Eggs, Votes, and Money

Once again, I struggled to sleep much past 430am. I tried to find my groove but couldn’t. Finally, come 510am I gave up and got out of bed for good. Downstairs, I slipped into my exercise shoes then glanced skyward out the deck door. Completely clear, and lots of stars overhead. Really pretty.

I completed 50 sit-ups and then went for coffee. By the way, this was a skip push-ups day.  I had plenty of time to surf the web, and thought about spending a little time updating my blog but didn’t. Posting-wise, I was like 10 days behind.

I enjoyed the extra leisurely pace, the coffee, and reading. I broke off near 550am to meditate, stretch, and wake Mindy. Actually, I woke Mindy after meditation but ahead of stretching.

Once again, I got out the door for my run early, leaving the house before 620am. It was in the low 40s but felt colder. This time I was smart and wore hand covers. That helps big time. It’s hard to believe that I used to run the entire winter without them. How foolish of me. I warmed up quickly and ran the full 4.1 miles. Mindy and I have been struggling with the fineline between enabling and helping Lindsey. The next step is getting her on the road with a car and insurance. I thought about that problem/opportunity throughout the entire run.

During the last mile I felt at peace with my decision/position. Quickly stated, we would help with a car only if Lindsey agrees to let us help her manage her money just as we discussed with her some 10 days prior, and we wouldn’t cave to anything less than that. I planned to tell her on our drive to work later that morning.  Refusing our offer would be like saying she doesn’t need our ongoing help, which would be fine if that were truly the case. We’ve already spent a ton of money, time, and effort, not to mention almost constant worry. It’s been very draining.

Mindy was already preparing to depart when I got back home and shared my Lindsey epiphany with her. She strongly agreed. Meanwhile, both kids asked about wearing shorts to school since the high was supposed to reach 70 degrees. I only shared that it was cold enough at the time for me to wear gloves to run. Mindy told the kids no and Jacob threw a fit, and a big enough fit that Mindy grounded him for talking back.

I gathered up Eiknarf and headed off on our walk. Mindy was preparing to leave early so she could drop the boys at Magdalene and still make it to school on time. She met up with me near  the bridge where Eiknarf and I were on our morning walk. Before she headed off to work, she reminded me to vote sometime during the day. Thanks. I had temporarily forgotten.

Inside, I started breakfast for Bella, Eiknarf and myself. Jacob stayed upstairs pouting about the shorts thing for quite a while. I only shared that I didn’t want to hear anymore about it, even for a second. He was soon downstairs for his breakfast, which amounted to nothing more than a cup of chocolate milk and vitamins. I think he eats again at school.

I fried the rest of us eggs, Eiknarf included. Her plea for eggs is getting worse. Cries like a baby once she smells them cooking. Bella’s diggin’ ‘em now too. I think she likes them a whole lot better the way I fry them, which is over med/high heat, not ‘slow and low’ like Mindy does ‘em. Just sayin’ …

I was off to the shower just after 730am. I was fast with my ready and back downstairs even before 750am. Lindsey was there and sitting quietly at the island counter. I pretended to be startled that she was there. I chose not to broach the money topic until the kids were on the bus and we were on the road. She went on about a couple apartment repair issues that she feels aren’t being addressed properly by the maintenance dept. (window, dishwasher rack, and bathtub faucet). I feel for those poor souls. I questioned her about the dishwasher rack. Really?

We headed out a few minutes early.  Jacob bellyached about how warm it felt. In reality, it was only 48 degrees. I checked. It was pretty, though. We met Chrissy at the bus stop. She and Lindsey talked for a while. While they chatted, I walked Eiknarf back to the house and took my gear to the Accord and squeegeed the windows free of the overnight dew so we’d be ready to go once the bus arrived. The bus arrived a couple minutes late.

Lindsey and I headed off in the Accord at 822am. There were no traffic issues. In kind, we made excellent time barreling around 270 to the

Sawmill Rd.

exit. I didn’t waste any time bringing up the financial arrangements. Long story short, she agreed to let us manage her money, but also said she had to sign a contract of sorts with Tristan from the Salvation Army agreeing to let her help with budgeting and stuff. She wanted to show me the contract, which I refused for driving. Duh! I only added that I don’t care what she signed with anybody else, if I am going to continue to be the shuttle and help get a car, I am going to manage her money until I feel that she’s got her finances under control. In fairness, I made sure she understood that we would not be taking a penny of her money for ourselves, but making sure all of her fixed and necessary variable expenses were addressed before anything else. She’s expressed worry that we won’t give her but $20 a week for a spending allowance.

We agreed to hammer out the details after work Wednesday at our house. I dropped Lindsey at work somewhere near 840am. Honestly, the conversation went better than I expected, though I did have to chop her off at the knees a couple times, reminding her that no one trusts her or is giving her much of a chance at turning her life around. I’m sure that hurt a little bit but it needed to be said. The old Lindsey would’ve gone off, but she managed to retain her composure throughout.

I arrived at the office at 850am. The first thing I did after booting up was check my calendar for daily meetings. Just one at 10am, and that one was tentative. Mindy called as soon as I was settled. She was anxious to hear how my conversation with Lindsey went. She was surprised. We agreed to discuss the details from our end when she and the kids get home later that evening. She reminded me that the kids have dental appointments with Dr Scott in Westerville at 6pm. They won’t be home until 730pm or so. Can you say ‘alone time’?

With urgent matters at a minimum, I decided to get an early jump on monthly reports. I typically don’t get the data graphed until much later in the month.  I stayed busy all day. I made a call about a Civic I found on Craig’s List. Turns out, the guy is a ‘whole seller’ up near Westerville. Assured me this is a sweet car. I told him I’d most likely stop by near 3pm, but after our call I realized that I’ll be up that way on Wednesday and it would make more sense to see it then. I didn’t bother calling him back.

I ended up working through lunch and didn’t bother eating my packed salad. I did eat an apple, banana, and cheese, though. I spent my afternoon putting the finishing touches on a process recap, which had been an ongoing issue for one of my customers for more than a month now. Believe me, it felt good to get it behind me, but I am also expecting that it won’t be the last of it.

I took a little time to do some personal writing during the last 20-30 minutes in the office. I left for the day around 510pm. The sun was just starting to set but shining brightly. Really pretty. It was warm too. I’d forgotten about it supposedly reaching 70 degrees. I arrived home near 530pm. As expected, Mindy and the kids were gone.

I did a few household chores, including reloading the coffee maker for Wednesday. I snacked on pita chips and jarlsberg dip while getting busy updating my blog.  It was nice to have the peace and quiet – something far less common the past couple months. I had ten days worth of blog entries to post. I didn’t’ bother proof reading any, which is something I like to do. Nothing worse than reading choppy grammar.

Mindy celled around 715pm to let me know that they were on their way home but stopping at Wendy’s first. Asked if I wanted anything. Nope! I was good with my after work snack. I kept at my blog until the family arrived home. Bella and Mindy insisted I come join them while they ate their dinner. The kids were eating Wendy’s and Mindy Big Fat leftovers. Bella was very proud of her dental check-up results. No cavities – no issues. Jacob had a good report too, though, according to Bella, Jacob was told to start flossing.

When they finished eating, I headed back to my PC to post some photos to several recent blog entries. It was after 8pm when I stopped for the night. I headed up to change into my flannel PJs and brush my teeth. I headed back to the family room where I insisted we tune the TV away from Bella’s kiddie TV programming to the Science Channel. She was disappointed but quickly over it. We watched The Universe, a program about a moonless Earth, and what it would be like. It wasn’t pretty. Like the past few evenings, I eventually fell asleep only to wake just after 10pm to dark an empty family room. I turned everything off and headed for bed.