Another Rainy Wednesday

I slept well enough & long enough that  I woke easily and before 530am. Can’t recall the exact time.  After finding my way downstairs I peeked out the back door seeing cloudy skies and light sprinkles. Ugh, another morning of rain. I completed sit-ups and push-ups and then went for coffee. It was 540am. I spent about 15 minutes on the PC, but no more. Again, I’m trying to reduce the amount of time spent on line and then increase my time meditating and stretching.

I headed in to meditate at 557am. Ten minutes went by like that – bam! Felt I had just gotten started. Woke Mindy and delivered some fresh coffee next. She said she was still really tired. We’ve been running around like crazy people the last few weeks with little real down time.

I headed back downstairs to stretch and ready for a run. It was something close to 50 degrees. I was happy about that. I headed out the door for my run by 625am. I added the garage trash can's contents to the big curb can that was already setting by the curb. Thanks Jacob. I darted off on my 4.1 mile run.

It was sprinkling, but very lightly. It wasn’t much of an impediment at all. My thinking was geared towards pleasant things, like our winter ski trips. I tried hard not to allow my mind to be polluted with needless worry. That worked fairly well. I was home shortly after 7am. Like most other days the past two weeks, I waited by the front door for Mindy to bring me the pug. After some rubs and hugs, off we went. It was sprinkling a little heavier during our walk, but she took care of her business. We were home after about 5 minutes of walking.

Mindy was already preparing to depart. She reviewed the day/evenings busy agenda, which included evening teacher conferences for our two children. It would be another long day, indeed. She left by 715am. As soon as she was gone I got busy making my eggs. This time I fried only two for me. Both kids wanted donuts again. I didn’t make one for Eiknarf. Sorry!

I cut some cheese and packed some fruit. I didn’t take a salad. This was a work at the customer’s prem day.

It started raining ever harder as the morning progressed. No surprise there. After all, it was Wednesday, or umbrella day. I made sure to remind Bella to brush her teeth and don her socks. She’s so cooperative. OK daddy! She played on my bed with Eiknarf while I showered. I reminded her that Lindsey wouldn’t be there for a ride. This was her day off.

I was ready to go by 745am, much earlier than usual. I spent some of the extra time at my PC listening to music and editing a blog post. I had to be careful not to let too much time elapse. Editing/writing can eat time like nobody’s business. We headed out at 810am, but only to the garage. It made no sense to stand in the rain. We still took our umbrellas and the dog. Waiting, waiting, waiting. Bella kept an eye out for Chrissy and kids. No sightings. Around 820 we headed out to the actual bus stop. The bus was late, very late. She didn’t show up until 825am. Said the problem was traffic, just as the kids predicted. J Only this time, she elaborated. Blamed it on the paving project on I-270 south. She’s right. It’s at a crawl every morning.

I walked Eiknarf in the rain with the benefit of my umbrella. More sniffing, no doing. It was 835am by the time I was pulling out of the driveway for new Albany. I chose to take I-270 all the way around. Traffic was moderate to heavy but with no real jams, though the rain kept the pace a bit slower than usual. I didn’t arrive until 905am, and it was ten minutes later by the time I was finally in my make-shift office.

Right away I was greeted by one of the managers. Said he had to cancel our 10am meeting, but asked that I provide an executive-type summary for an ongoing issue. Sure thing.

I like the new cubicle they've given me, but it was dusty/dirty. I took a few minutes to clean and sanitize all the surfaces.

They day flew by.  I took very few breaks of any sort. In fact, I spent too much time on my butt. Got involved in two escalations that pretty much consumed my day, so much so that I called Mindy to let her know that I would be late to the parent/teacher conferences.  I didn’t get out of the office until almost 530pm, or 30 minutes later than I like.  The rain had stopped and the sky looked to be clearing. That was good news. It was much cooler, though, too.

I called Lindsey on my drive around 270. She was going berserk over seeing a single bug in her apartment. Really? She also shared that there was a problem with the check for her first month’s rent. Apparently the Salvation Army and the complex had their wires crossed somewhere. Lindsey was certain this would spell disaster for her. I only listened without offering possible solutions. Still didn’t have a ride to work for Thursday either, but said she had a peer that she was hoping would give her one. Would call him later. Oh boy!  I did suggest that she call the rental office and kindly ask them to spray for bugs.

I pulled into the school’s lot around 555pm. I hustled inside and joined Mindy & Jimaken already in conference with Mrs Anderson, Bella’s 3^rd grade teacher. They were midway through the discussion. Mindy passed me Bella’s report card for review. No real surprises, though she did get higher marks (4s) that I expected for determination and effort.

She’s definitely got Bella pegged. Knows she’s a social animal and often has to be reminded to return to her seat and to stop socializing. She seems to hold her in high regard. Mindy often spends a lot of time comparing notes, reviewing teaching styles with the kids teachers. Honestly, my mind was still on a couple hot work related issues. Hard to transition, get into the flow of the discussion.

The only conference I missed completely was with Bella’s reading teacher. Next up was Jacob’s 5^th grade teacher, Mr Goodwin. Mr Goodwin had nothing but praise for Jacob. None of us were surprised. Jacob’s a smart kid. However, I was a little disappointed with Mr Goodwin’s relatively empty assessment. Jacob is without a doubt  an advanced reader, and as we recently discovered, an excellent writer in terms of style. However, he struggles with what I would deem simple mathematical concepts yet Mr Godwin said he’s tops in that too. I suddenly felt like he was simply winging the conference. As the conversation neared its end, he nervously shared that Jacob needs to consider using deodorant as he’s going through early puberty. He was trying to step lightly. We laughed and let him off the hook, agreeing whole heartedly with his assessment. As Jimaken put it, Jacob smells like a goat! I suggested we alter his hygiene pattern to morning showers and then make sure he's actually using the deodorant. Mr Godwin said it’s usually not until spring that he has this talk with some parents. But then again, Jacob is 11 and could really be in 6^th grade this year.

The meeting ended with him taking notes to press Jacob harder in math. I only added that his biggest problem comes down to neatness. He writes so poorly/fast that even he can’t read his numbers, and then they’re all out of alignment. In the end, Jacob is a well liked student, not only by his teachers, but also by his peers. Mr Godwin said he’s the biggest kid on campus.

All three of us headed out together with each heading to our respective cars. Mindy wanted a hug, though, before we headed for home where dad was keeping an eye on the kids. I called my mom along the way. Hadn’t talked with her for a couple weeks after missing each other's calls over the past two days. For whatever the reason, mom often calls me back at the most inopportune times.

She sounded good, and said her knee replacement therapy is coming along nicely. Wouldn’t recommend it to anyone, though. Said she definitely won’t have the other done under any circumstances. We chatted about TG and the kids. She’ll be cooking a TG dinner for April, Charles and Ronald’s parents. Said she’s planning on coming to our house for Xmas weekend. That’s fine. I only alerted her to the fact that we’ll be leaving for HV early the following morning. Still, I encouraged her to come and stay Friday through Sunday (xmas day).

We ended the call when I pulled in the drive. Mindy pulled up right beside me. We headed inside together. Just as I was greeting dad and putting my work stuff away, a knock came at the door. It was neighbor Teri bringing me the title and tags for the Hyundai. Cool! I wrote her a check to cover the expense for the tax, title and tags. She didn’t hand long. I introduced her to my dad before she left.

Dad left a couple minutes later.  I walked him out. Mindy whipped Jacob and I up some sandwiches. She made Jacob grilled cheese and me, grilled meatloaf and cheese. It was really good. I asked for a second. It was equally as good, but I ate it much slower, over the next hour, for being full.

With a couple work issues still dangling out there, I logged into work. While working, I summoned Jacob to my side. We patiently discussed the hygiene issue his teacher brought up. Jacob acknowledged having BO. Said he’s forgotten to use deodorant recently.  I suggested the morning shower thing again, and he liked it. I made him think it all the way through, though. I quizzed him on his wake time, and subsequent shower interval to make sure he’d have enough time to fully ready. I’m not worried about running out of hot water. His showers are always very brief. He took it very well.

Mindy checked her blood pressure numerous times. It was extremely high. She headed for bed early, somewhere near 9pm. Bella was still up and downstairs snacking on a bowl of Nutella and pretzels. She and I hung out for a while before I tucked her into bed. She spotted the fur pouch that Ben & Ryan bought me at the Ohio Historical Society. She asked what it was. I told it was a pouch made of squirrel fur. She then asked me what a Bgina was? Needless to say, I was taken back. Uh … don’t know. You should probably ask your mother.

After tucking Bella in, I returned downstairs long enough to fill my water glass and secure the home. An early bedtime sounded good to me too.