Weather Changes on a Dime

 I was up a few minutes late but not enough to alter my routine. The clear skies we enjoyed on Thursday were nothing more than a memory. We were back under cloud cover. I did my sit-ups then checked the weather forecast. Currently cloudy and 45 degrees. Clouds, rain, and high of 62 were forecasted for the day. Not exactly what I hoped for. Even worse, the weekend was expected to be a total wash.

Eiknarf slept with Bella the night before. I didn't bother going up to fetch her. Coffee was next. I enjoyed some in front of the PC. Soon it was time for meditation and a stretch. Both went reasonably well. I finished slightly ahead of schedule. Neck & shoulders still feeling pretty good. I delivered Mindy's coffee at 625a. She was mid-shower. I let her know that Eiknarf would need to go out. Still with Bella. I could hear Eiknarf stirring around in Bella's room. I didn't have the time to take care of her then. I headed down to ready for my run.

It was 632a when I headed out the front door for my run. I dressed warmly minus gloves and ear covers. I was happy that it wasn't raining. The cloud cover was broken but no signs of sustained clearing. I ran the full 4.1 miles, my mind getting totally lost in thought. I was half way through my run without much recall at all. I happened upon Mindy walking Eiknarf a couple houses from the completion of my run. I stopped and walked back with the two of them.

Inside, Mindy had Bella tending to our scrambled eggs cooking on the stove. Scary! Jacob came down dressed in shorts even though it wasn't supposed to hit 70 degrees, Mindy's short wearing weather barometer. She lost a bet during last night's Idol elimination regarding Scotty's age. Jacob, Mindy & I all had scrambled eggs. Mindy reminded the kids to bus home as normal. She left early for muffins with mom.

I headed up for a shower at 732a. I wasn't long getting ready. I was back downstairs by 750a. I packed a lunch including tuna, cheese, fruit medley, and a banana. The door bell rang. It was my dad. Hmm? He stopped by to see if I could make a copy of his medical card. Yes. Took care of it right away. He visited through bus time, headed outside with us but stayed in our yard.

 Chrissy was out with the girls. Chrissy was wearing jeans and tennis shoes. Said she paid $10 to do so. She was excited that Kenny was coming home that evening. Heading to the airport at 9p to pick him up.  Tim McGraw concert on Saturday. She was pumped about that too. Tim's her Pink Floyd.

I walked Eiknarf out front of the house. She didn't go, just a lot of sniffing. Headed back inside with dad where we visited for a few minutes longer. At 815a I organized my gear for work. The skies were partly sunny when I left the house. Very pretty. Again, though, wasn't expected to last.

Arrived at work near 830a. A couple of my team members commented on our recent results. Changes we collectively designed are making a real difference. That served as a positive boost. Outside, it remained partly cloudy. Skies showed no threat of rain. That was nice to see. I left for lunch at 1p, making a trip to Target to pick-up Mother's Day cards for Mindy. Since I had plenty of time to kill, I decided to head next door to Home Depot too. I picked up a 3-gallon hibiscus for $17.99. The same sized hibiscus was $39.99 at Strader's. Gone for about 45 minutes, I headed back to the office. Thick clouds were moving in again just as I headed back into the building.

 As the work week drew to a close, the sky brightened up a bit. Just as much blue as there was cloud cover. I left the office at 5p much looking forward to a weekend. I phoned Mindy. Said Jacob wanted to do Barley's for dinner. Also shared that she had my dad meet the kids off the bus after getting pulled into an urgent parent/teacher conference late afternoon. I shared that dad stopped by just before bus time that morning.

Arrived home around 520p. Carried the hibiscus around to the deck but left Mindy's Mother's Day cards in my back pack. Been carrying her gift around in the back pack for two days as well. Mindy shared that she hadn't seen ant one. Encouraging, but was certain we hadn't seen the last of them. Said nephew Joe wanted to meet us at Barleys if that was indeed in our evening plans. Guess he and Justin are exploring a relationship. Mindy asked when I wanted to leave. Not until 7p.

With the time between then and 7p, I updated my blog with two weeks worth of posts. Before we headed out I brushed my teeth and tucked in my t-shirt. Turned out, Makayla was going to Barley's with us. She chose hanging with us over going to her sister's soccer game with her mom. It started raining again. I dropped Mindy and the kids at the door while Jacob and I went to park the Honda. Pretty crowded. Got one of the last spots in the main lot.

Mindy and the kids hovered at the hostess stand chatting with Zach and the new hostess. I waltzed in and joined Steve Wonn already sitting at the bar. New brew on tap, Indie Left Coast IPA. Tom, the Mary Kay guy, insisted that I sample his. I took two sips. OK, but light on hops. I likened it to Great Lakes Xmas ale. No one agreed. I ordered a Hoptopus instead. After chatting with my peeps I walked over to the first barside table where Mindy stood talking with others, including nephew Joe, who had just recently arrived.  Lots of talk about Diedra leaving for another pub - Mellow Mushroom in Polaris.

Mindy specifically requested a table worked by Justin, who was serving in the back, an area of the restaurant/bar that I have spent relatively little time. In fact, I've eaten back there only one other time and that was years ago. We did a girls and boys split in the booth. As I do most times, I insisted on finishing my first beer before placing a food order. I went to take a couple pictures only to find that my battery was dead. Crap!

Eventually time to order. I ordered last. Mindy ordered a salad with warm meat (no shit). Bella and Makayla split an order of K.C. wings, Jacob ordered buffalo chicken tenders with Gates of Hell sauce on the side. Joe ordered chicken tenders too. I went with K.C. wings. Mindy asked for a basket of fries to serve as our appetizer. By the time the fries came, I was ready for my second beer, another Hoptopus.

The food was good, and Justin did a great job taking care of us. Bella and Makayla took my last two one dollar bills to play electronic corn hole. We ordered two desserts before wrapping up dinner: mousse and an ice cream sandwich (vanilla ice cream sandwiched between two warm chocolate chip cookies). I ordered a 3rd beer, one of the new Left Coast IPA's. I drank that while the others partook in the desserts. I picked up the dinner tab, too.

Before leaving, we stopped in the bar to wish all of our Barley peeps well. Nephew Joe went his own way. He was talking with Justin as we left. Mindy, meanwhile, realized that we failed to pay our paltry bar tab. She called to settle up over the phone. It was only $11. She then called the neighbors and made arrangements to visit. Kenny was just back from Florida and we still had their daughter, Makayla.

I'm guessing it was about 945p when we arrived home and walked down to the neighbors. I took a 22oz. Southern Tier black ale. Mindy took a Black Chocolate stout. No wagering this week. :) Kenny shared that the Florida weather was perfect - sunny and near 90 everyday. Enjoyed the golf too. We visited for upwards of an hour. Not really that long. Had a fun time though.

We headed home before 11p. Eiknarf slept with Jacob. Mindy & I talked for about an hour before falling asleep. Good night rain.