Short Back n' Sides

I tempted fate and got bit. Somewhere near 515a I woke but decided to get my due and sleep for another 15 minutes. That 15minutes turned into 35. Oops! It was already 553a when I got downstairs to start my exercises. I toyed only briefly with skipping sit-ups and push-ups but ultimately decided that wasn’t a good idea. Instead, I clipped internet time down to a minimum, or just enough to gauge the day’s weather forecast. I was surprised to discover that it was 39 degrees, significantly warmer than expected. Glancing out back, looked like partly cloudy skies overhead. It was 605a when I finished push-ups and moved on to coffee. I decided to leave Frankie in her pen while I enjoyed coffee and started meditation. Of course, she let it be known fairly quickly how little she cared for my plan. At 620a I freed her from her pen and took her outside. Just as I began to get a little anxious, she took care of her business. Good thing! Still before 630a, I settled in for a stretch. I didn’t cut out a single position but was very deliberate and quick. I was on my way upstairs with Frankie and coffee by 640a. Mindy knew I was running late. I did a quick handoff and headed back downstairs to dress and leave for my run. As much as I hated to do it, I ended up cutting my run to three miles in an effort to get back some time. I was back home by 719a – about the same time I get back every other day accept after 4.1 miles. Bella enjoyed her own fried egg along with Mindy & I. I could only smile watching Bella cut, salt & pepper her egg. She did it just like me.  Mindy departed for school at 730a. She reminded the kids to bus home as normal. I was off to the shower at 735a and ready to go 15 minutes later. Before heading out for the bus, I packed my lunch (cheese, veggies, banana, and fruit medley). The kids and I headed out the door at 758a. The pugs wrestled until the bus arrived. Afterwards, Chrissy headed her way, and me, mine. I walked Frankie out back for a couple minutes. She took full advantage, too. I gathered my gear and headed off to work at 815a arriving just before 830a. I parked out front and walked in with my boss and another co-worker, who I haven’t talked with for a couple years. The co-worker rode his motorcycle in! We spent a good portion of the morning huddled up in an impromptu staff meeting. It was 11a before I had any time alone in my office. Determined to take a lunch to get my haircut, I slipped out at 1p despite my phone, IM, and email going crazy. Sometimes I’ve just gotta say, no! Everybody wants a piece of me. I arrived at Saturday’s in Mill Run around 120p. They got me right in. She wanted to wash my hair first, but I advised against for wanting/needing clippers. She agreed and started there first. It didn’t take long at all. I asked her to skip blow drying and gel. Instead, I’d take care of the gel myself once in my car. I was in and out of there in less than 20 minutes. I’m blown away at the tenure there. Most of the staff has been there for almost as long as I’ve been visiting, which might be 15 years. My hair looked hideous as it was, and then only marginally better afterwards. It takes on a life of its own right after being cut. Back to work. Folks were trying to reach me all through lunch. I wasn’t too happy about it. I wanted to shout, LEAVE ME ALONE!! Back at the office, I quickly became engaged in a handful of heated escalations. Some days are like that. When under such pressures, I try to remind myself that it’s not how well I respond to it on easy days, but instead how I handle the tough ones. It doesn’t always help. My entire afternoon was a challenge, and that’s putting it nicely. It would soon pass, however, and I’d be heading for home. There’s always comfort in that. Speaking of home, I left the office at 520p since it was a Jimaken Thursday. Traffic was of minimal impact. I arrived home ahead of 540p. Mindy was busy vacuuming, but this I already knew. We talked during the first part of my drive home. Otherwise, the house was quiet and well put together. Mindy was done vacuuming a minute or two later. We chatted about our days while I sifted through my mail and processed lunch containers. We weren’t home for too long. We left for Barley’s even before 6pm. Mindy phoned Rocky along our drive to see how he did in school. We expected poor, but hoped we were wrong. He’s been calling everyday to let her know about his smiley faces (a simple indicator sent home each day to let us know how his day went). Mindy bribed him with cash if he could go a whole week without a sad face, something, thus far, he hasn’t been able to pull off this school year. But much to our surprise, he shared that he earned yet another smiley face. I joked that he found the photo copier! Good work Rock! He was excited to share the good news. Apparently his teacher told Lindsey in the most recent parent teacher conference that in all 19 years of teaching, she has never had a kid seem more in need of meds for hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder more than he. Yikes! We know and respect Mrs Dent. According to Lindsey, her mother and grandmother oppose the meds. I am weary of using meds to mask other issues, but it just may come to that. I think he needs a stable home environment first, however. We arrived at Barley’s to a parking lot less crowded than I’ve seen in sometime. Immediately inside the door was a ONN film crew apparently interviewing folks about Sparky Anderson’s passing. It appeared they were mostly targeting blue hairs. I was hoping they’d ask me. I have many fond memories of Sparky and the Big Red Machine! They never approached. :( I sipped on a Centennial IPA while Mindy enjoyed a Russian. She ordered their dinner special in a hurry. I decided to share only part of hers – again, portion control. It makes all the difference. We ended up chatting with our friends Scott & Linda through the entire visit. They shared their recent trial dog ownership. Didn’t work out so well. I can appreciate that they found an org that’ll allowed them to adopt a dog on a trial basis to see how it worked. If it fails, you take it back no questions asked. They found the experience eye opening and ultimately too much work, and too much trauma for their cat.  We chatted briefly about the recent election, quickly learning that they voted for the “other guy”. I find it interesting that most people vote with only their own personal situation in mind, I.E. how will this or that guy treat my job, company, or tax break. Not saying that’s wrong but I do see it as being somewhat problematic. I enjoyed two Centennials in total. I ended up eating only the pickles and a few green beans from Mindy’s reuben special. It looked absolutely delicious. She saved the second half of the sandwich for me. As luck would have it, I started getting hungry for it, just before we were ready to depart for home. She picked up the check and planned to drive. I ate my half of the reuben during the ride home. It was super tasty! The kids arrived home shortly after the two of us. By then, I was on the PC updating my blog. I congratulated Jim on his boss’s election victory. Hopefully it bodes well for him. I was still hungry and snacked on some of the yummy toasted rye chips we bought at the Market District last Sunday. We tuned the TV to Thursday Night college football. I tucked the kids into bed shortly after 9p. Tired, I decided to go directly to bed. I think that surprised Mindy, but I needed a full 8 hours of sleep. It had been a trying week and it wasn't over yet.