Holding Church from Bed

 Slept maybe five minutes late, but that was hardly enough to throw me of course. There were clear skies over head, but unfortunately they didn’t last. By the time I did my calisthenics and headed out with Eiknarf it was clouding over in a hurry. We might’ve been out for 10 minutes.

Back at home I poured some coffee and returned to my PC for a few minutes. There, I read the Daily OM and scanned through brother Glenn’s blog. I also checked the forecast more thoroughly. Expecting strong storms and a high around 80. If the past couple days were any indication, there’d be plenty of sunshine mixed in too. At least I was hoping so.

I finished meditation and stretching around 625a. Both went well. Felt positive about life. I delivered the pug and coffee upstairs to Mindy, who was already mid-shower. I gave her a kiss, which constituted the first of 15 daily touches she’s requested. I planned to tap her on the shoulder to account for the other 14 touches, but that would have to be later. J

I dressed in my summer running attire and headed out the door at 635a. And while the sunrise was masked by the cloud cover, it was already showing signs of clearing overhead to the west. I ran the full 4.1 miles without any strife. Most of my thoughts centered around Tuesday’s job interview and what to do about my Trooper. However, I wasn’t stressing over either by any means, but instead just contemplating my immediate future.

The sun busted through the clouds at the run’s conclusion. That was uplifting. Once back at home I quickly shedded my sweaty shirt then headed out on the deck to take a peek at the recently planted flowers and new grass. The new grass is thickening up fast. The flowers were undisturbed, which was all I was hoping for. Deer can make a meal of my recent plantings in one fell swoop.

I enjoyed my fried eggs along with our usual breakfast banter. Mindy was still angry with me for the ‘boy cut’ comment. She shared as much and went as far as saying that she might not cook me dinner later that day. That upset Bella until Mindy assured her that she’d still be cooking for her. I wisely chose not to comment any further.  Mindy asked the kids to ride the bus home then gave Bella $20 for her lunch account. She left for work at or near 730a.

I had half my lunch packed before heading upstairs for a shower. There was no way I was going to go hungry again anytime soon. It felt good to get back into my ‘uniform’ - jeans and a black t-shirt. Felt like myself. I found myself downstairs early – 745a. I used the time to finish packing my lunch, including preparing a garden salad.

The kids, Eiknarf and I headed out at 757a. We met Chrissy, Woody, and the girls at the bus stop. We chatted briefly, about what I can’t readily recall. The weather was again gorgeous – sunny and already nearing 70. I planned to drive the BM’er. Eiknarf and I walked out front and long enough for here to take her second dump of the day.

I packed up all my gear and headed off to work in the BM’er near 815a. It was a lovely drive into the office.  I noticed gas prices now down to $3.55 per gallon after hitting about $4.20 two weeks ago.

The day started off with our weekly staff meeting. And I must say, I was a little surprised with the news my boss shared with the team. Meeting lasted about 40 minutes. I kept my phone clear and an eye out for a possible message about my second interview. Those details came around 1230p. It would be a phone interview at 230p.

I stayed busy into the afternoon and opted not to leave for lunch. I ate my packed food sometime around 1p. I did the phone interview at 230p as planned. Seemed to go really well. Once again, I got the impression that I was their guy, but one can never be sure until ‘the fat lady sings’. I definitely wasn’t gonna count my chickens before they hatched. Hey, that’s two cliché’s back to back.

Mindy called around 345p. Said she was on her way home. She asked if I had my 2^nd interview. We then talked about her hair cut and my response. In the future I will not comment about my wife’s haircut. In the future I will not comment about my wife’s haircut. In the future I will not comment about my wife’s haircut. Only 497 to go!

The rest of the afternoon moved by in a hurry. But that’s nothing new, we’re always busy,  and time flies under those conditions. I managed to get out of the office at 540p. It was a nice summery afternoon, the temperature well above 80 degrees. I put the top down for drive home.  I did the same with the windows. It was a fun drive home.

Dad’s van was sitting out front. Inside I quickly greeted everyone then washed up for dinner. We were having grilled pork chops. They looked great and were about an inch thick. We had canned corn, garden salad, crescent rolls, and stuffing to boot. The chops were tender and juicy. Dad asked about the Trooper. I shared that it’s still slipping a little. May need more fluid.

Dad attended Mary Moore’s funeral service this week and shared that he ran into Gloria, Jodi, and Joe. We had no idea the connection, but Mary was Daniel’s (Joe’s bff) grandmother. And Daniel’s mom, Cheryl,  is a close friend of Jodi as well as a friend of ours. Mary worked with dad at National Graphics. Mentioned that he remembered meeting Shawn when he was 2 years old.   Small world.

The kids ran off to play after dinner. I managed clean-up while Mindy and dad carried on a conversation. I participated from afar. Dad said that he would come by on Thursday to pick-up his trailer that was still parked out front, understanding it a logistical problem for us with the Trooper being out of commission. He left for home around 730p.

After dad left I watered and fertilized the deck pots and hanging baskets. We sat on the deck for a short while leading up to Idol. We decided to watch the winner being crowned, and I’m glad we did. What a show. Not only did all of the top 13 perform, including my fave Haley, but there were lots of special guest appearances, too, including Tony Bennett who sang a duet with Haley. Tony Bennett is 85 years old! Tom Jones, Judas Priest, Tim McGraw, Marc Anthony, U2, and Lady Gaga were some of the others who performed. Lady Gaga was amazing. Steven Tyler and J.Lo were part of the show too. Steven performed Dream On. Great show. The actual announcement of the season 10 Idol winner was anticlimactic. Scottie won.

The show ran 2 hours and 7 minutes (odd). We all headed for bed as soon as it was over. I tucked Bella into bed. She was funny. Mindy & I held church from the pillow for about 15 minutes. We were asleep by 1030p.