and ready for not only my morning run, but also the work day ahead. Before heading out I delivered Mindy’s coffee and the pug. Mindy was already in the shower, so I left her coffee on the dresser. I let her know it was there. Frankie, of course, went straight for the bathroom trash can.  Hitting on all cylinders, I felt absolutely terrific during my run. I ran the full 4.1 mile track. The sun was just cresting over the horizon as I finished. I noted the length of the lawn as I made my way up the driveway. It needs cut again. Looking very lush. I noticed that the ground hog was back to digging holes around our foundation behind the American boxwood. Note to self. I think I’ll try the Pine sol trick that my dad shared with me. While I was snooping behind the boxwood three deer, a momma and two fawns, dashed through our front yard and into the back. I quickly shared the experience with Mindy & Jacob. Turns out, Jacob was just heading out back with Frankie. Mindy advised Bella to look out her back bedroom window. Mindy had breakfast ready and waiting in the microwave. Jacob came in sharing that Frankie spotted the deer but was slow to react. Mindy reminded the kids to bus home with Noah, this being her late night. It wasn’t long before she was out the door and I was off to the shower. The kids and I regrouped downstairs at 750am and headed out for the bus five minutes later. Jacob took Frankie on her leash. I handed Kenny the detailed instructions for cutting/building the hip roof for the tree house. Several complex. cuts. Kenny said it should fit together like a puzzle. He used the same program for his shed and had excellent results. Just plug in the dimensions and hit enter. Kenny figured he would spend a few hours working on it during the day. I promised to hurry home after work to help. The kids loaded onto the bus at 805am. I headed home to power down my laptop, grab my work gear, and head into work. I drove the Trooper. I arrived on time. It was a very lovely morning, honestly, too lovely to be working. But … The morning went well. Our recent changes are having the positive impact we had hoped (planned) for. I decided to bull straight through my day skipping a formal lunch break. Of course, I still took the time to eat my mid-morning snack and packed lunch. I called brother Tommy while eating my lunch. Hadn’t talked with him in quite a while – maybe a month. He shared that Kelsie, his step-daughter, had her baby. I think he said she had a girl. He also shared that he recently painted Wally’s room to look like a jungle. I shared our most recent Domino’s experience, where the pizza lacked quality toppings. Tom shared that that particular franchisee has a reputation for poor quality. Sometime mid-afternoon I remembered I had one of the apples the kids picked over the weekend in my backpack. I reached for it. And boy, was it ever delicious! I didn’t talk to Mindy until just before 5pm when she called to share that she was just leaving school. She reminded me that Jimaken would be picking up the kids each Monday this quarter since Bella has gymnastics on Tuesday’s, Jim teaches on Wednesday’s, and Jacob has soccer on Thursday’s. We discussed our plans, which included me helping Kenny on the tree house. Mindy figured to spend the same time grading papers. I left for home right at 530pm and arrived 20 minutes later. I listened to sports talk on the drive home. Brett Favre is taking a beating for the Vikings’ 0-2 start. I’m not one of those piling the blame on him. At home, Mindy was busy in the kitchen packing tomorrow’s lunches. I quickly headed up to change into my tree house grubbies in order to get outside to help Kenny, who according to Mindy, had just headed back to the tree house himself. Mindy agreed to take care of my lunch dishes. Kenny had all the pieces cut for the hip roof loaded in his Deere trailer. We worked as a team to get them up and stacked on the main deck. Before putting the roof framing in place, we had to square the existing three walls then finish building the front wall and then attach bracing across each of the four walls for stability. That went systematically. We then put up the roof piece by piece. And just as Kenny had described, it fit together like a puzzle. Nice! We designed the roof with a 1’ overhang, but after getting it up I didn’t like the fact that I could hit my head on the rafter ends due to the rather short 6’ walls. We agreed to knock the overhang down to 6”, but on another day. Kenny had a window guy stopping by to give them a sales spiel. He needed to get inside. In total, we spent about an hour on the tree house. What’s left is sheeting the roof, siding, shingling, and then the hatch and rope ladder. Before heading our separate ways, Kenny said don’t be surprised if you come home tomorrow and the thing is sided and sheeted. Said I could do the shingling on my day off. Before heading inside I proceeded to water the flowers out back. Even though I watered everything well on Saturday they were almost bone dry again. I made sure to water everything thoroughly, especially since I just applied a heavy dose of Miracle Grow on Saturday. I’d like to keep the flowers going until the frost takes them naturally. I topped off the hot tub again too. It was once again down about 3”. I headed inside after all the watering. By then, hunger had come over me, but after Sunday’s gorging I didn’t really want to eat anything too heavy. I went with the roasted red pepper hummus, mini-pitas, and some organic cheddar cheese. Not exactly filling but at least it curbed the hunger. The kids got home around 8pm while I was busy editing my blog. As soon as Jimaken departed, Jacob began giving his momma a difficult time by talking back, being loud, and basically all around obnoxious. I decided to stay out of it. Mindy seemed to have it under control. His antics continued through shower and snack time, pushing her buttons at every opportunity. I finally chimed in, however briefly, advising him calmly that he needed to stop and show his momma some respect. We’re not sure where all this comes from. Both kids were in bed by 9pm. I tucked in both. However, both eventually made their way back downstairs. Can’t recall why. At any rate, Bella requested a 2nd tuck in. At the same time Jacob espoused his desire to have neither of us tend to him. I tuned into MNF but remained largely uninterested. Mindy headed to bed before 930pm. The Saints were ahead 9-7 when I headed to bed.

No Hammerin' Today

Though still a little tired and groggy, I rolled out of bed around 7am. After brushing my teeth, I headed downstairs with my running clothes already in my clutches. I started some coffee, took a Dexilant, then freed Frankie. I figured to have at least two hours of alone time, thinking Mindy would sleep in until 9am or beyond. I sipped coffee while outside with Frankie. It was a gorgeous morning – sunny & 60. Over the next hour or so I updated my blog and checked in on work. Things were relatively quiet. Sometime around 845am I headed off on my run. I wore shorts and one of my new short sleeved running shirts. Perfect day for it. I ran just three miles. Typical for a Sunday. I felt pretty good. I found myself back at home by 915am and once again sat down in front of my PC and laptop. Mindy got up soon after I was back at home. Asked me to come join her on the deck. I headed out to join her with a fresh cup of coffee and camera in hand. We talked about a number of things, including how our day would unfold. Mindy planned a run to Target and I planned to work on the tree house with Kenny. That time would be short, however. We had Jacob’s soccer game at 330pm and then Sunday at immediately after. I took a number of photos, and amongst them were a handful of macros of our butterfly bush covered in smallish brown butterflies. Before getting lost in the day’s activity, Mindy and I took a brief nap. Afterwards she headed for the shower and I headed for the yard. Mindy left for Target around noon. I hadn’t yet seen Kenny, but I knew they were doing church, at least early on. While waiting, I unloaded the dishwasher and tidied up the kitchen. I also cleaned both frequently used small coolers with bleach spray cleaner. I began to feel sleepy again as 1pm neared. I plopped down on the sofa where I also tuned into NFL coverage. I already knew the Vikings’ game wasn’t going to be televised. I watched the Bengals and Ravens. Kenny stopped over at 130pm. We chatted briefly about our plans. Turned out, Kenny needed to be at soccer even earlier than us, not to mention feeling like he needed a nap. We didn’t realistically have enough time to accomplish anything meaningful on the tree house during the next hour. We agreed to bag it for the day. Kenny headed home hoping to steal a nap. I plopped back down on the sofa but never did fall asleep. Mindy got home around 2pm. Asked if we were working on the tree house. Nope, no time. Explained the details. We needed to leave for soccer in an hour. I headed up for a shower at 230pm. We left for Jacob’s soccer game at 300pm. After last Sunday’s debacle, I asked Mindy to call and confirm Sunday dinner plans. Yep, we’re on. Great. We arrived at the soccer field by 320pm. Mindy, Frankie, and I walked to the fan sideline. Once again, it felt at least 10 degrees cooler on the soccer field, not to mention the sun ducking behind thickening cloud cover. It was sunny and in the 80’s at home, but we felt the need for jackets at the soccer fields. I was caught without one. Mindy, however, had her jean jacket in the Honda. She went after it. I wasn’t that chilly. I’d live. Jacob scored two goals, and his team was racking them up left and right. They scored so many that I lost track. According to Jacob, They won 9-3. The game ended around 430pm. We transfered the kids weekend gear from Jimaken’s car to our own before leaving. Their gear included a big bag of apples that they picked with their daddy on Saturday somewhere in New Albany. Our plan was to head directly to Sunday dinner. Traffic was slow. I chose to cross through Old Hilliard in order to pick-up I-270. We didn’t arrive at Gloria’s until 500pm. Everyone else was already there and socializing, but it’s not like we were holding up dinner. At the time, I was still unaware of the Vikings final score, so after a quick family greeting I retreated to the lower level TV to catch up on NFL scores. Sure, I know I could’ve accessed the score via my Droid, but didn’t want to. I joined the Jets/Patriots game already in progress. No score updates. Dang it! I eventually pulled up NFL results on my Droid. Vikings lost 14-10. Oh-no, we’re 0-2. Looks like we squandered several meaningful opportunities, including a fourth and goal from the 1 yard line. Stopped Adrian Peterson with 2 minutes to go. I was bummed, not distraught. We were called for dinner minutes later. I’m guessing near 530pm. The evening’s menu included lasagna, fried chicken, salad, & garlic bread. I was really hungry and it showed in my consumption. I enjoyed two helpings of lasagna and two chicken breasts. Later, for dessert, I woofed down three brownies, although they weren’t very big. My stomach was as full as it’s been in months. Jacob asked me to head out back and play soccer. I did. We ended up visiting until 745pm. Where had the afternoon and evening gone? We arrived home near 8pm. I forgot to mention that neighbor Chrissy phoned a bit earlier inviting us down with Frankie for a play date with Woodie when we got home. Mindy took Frankie and the kids down as soon as we got home. I checked in with work and then read the box score of the Vikings’ game. Statistically, we rolled them. Good grief! I walked down to the neighbors joining up with the family. They were watching the day’s NFL highlights. We didn’t stay long. Before heading home, Kenny & I discussed the tree house roof plans. He asked that I print off the detailed hip roof instructions/dimensions so he can get started on it Monday while I am at work. I agreed to deliver the plans at the bus stop. At home, I brushed my teeth and changed into my comfy sleeping clothes then tuned the TV to the SNF game between Indy and the NY Giants – the game being hyped as the Manning bowl. I didn’t play that close attention, however. Before the kids went to bed, I showed them a collection of photos from the last week or so. Amongst them were some really nice macros of the flora in our yard. I tucked the kids into bed around 9pm, and then returned to the sofa for some football. I know it’s shocking but I fell asleep in short order. That never happens!  Mindy woke me just after 930pm and said she was heading to bed. Me too! I needed a solid 8.

Olivia's Early Visit, Buckeye Romp, Whole Foods, & Good Food with Great Neighbors

The irrigation system kicking on woke me around 430am. I felt poorly despite taking those 3 Advil before bed. I had a headache. I managed to fall back asleep but it wasn’t good, sound sleep. I upped around 545am to head downstairs in preparation for Olivia’s arrival. Ashley phoned as I made my way downstairs. I called her back to let her know that I was up and ready. I took two more Advil. I laid on the sofa awaiting their arrival. They arrived around 610am. Ashley didn’t stay long – off to work. Olivia and I took Frankie out for her morning walk. She was quick to take care of business. Back inside, I talked Olivia in to snuggling with me on the sofa. It was still dark outside. She was somewhat chatty, but willingly laid down along side me. I don’t think she ever went to sleep though. Me, I managed to sneak in another hour or so. I could hear Olivia roaming and playing with Frankie. I rolled off the sofa to make sure she was OK. She was up and enjoying some fishy crackers. She asked me for some chocolate milk. Sure. It was now 715am. I felt ten times better, and the headache was gone. Olivia shared that she enjoyed some candy corn for breakfast. Yikes – but also funny. Olivia ended up watching Mulan, a Disney DVD, while I checked in on work and sipped coffee. I headed up to fetch my PJ shorts at some point. I tried being quiet but still managed to wake Mindy. Oops! Downstairs, Olivia asked several times if we could wake Mimi. I advised against, knowing that Mindy badly wanted to sleep in. Olivia and I headed out to the tree house around 8am and played outside for half an hour. Sometime around 915am I decided to take Olivia and the pug up to see Mindy. Mindy wasn’t pleased, and about as grumpy as I’ve ever seen her. She was aggravated that I would wake her with a wild pug and noisy g-kid. I took both back downstairs and headed back outside in the sunshine. Mindy got up on her own shortly thereafter. I think she felt a little guilty for snapping at us. I explained that Olivia asked to see her and would be leaving around 10am. Mindy was much happier after a cup of coffee. We all three sat on the deck drinking in the morning sunshine until Ashley showed up to get Olivia. Ashley was disappointed that the cheer center phoned letting her know that they had canceled Olivia’s Saturday morning class. Originally, it was slated for 11am. Sounds like Ashley may enroll Olivia in dance center west, just like Bella. After Ashley & Olivia left, Mindy got a shower and headed into school to catch up on a number of things. Meanwhile, my plan included watching the Buckeye game, keeping an eye on work, taking Frankie to get her stitches out, and then a trip to Target to fill my Dexilant prescription. Ahead of the Buckeye game kick-off, I fertilized all of our houseplants and then all of our outdoor flowers in planters and baskets. I know it’s late in the growing season but they’re all still looking fairly nice, so why not help keep ‘em that way? The Buckeyes made easy work of the Ohio Bobcats, and were sporting a 34-0 lead with 8 minutes left in the first half. I left to take Frankie to the vet at 140pm. We were there less than five minutes and were back home shortly after 2pm. I watched the rest of the Buckeye game before taking off for Target. I spent about 30 minutes in Target. Pharmacy quoted me a 15 minute wait for my prescription. I picked up a few odds and ends while waiting. I was expecting my prescription to run me almost $50, but when I returned she said no charge. Hmm? Excellent news! I headed directly home where I went for a much needed nap on the sofa. It had to be around 4-430pm. I was also keeping a loose eye on the afternoon’s football action. Kenny stopped by to invite Mindy & I over for a cookout. I shared that I would have Mindy call Chrissy once I heard from her. I wasn’t really sure what time she’d be home. Mindy called around 500pm and said she was on her way home. We discussed our evening plans and decided we would in fact join the neighbors for dinner. We agreed to make a quick run to Whole Foods soon after she got home. I headed up for a shower. Once home, Mindy scoped out Frankie’s belly, wanting to see her scar. Looks good. She wasn’t home 10 minutes before we left for Whole Foods. I drove the Honda. Traffic leaving the OSU game heading west on Lane avenue was still pretty heavy even two hours later. Whole Foods is just west of campus on Lane Ave. I complained about the sign identifying the parking spot I picked as being exclusively for expecting mothers. I still moved, however. Our first order of business was picking up some good beer. Whole Foods is noted for having a decent selection of microbrews. We weren’t disappointed, either. I grabbed a couple six-packs and a 22oz bomber. Mindy picked up one six-pack and a 22oz bomber as well. We then moved on to the deli area where we bought some fresh chipotle salsa and chips, some min-pita and hummus – two kinds, roasted red pepper and caramelized onion. We also bought some red skin potatoes, some mushroom concoction, and a bottle of wine. Mindy picked up the tab. Got to be careful shopping at Whole Foods. You can rack up a fairly large bill in a hurry. Lots of delicious looking food. Around 7pm we packed a bag full of goodies and headed down to the neighbors. Leading the way, Mindy stepped in a big pile of dog crap and had to clean off her shoes. Ewh! I headed on in. Ben and Ryan weren’t yet there but were expected. Neighbor Teri was over with her two kids. Chrissy asked for my help getting on 4X6” photos to print on her wireless printer. Easy enough. I worked on that issue for the next hour before finally giving up. Couldn’t get the printer to recognize the 4X6” tray. Kenny came in from grillin’ a couple of times citing that he still could smell dog crap. Later, I acknowledged smelling it too. I headed out to help on the grill only to look down and realize it was me. I had dog crap caked around my shoes, and then on my leg. It was caked and dried, but stunk to high heaven! I excused myself and headed home to wash it off. I headed to the basement sink to do the deed. Because it was nearly dried, it wouldn’t come off with a simple rinse. It took a few minutes to get my shoes and leg cleaned up. The meat was about done by the time I got back. Kenny grilled a variety of big, thick steaks. When asked earlier, I opted for only ½ a steak and quite honestly was pretty satisfied after eating the appetizers we bought and brought from Whole Foods. I ended up eating ½ of a NY strip. It was cooked to perfection, but then again, Kenny always does a fabulous job grillin’ the steaks. In the background, Kenny had the Notre Dame/Michigan State game whirling. The score was close the entire game. At some point after dinner and in the dark, me, Kenny, Jake, and Ben walked out to the tree house. Ben hadn’t yet seen it. It was cool hanging out up there in the dark. Kenny toted a flashlight for safety. We stayed out there for approximately 30 minutes or until our beer ran dry.:) Back in the house, it sounded like Chrissy and Teri were having a fairly serious conversation/debate over religion (Teri is Catholic. Chrissy is non-denominational). My theory: it’s never wise to debate religion when drinking freely. :) We ended up hanging with the neighbors until after 10pm – not too late. Both Mindy & I were excessively tired after a rather raucous Friday night. I did, however, stay a bit longer than Mindy. I wanted to see the end of the Notre Dame/Michigan State game. It was tied with five minutes remaining. The game went to overtime. I left for home after gathering Frankie. Mindy graciously permitted me to turn on the bedroom TV to the overtime football game. Michigan State won. Didn’t see how. We/I fell asleep quickly. I was really sleepy.

Never Fear Another On-Call is Here

It was Friday, and I was up right on time. It was a cloudy start to the day, but no rain expected. It was also mild, about 60 degrees. I completed my exercises and then took Frankie out for a romp. She was deliberate and quick. Inside I moved swiftly through coffee, meditation, and stretching. I delivered Mindy’s coffee along with the pug as my run time neared. Mindy was just rolling out of bed and asked that I place her coffee on her dresser in the bathroom in lieu of her night stand. I dressed in shorts and a long sleeved wicking shirt for my run. I ran the full 4.1 mile track without incident. Aside from the cloud cover, it was a lovely morning. Mindy had eggs waiting my return. They hit the spot. I dabbled in the fruit tray, too, but we were definitely hitting bottom. In fact, one of the 'fresh' raspberries had some mold forming on its side. After my shower, I loaded our snow skis into the Trooper with plans to drop them off at Aspen Ski & Board (ASBCO) during lunch for their annual tune-up. The tune-up’s just $10 per pair if done before October 3rd. That’s one heck of a deal! The kids and I headed out to the bus stop around 8am. Jacob seemed to be feeling better after a battling a cold for the last week. Chrissy shared that Kenny & Jake were going to the Buckeye game on Saturday. That should be a good bonding experience. I let Frankie walk around the back yard briefly before taking her back inside and penning her up for the day. Ashley phoned while I was preparing to leave asking if we would keep Olivia overnight. I explained that this was the 5 year anniversary of the day Mindy and I met, and that we had a date planned. I did tell her that I would be more than willing to receive her bright and early in the AM. Ashley was more than gracious sharing that she would first check with her grandma Rosemary and then her mother. Would call me back. Off to work by 810am. It was a relatively quiet start to the day. Somewhat unusual for a Friday. And given that I’d be on-call over the weekend, I was hypersensitive not only to the current state of affairs, but also to what the prognosticators were saying about the hurricanes churning out in the Atlantic. At the time we seemed to be in no eminent danger. The morning remained calm. Ashley called me back around 11am to accept my offer to keep Olivia tomorrow AM. Said she’d have to bring her over around 6am. Ugh! Getting up that early would suck, but helping Ashley and seeing Olivia was worth the price. I sent Mindy a text to let her know. At 1pm I left for ASBCO. I took our skis in at roughly the same time last year, but it still feels weird being in the ski shop in mid-September. I was the only patron in the store. Can’t remember the store managers name, but he kindly pointed out the flawed technique I used with the ski-keeps. He showed me how to properly place them around the skis thus preventing the edges from rubbing. How foolish of me! Said lots of folks install them as I did. While they completed the paperwork, I browsed the store. Everything in the store was 20% off through Saturday. I had designs on a new pair of ski pants and perhaps a new jacket. I found a pair of Burton ski pants that I really liked. They are heavy-duty and waterproof. Looked good too. After trying them on, I decided to buy ‘em. I felt good about the price, especially after taking 20% off. Said the skis would be ready for pick-up by next Friday. Great! Back to work. As I passed Strader’s, I noticed a fresh load of sod being unloaded. I’ll need to pick-up about 100 square feet here in the next couple of weeks. My afternoon was moderately busy, but I managed to complete most tasks on my to-do list. I prepped and left for home just after 5pm. The only down side, I was taking work home with me – literally. Jimaken was over to fetch the kids, this being one of his weekends. They headed out within five minutes of my arrival home. Right away, I got my laptop set-up and did a little work. I took it easy though, and finally at Mindy’s prompting, I headed out to the deck where we spent the next 30-40 minutes relaxing in the early fall-like weather. By then it was sunny and near 70. Frankie went out there with us too. It wasn't long before she darted off the deck and then ran out front. Mindy chased after her. I followed slowly behind. Frankie ran across the street towards two young black labs on a leash. What made it even worse was the heavy influx of traffic coming home after work. Frankie ran back and forth across the street at least twice. Mindy eventually corralled her and toted her back home. Like me a couple days before, she spanked and scolded her before putting her in the pen. Not really sure what good, if any, that actually does. It does, however, make the owner feel better, at least temporarily.  We outlined the evening’s plans. We decided to head to Barley’s around 7pm. We freshened up around 645pm and left just after 7pm. As we passed Teresa’s house, I shared what I have been meaning to tell her for a week or more, which is to inflate her car tires, especially the left rear. She’s been driving on it almost flat for the past week or so. But it looked like she finally figured it out through another. We arrived at Barley’s to a near full parking lot. Inside, the bar area was equally crowded. That’s not always the case. Rick C. was there early – very rare. Shared that he took some personal time and got off work early to make that happen. We hung with Rick for a while. Meanwhile, I was happy sipping on a couple Centennials. Mindy, on the other hand, was drinking wine, and also ordered some food. She tried to get me to order an entrée but I wouldn’t. I did, however, end up snacking on some of hers. The cream of tomato soup she ordered was delicious – perhaps the best I’ve had anywhere. Can’t recall what else she had. After two Centennials I switched to a Breckenridge 471 DIPA. It was quite good. I ended up having two of those, and a long with it, a pretty good buzz. I think I had one more Centennial before calling it a night. Mindy drove us home after drinking nothing but water for the last couple of hours. I checked on work and then the Reds score before heading to bed. It was close to midnight. I wisely took 3 Advil proactively before bed. I really needed some sleep knowing I would be getting up around 6am to intercept Olivia.