Fake Winter

Lip synching?

I was up, out of bed, and downstairs a few minutes after 530am, or just as the coffee maker kicked into gear.  I glanced out back. I could tell that it was cold by the thin coat of frost covering the deck's surface. Sky was clear too, making it look even colder. Lots of stars visible as well.

Slipped into my exercise shoes then headed to the living room where I breezed through 50 sit-ups. Coffee was ready a few minutes later. I pulled the coffee carafe before the 'I am finished' beep sounded. I then headed to the PC where I spent the next 15 minutes or so enjoying coffee and internet. It was a cold 28 degrees. I checked both the MRM and Holiday Valley websites. Both professed to be making snow. That did my heart some good. Should be cold enough for making snow for the next 4 nights.

Didn't get around to meditation until 605am. Though brief, meditation was better than it's been in recent days. I delivered Mindy's coffee next. Probably near 615am. Said she was feeling better. Headed back to the family room to stretch and then dress for a run. Happy to report neck, back, and shoulders all feeling good, and that's without the help of Advil.

Dressed warmly wearing running shorts under my tights and the ear covers under my toboggan. The older I get the more comfort & warmth I seek ahead of my run. I was out the door right at 630am. This was a Beacon singers rehearsal morning which meant I needed to be on the road with Bella and Makayla no later than 740am. I cut my run to three miles to ensure I was back with enough time to eat & shower without panic.

I was back from my run around 7am. Mindy wasn't yet downstairs but on her way. She brought the pug, who I still took the time to walk. Forgot to mention that it was trash day again. For the 2nd week in a row, our can was full or close to. The dredgers were standing in the dark looking over the previous day's work. Not entirely sure what they planned to do. Didn't ask.

I reminded both kids that we'd need to leave the house by 740am. Jacob pitched one saying he wasn't going to school that early. Yeah, you will. Mindy was just starting my eggs. I asked if I had time to shower beforehand. Yes, she encouraged me to do so.

Mindy was talking with Chrissy when I returned showered and dressed. Plans apparently changed. Kenny took their kids to an early ortho appointments freeing Chrissy. In kinds, she was more than agreeable to see Jacob on the bus at the regular time. His lucky day, I guess. It was Chrissy's b-day, too, 33rd I think. Happy b-day, Chrissy! Before leaving for work, Mindy reminded me of Jacob's DARE graduation at Memorial Middle School. Starts at 615pm, but she plans to have him there by 545pm. I planned to meet them there.

My eggs were ready. I woofed them down while at the same time encouraging Bella to be ready to go in 7 minutes. It was 730am on the nose. I headed out to warm the Accord around 732am. It was completely frosted over. Jacob headed down to Chrissy's a couple minutes later. Makayla came down in exchange.

The girls and I headed off at 745am. It was a quick drive to Beacon. Dropped the girls out front just before 8am. Watched to make sure they were completely inside before pulling away. Arrived at work not five minutes later. Took a premium parking spot up front. The sun was shining as I entered the building. A lovely winter-like morning. My boss was already there. I was a little surprised, but not sure why. He's one of those that works 10-11 hour days and then through the night via his electronic tether. Nature of the business we're in.

I spent my first hour catching up on several non-urgent to-do's. Almost forgot about our 9am staff meeting. Joined the team in the conference room at 902am. The meeting was brief, only 30 minutes. Not a whole lot of data. A few of us stuck around after the meeting to discuss other work matters.

I probably spend more than half my time anymore doing reports of one form or another, and that's pretty much how I spent the rest of my day, compiling monthly reports.  I actually enjoy crunching and analyzing numbers, and then telling a story with graphs and charts. I can get lost in it. Time sure flies by too.

Near 5pm, I found myself reviewing my year end time-off/leave balances and discovered some inaccuracies that impacted me negatively. I was determined to get it corrected before leaving. We have a new system for tracking time-off, and I hadn't seen the year-to-date roll-up prior. I was able to figure out the error and made the corrections necessary to ensure that I was carrying over 80 hours of vacation time into the new year.

I finished everything I needed to then left for the DARE graduation around 535pm. I'd almost certainly arrive early, but I wasn't too concerned. Traffic through west Hilliard wasn't an issue. I arrived at the middle school by 545pm. I parked in a less populated lot on the eastside of the school. I sat in the Accord for few minutes but then decided to go ahead and head inside. I spotted Jacob in the warm-up room with all of his classmates in their DARE shirts. The auditorium was just across the hall. I snapped a quick photo of the unsuspecting kids then headed across the hall to the auditorium. Mindy had a seat saved for me. Gloria was there too. Bella, meanwhile, was one row back with Kenny & Makayla. No Chrissy. Apparently she had one last final before her college graduation the following morning.

We waited for a good 20 minutes or more before the graduation ceremony began. Seemed like a lot of trouble for such an event. Officer Metz lead the ceremony starting out with some amateur comedy and introductions. We had to endure the Hilliard Mayor, chief of police, and a city council member as well as a handful of the Beacon teachers.

Finally, the ceremony took aim at the kids. For starters, they singled out a number of the kids for special achievement awards. One was recognized for taking the biggest hit from a bong without choking. And still another for their beer chugging prowess. I was impressed with her demonstration. I mean, had I not seen it for myself I wouldn't have believed an 11 year old girl, no bigger than  minute could drink that much and so fast. A third was recognized for raising the most money through a bake sale. And I'll bet you can guess what was in those wildly popular and yummy brownies. Some parents seemed surprised and perhaps a little put out. I wasn't.

About midway through we had to endure music. The kids sang a song. Jacob being one of the tallest 5th graders, stuck out like a sore thumb. He stood their tall and stiff, hands uncomfortably at his side showing next to no emotion and barely moving his mouth. I could tell he wasn't actually singing. If anything, he was lip synching. Several parents asked for their money back only to be reminded they hadn't paid a thing.

The ceremony must've lasted 90 minutes. At the conclusion officer Metz made the crowd endure a corny photo show he put to some of his favorite country music. He peddled CDs of the same after the show for $5.

All kidding aside, I think the program is a good one, but a bit overdone. I think an extension of DARE should be incorporated into regular school curriculum including topics like: coping, tolerance, & conflict resolution.

We stuck around after the ceremony long enough for Jacob to buy one of the photo CDs and then have his DARE t-shirt signed by the chief of police. Now close to 8pm, I was hungry and ready to get home. Because we drove separately, Mindy asked me to take the kids while she ran her mom home. Bella rode with me, but Jacob surprised us both and asked to go with Mindy. Bella likely had ulterior motives. Yep! Once in the car, she asked if we could stop for fast food. I guess she figured me her best chance. But I said no. Mindy had the pork roast form the night before reheating in the crock-pot at home. I was craving that.

At Mindy's request, I put Bob Evans mashed potatoes in the microwave. Mindy was home 10 minutes later. Jacob asked Mindy to make the leftover pork roast into pork taco meat. I suggested otherwise, offering instead that she mix some with taco seasoning in a small bowl separate from the rest. She ran with that idea. And by the time everyone had finished their dinner and the kitchen was cleaned up, It was near 9pm. Bedtime for all of us wasn't too far off.