Late Start - Earth 2100

I slept about ten minutes later than I really wanted to after playing cat and mouse with the clock for the last half hour or so. It didn’t have much if any impact on my morning, however. It was a late start day for the kids, meaning I wouldn’t be leaving for work until almost 1030am.

And just like the past couple days, it was raining again. Big surprise!  My new deck stain is getting put to the test right out of the shoot. I didn’t prep coffee the night before so I took care of that just ahead of sit-ups. Coffee finally brewing, I quickly whipped out sit-ups and push-ups. The good news was that the temperature was warm, a whopping 66 degrees. The forecast was calling for rain but a diminishing chance as the day wore on. Meanwhile, Thursday was expected to be partly cloudy but then another 4 or 5 days of rain. Good grief! This might be the wettest September on record. Already more than 4 inches.

After meditation I took Mindy some coffee. She asked if I still planned to run before she left for work/school. Yes, though perhaps a few minutes later. I headed back downstairs for a stretch ahead of my run. Felt great. I wore long running pants and a short sleeved wicking shirt. The rain was light but steady, pretty much the same as it’s been through most of my September morning runs. The upside to all the recent rain is that the lawn looks great. It felt good during my run too.

I was back at the house between 720-725am. Mindy had my eggs ready and waiting in the microwave.  She didn’t wake the kids. Instead, she’d left that job to me. After all, they didn’t need to be at the bus stop until 1010am. After eating my breakfast, I fired up my laptop since I planned on working from home for the first couple hours of my day. I had to join a 10am conference call.

I got logged onto my PC then headed off to the shower. We were expecting the neighbors’ kids any moment (Jake, Makayla, and Lillian). I agreed to keep them for late start too, and as a consequence, Chrissy said she’d do the next one. Bella must’ve gotten up when the neighbors arrived. They were all up and making a mess in the kitchen when I returned downstairs from a shower. Jake was already drinking orange soda, and Bella was about to pour some for herself until I nixed it. She tried convincing me that her momma would approve. I knew better. No!

I let Jake keep his. Aside from the fact that he was already drinking it, I also cited his advanced age. J The girls didn’t like it but respected my decision. A short while later,  Jake was off to school. His bus normally comes at 715am. He headed out at 905am.

Jacob didn’t get up until about 930am. He only added more chaos to what I was already dealing with. He made it his job to annoy and pester the girls. Lots of verbal sparring and turning off the Wii. I gave him the dickens more than once. I made sure the kids were aware of my need for silence come10am so I could join that conference bridge. I reminded them at least three times. They were being so loud that I was sure they’d continue. Much to my surprise, they kept quiet until they needed to step out for the bus at 1010am.

The call lasted about 15-20 minutes, or about as long as usual. I poked my head out  the door immediately after the call. They were already gone. I heard the bus pull up earlier. I talked with my boss briefly before packing up and heading east to the customer’s office. Again, this was Wednesday, the one day each week that I work at their place. I left the house around 1030am.

Because normal rush hour was behind us, I decided it would be OK to take 670 east to I-270 north. The coast was clear tip to toe. I arrived at 1055am, or five minutes earlier than I predicted and shared.

I had a plethora of issues to deal with, including one my boss asked me to help with for another customer. And I felt like I made a positive difference. I didn’t take lunch until 215pm. I left the premise and headed to the Best Buy across from Easton thinking I’d look at iPods – Bella’s birthday gift of choice.  I was just looking.  I was pleasantly surprised to see a Sports Authority next door too. I thought I might stop in there after.

I make a visit to Best Buy two or three times each year. And each time I am flabbergasted at all the technological advancements. It lets you know how behind the times your stuff is. This marked the first time I took the time to check out the new 3D TVs. I can only say that the glasses might be a tad clunky, but the results are absolutely stunning. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I also realize the video loop I was watching was likely as extreme as one can get with the 3D technology.  If you haven’t checked it out, do so!

All the new TVs are super light and super thin. Prices have come way down too. I looked at phone cases as well, but they don’t have squat for Droid 2’s anymore. I guess they’re already considered yesterday’s news.

Just as I expected I would, I left empty handed. I walked next door to Sports Authority. There I checked out their winter weather garb, jackets and running attire. I saw some winter weight wicking shirts I really liked.  I need a couple more. Uh, should say, want a couple more. Now about 3pm, I headed back to the office, which was only a half mile or so away.

I stayed plugged in for the remainder of the afternoon, not leaving for home until approximately 515pm. Provided the traffic flow wasn’t an issue, that would get me home near the usual time. I took 270 north all the way around. I wasn’t about to try my luck taking 270 south to 670 west. That’s almost a guaranteed traffic jam once downtown.

Talked with Mindy on my drive home. She sounded tense/stressed.  I shared a little bit of how the late start went. She had just gotten home too, and said there were piss ants all about the tile floor again.  And I was just thinking that morning that I hadn’t seen a one in what seemed like two weeks. Figured the new traps were working like a charm. Not sure what changed.

I arrived home at 555pm. Mindy was busy helping Bella with math homework. I eventually took over the spelling words. Bella wasn’t in the best of moods either. Still seemed a little perturbed with me after this morning’s late start. J

Mindy made herself and the kids leftovers. Asked if I wanted something warmed. No thank you. I was busy dealing with carryover work issues at the same time. Good grief! I eventually made myself a chicken chili burrito with leftovers. Mindy insisted I come sit at the table to eat. I wanted to stand at the island. One, my neck and shoulder were bugging me, and two, I was tense and feeling stressed.

She then asked which part of gymnastics transportation I wanted. I wanted to do neither but offered to do the drop off. Bella was ready to go by 645pm. Mindy made her do reading aloud until the moment we left. Asked that she take the book along in the car too. That way she could get as many minutes out of the way before gymnastics as possible. Needs to read at least 20 minutes each day. By the way, she’s still reading that Garfield book, and she seems to love it. In stark contrast, Jacob was reading Harry Potter in the 3^rd grade. 

Dropped Bella at gymnastics without incident, though we had to wait a minute or two for the instructor to show up and unlock the doors. We got their 3 or 4 minutes early. Back at home I spent time on the PC doing both work and play. Enjoyed a brownie while at the PC.

I asked Jacob to make sure and rewrap the brownies after he took one. He shared that I hadn’t made a positive comment about him in a couple days. I only listened without further comment.

Mindy & Jacob left to fetch Bella around 820pm. They weren’t gone long. While they were out, and then a little bit after, I proof read several blog entries. Around 9pm, I retired to the familyroom and tuned into the History Channel where I watched a cool program called, Earth 2100, a show about what the earth might be like in the year 2100. Interesting spin/story. Gives one a lot to think about. Do try and catch it if you have some time.

Mindy and the kids headed to bed shortly after 9pm. I eventually fell asleep on the sofa where I remained until I woke and headed for bed around 1045pm. I was completely zonked!