Sun of a ...

I was up right on time. In fact, I even rolled out of bed a few minutes early. Once downstairs, I glanced out back to put an eye towards the weather. It was wet and obviously above freezing. Next, I grabbed my exercise shoes then hit the go button on the coffee maker on my way into the livingroom for sit-ups. Knocked those out in a hurry.

While waiting on the coffee to finish its brew cycle, I organized some recent mail/bills. Headed to the PC with coffee in hand near 545am. There I checked the weather, headlines, and read the Daily OM. It was warm alright – a spring-like 48 degrees. We were currently in between two cycles of rain. I studied the local radar carefully to try and time my run so to avoid the heavy stuff that was coming in the 2nd cycle. I was fortunate. It didn’t look like the heavy stuff would hit until 8am or after, but it looked to be packing lightning and thunder – red on the radar.

They were forecasting a high of 55 degrees with strong winds and heavy rain. Supposed to be below freezing again Wednesday through Friday with a slight chance of snow.  In other words, more back and forth. It is what it is. The adjusted high for Saturday at MRM was now predicted to only reach 33 degrees – definitely cold enough to ski. I sent a note to a few ski peeps sharing the good news.

I headed to the family room for meditation at 6am, or slightly after. That went exceptionally well. Near 615a when I finished, I hustled upstairs to wake Mindy with a cup of coffee in hand. Back downstairs to stretch and ready for a run. Stretching went well, too. Because it was so warm, but also sprinkling, I was a little torn while choosing my layers. In the end, I opted for a thin, long-sleeved wicking shirt, my pullover fleece, and a toboggan but without the benefit of ear covers underneath. I didn’t wear hand covers, either.

I headed out the door a minute or two before 630am and ran the full 4.1 miles. It was trash day, though I didn’t see or hear any sign of the truck until near the run's end. I stayed fairly comfortable with my selected attire. I did well. Before heading inside, I drug our empty trash can back to its resting place.

Inside, I waited for the pug. And while I managed to avoid the heavy rain, I was still fairly wet, both from rain and sweat. I walked Eiknarf heading towards the O’Connell’s house. She took care of business fairly quickly.

Back at home, Mindy was eating some yogurt and offered me a bite. She had my eggs ready, too. She left for work after reminding the kids to bus home with Noah.  I was off to the shower shortly after finishing my eggs.

I wore a pair of well-seasoned black Dockers and a button-up dress shirt. I looked and felt terrific. I was downstairs throwing together a lunch by 757am. I packed some cheese, banana, yogurt, and a salad that I threw together quickly. The kids joined me downstairs at 805am. They asked how they might dress for the weather. I suggested hoodies. The sky was your typical winter gray directly overhead, but to the northwest the sky was darn near black. Looked scary, much like a summer time thunderstorm rolling in.

Kenny was at the bus stop with the girls and both pugs. We talked about the crazy up and down weather forecast. The bus arrived a couple minutes early. I headed back to the house for another cup of coffee. I didn’t bother thawing the Accord given that it was so warm.

I left the house for work around 825am. It had just started to rain fairly hard as I walked out to the car. I thought about turning around and grabbing my umbrella but didn't. Screw it! Gas prices, I noticed, were back down to the $3.25 range after spiking last Thursday & Friday to about $3.60. I was getting low and figured to be filling up before Wednesday’s New Albany drive, but didn’t want to do it right then. I still had about a 1/3 tank.

It rained hard during my drive in, but slowed a little by the time I arrived. That’s good because I had to park in the far lot. All the up-close spots were taken, I ‘m sure, by those trying to avoid getting drenched. Smelt like spring rain.

The morning was fairly busy. I got involved in a couple escalations I needed to stay involved in through resolution. My plan was to spend my day studying the monthly report I’d be presenting on Thursday AM ,but that never happened. In addition to managing a couple escalations, I helped a peer with a problem. That ended up consuming more time than I imagined it might.

As the afternoon waned, it was looking like I might get out of the office on time and perhaps even a few minutes early. However, just before 5pm, we experienced a major issue requiring my attention and intervention. I ended up at the office until things calmed, and unfortunately, that wasn’t until after 630pm. Things like this seem to have a knack for occurring on date night. I talked with Mindy just after 5pm warning that I might be late. Even though it was date night, we decided not to do dinner out. Instead, we planned to stay home and relax. Part of the reason, we planned dinner out on Wednesday with Lindsey and the boys in celebration of her 28^th b-day.  I called Mindy again just before I left the office.

Arrived home near 7pm. Everything Mindy had to move for the carpet cleaners on Monday was put back in its place. She also had dinner on the stove. It looked like Smoked sausage, and smelt terrific. It was just she and I. Again, this was date night. The kids were with their dad. Didn’t expect them home until 8pm. Mindy was proud of her creative sausage concoction, and it was incredibly delicious. A fairly simple dish, too - smoked sausage, can of Ro-Tel tomatoes, and fresh spinach sautéed on the stove.  She served it with chicken rice. We both had two helpings. Yum-yum!

Meanwhile, the evening was flying by, helped along, no doubt, by my late arrival home. Didn’t finish clean-up until 740pm. Before the kids got home, I spent a little time editing and updating recent blog entries. The kids were home near 8pm as planned. While the kids readied for bed, I returned to my PC for more blog work. I poured a pint of Bohdi to enjoy at the same time. And boy was it good! Got caught up through Monday, including the addition of a few more pics. It was after 9pm when I finished my play.

By then it was time to tuck in the kids. Jacob was hosting Eiknarf for the night. Mindy headed to bed soon after the kids. And like I generally do, I headed back downstairs to catch a little TV. I tuned to one of the knowledge channels watching The Universe, and an episode all about our sun. Most I already knew but had forgotten. Still, fascinating stuff!

93 million miles from Earth

1 million miles closer or further, we’d either bake or freeze

5,000 miles thick plasma

The sun rotates, but different sections at different speeds thus creating thousands upon thousands of magnetic poles.

At its center, takes 35 days to rotate one full revolution. Closer to the poles, 25 days. Probably would be more accurate to use the term 'Earth days', but they didn't.