My Own Furry Vengeance

I was up by 545am and quickly downstairs to begin my typical work day regimen. I stepped out onto the deck real quick to measure the weather. Looked like it rained a little overnight and was once again cloudy, warm and steamy.

I completed 50 sit-ups then 40 curls by 555am. I poured two cups of coffee, one for myself and one for Mindy. I delivered Mindy’s before returning to enjoy my own. She reminded me to check on Jacob. I was surprised to find his bedroom light already on and him lying there in bed awake. Cool!

I played around online until 620am. According to the weather forecast, the recent pattern of clouds and scattered rain will end by Wednesday morning giving way to a few days of sunshine and warmth. Sadly, though, expected to cool down to the low 70s with rain back in the picture by Saturday. We’re losing our warm summery weekends in a hurry.

I was pretty much on track time-wise finishing meditation and stretching by 633am. I was dressed and out the door for my run before 640am. I ran the full 4.1 miles with my hamstrings feeling as taught as they have in the past week or so. They finally loosened up about half way into the run.
I was back at home soon enough to walk the dog. Mindy brought the pug’s leash to the door to help out. Our walk was quick, efficient and effective. Mindy was leaving just as Eiknarf and I made our way back up the drive. She reminded me about the roast in the crock pot, and asked me to turn the heat down to low before leaving for work. Sure, dear.

Bella took care of feeding the pug while I got busy eating my eggs. Mindy packed me a salad and prepped a fresh fruit tray the afternoon before. It was nice to have fresh fruit for work again. I emptied the dehumidifier then headed up for a shower. Took a few minutes longer than usual to ready. Wasn’t back downstairs until almost 8am. Bella wasn’t downstairs until about 804am and then got behind in a hurry after struggling to get knots out of her shoes. I rushed her out around 808am while she was rummaging for her daily planner. Said it was in her book bag Friday. Said he mom must’ve taken it out. Yeah! Let’s get moving.

Turns out, the bus was about 5 minutes late. Kenny was at the bus stop, I think for the first time this school year. Much of his company’s work projects have been out of town late summer. We chatted briefly after the bus scooped up the two girls. Eiknarf and I headed back home where I took care of several last minute tasks, including the crock-pot, loading and running the dishwasher, packing up my laptop, and then enjoying another quick cup of coffee. I actually was looking forward to a return to work after the drab weekend weather. I left the house around 825am.

Arrived at the office around 840am. The hallways seemed as deserted as they do on Friday’s. Didn’t look like any of my peers were working in the office. Didn’t look like my boss was in the office either. He was, however, online. I guessed him working from home. I wasted no time at all pulling the August monthly report data. In fact, I started pulling some of it from home earlier.

With few distractions, I was able to spend pretty much the entire morning on monthly reports. I made a lot of progress. I ended up skipping a formal lunch break and kept the moment going. My boss stopped by midafternoon to chat briefly. Shared a bit of good news about a former peer. Until then, I didn’t even realize he was in the office. He must’ve come in some time after lunch.

Mindy called my desk phone around 330pm. She sounded horrible, her voice all but gone. Shared that the skies were threatening rain and thought perhaps that Jacob’s soccer practice might be rained out. Reminded me that she planning to pick Jacob up from soccer while I picked Bella up from gymnastics since they both end at 730pm now. She shared that she wouldn’t be home from dropping Bella at gymnastics until sometime after 6pm. I almost certainly beat her home from work. Said we’d have dinner as soon as she was home.

I left the office around 520pm. I tried to call Mindy but my Hands Free link wasn’t recognizing any paired phones. That happens sometimes. With my phone in my backpack in the trunk, I couldn’t make any calls. No biggie. The sky looked to be clearing finally to the west. There were still some rather ominous clouds lurking just to the east. I arrived home around 540pm to an empty house. The roast smelt delicious. I quickly prepped Wednesday’s coffee then rinsed my lunch containers and put ‘em in the dishwasher. I cheated and tried some of the roast. Yum-yum!

I decided to step out on the deck and check on the flowers after noticing a large pile of potting soil under each hanging basket of geraniums – squirrels! Sure enough, the dug softball sized holes in the middle of the baskets severing the roots on many stems. Not only was there a big mess but my flowers would almost certainly die too. What next, a giraffe? I was furious. I did my best to scrape up some of the spilt potting soil and add it back to the baskets. I borrowed some from the already ailing tomato plants too. After getting both pots back in order I watered them well then rinsed the excess and mess from the deck surface.

I was still angered by the damage as I headed back inside. Mindy and Jacob got back from dropping Bella at gymnastics just as I finished. Apparently Jacob’s soccer practice was canceled. Mindy confirmed that it was. I shared my squirrel damage story in a rage. The critters are getting the best of me this summer. First it was the birds nesting in the Ivy, then the geese, rabbits, ground hog, and now squirrels. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Jacob likened my battle with the local animal kingdom to the movie Furry Vengeance.

Mindy quickly prepped our dinner. All along, I was certain the roast was beef. Mindy promptly corrected me and shared that it was pork. Hmm? Regardless, it was very good. I had a helping and one half of pork roast along with half a baked potato. Jacob headed out to play with friends after dinner. I handled kitchen clean-up. Despite Jacob's soccer practice being canceled, Mindy asked if I would still go after Bella. Yes. It ends at 730pm and it's further than the old place. I left the house at 713pm.
I jumped on 270S which is still under construction between the 270/70 interchange and Georgesville Rd. Been that way since the end of summer 2011. And from the looks of it, it's going to be another 8-10 months before it's finished. Even at 715pm, the on ramp from 70W to 270S was backed up. But lucky for me, it cleared up quickly. I arrived at Gotta Flip Twisters right about 730pm. Place was teeming with kids. I'll bet there were more than 50 in total, although in different programs and disciplines. Bella's coach had the girls seated and was talking. I waited in the wings so not to disrupt the goings on. Soon it was a mass exodus. Bella and I were one of the first cars out of the lot. Said she enjoyed herself. Good.

Bella alerted me on the drive home that she hadn't yet completed her homework. She needed to get on it right away. I asked if she knew where Landon's (Jacob's old 12" bike) was. She did not. Around 8pm I grabbed the TV remote and surfed for some family type entertainment, but found none. I ended up tuning into the DNC. I ended up watching for the rest of the evening. There were a number or moving speeches and notable speakers. Mindy and the kids bailed for bed shortly after 9pm. And if Mindy was sounding bad earlier that morning, she was even worse then. Her voice was all but gone and her cough worrisome.

I stayed downstairs watching the DNC until 1030pm though I dosed off a time or two but only briefly.