Running Low on Enlightenment

I wasn’t up on Friday until 550am. I planned on working from home but didn’t think that would alter my morning routine much if at all. Took about 10 minutes to get through exercises: sit-ups, windmills, and push-ups. Afterwards, I woke Mindy and took her some coffee. Downstairs I enjoyed some coffee of my own while playing around online. I hadn’t really planned to delay my run, but time was quickly slipping away. As 7am neared I decided I would hold off on my run until Bella was safely on the bus.
I was still at my PC/
laptop and dealing with work when Mindy came downstairs. She asked when I planned to run. I shared that I would wait until Bella was off to school. Mindy left for work around 725am. It was another chilly start with temperatures in the low 50s but with plenty of sunshine. I stayed busy with work until Bella and I headed out near 810am. Shortly before we headed out I slipped into my running clothes. I planned to run shortly after seeing Bella onto the bus.

Chatted with Chrissy who was at the bus stop with Makayla. She asked if I was working from home. Yes. The bus was there on time. I walked Eiknarf out front long enough for her to fully relieve herself since that was her first walk of the day. I made sure that work was peaceful before heading off on my run.

It was a gorgeous morning for a run, but unfortunately my legs felt ridiculously tired. It took more effort than usual to get through the run, especially early on. I didn’t check the clock, but I am guessing it was near 9am when I got back to the house. I topped off my coffee and dug into work. I double checked my calendar to make sure I didn’t have any scheduled calls. Nope!

I whizzed through a couple tasks I take care of almost every Friday. I also dealt with a couple new issues brought to my attention by a peer. There was rain forecasted for the overnight and into Saturday morning. Getting the lawn cut during the day Friday then was a priority. Near 11am I took a break and headed out to get started. However, before doing any mowing I opted to pick-up and rake away several hundred fallen walnuts. I then spent about 30 minutes mowing with the tractor. Had it been a real day off work, I would’ve kept going. Instead, I headed back inside and worked for another hour or so. But sometime around 1230pm I headed back outside to finish the mowing with the Toro push mower. That didn’t’ take long at all – no more than 15 minutes.

I didn’t plan to whack and edge, but did plan to blow. I wouldn’t do that, however, until a bit later. For the time being, I headed back inside and dug back into work. I stayed busy for another 90 minutes or so before heading out to blow-off the walk and drive. The lawn looked pretty nice, but I could see that it was getting a little dry. I’ve had the irrigation system turned off since last weekend.

Both kids were home from school between roughly 3-4pm. Mindy, however, didn’t get home until almost 445pm. I couldn’t recall for sure if she told me she’d be at school late. By the time she got home our sunny day was pretty much gone. It had cooled off some too. I still hadn’t showered but planned to get one shortly. I waited on purpose, using that as my opportunity to clearly delineate my work day from home life.

Mindy and I had tentative plans to go to CBC. Mindy was taking Jacob to soccer practice while Jimaken agreed to pick him up after wards. At the same time, Bella was going to the Hilliard Davidson football game with Chrissy, Teri and kids. I showered while Mindy ran Jacob to soccer practice. It must’ve been about 615pm when Mindy and I left the house for CBC. I was covering for my boss all day, so I took my blackberry with us to CBC. We also took an empty growler. It was still in the Accord from last weekend.

Traffic was heavy getting into downtown, but we expected it given the hour. There was some sort of marathon going on downtown on the Brewery District which made the short drive from the freeway to CBC slow. No biggie. CBC had a sizeable Friday happy hour crowd. That was expected too. Like most visits, we didn’t have to wait too long at all for a couple stools to clear. We ended up with two stools against the glass patio wall. Vince served me a Bodhi. And then after some hemming and hawing, Mindy went with wine.

Vince asked if we cared for any appetizers. Sure. He offered Risotto balls. Yes! He brought risotto balls and bread. I mentioned to Mindy that while my Bodhi was good, it seemed a little thick. Wasn’t going down as easy as usual. Mindy wanted a 2nd glass of wine so I agreed to drive. In agreeing to do so, I didn’t plan on having more than 2 beers. We ordered food pretty quick too. Mindy ordered calamari and I ordered wings. We also alerted Vince that we wanted another order of wings for take home. He wisely shared that they wouldn’t put the order for a while.

Jen, the general manager, came by and quietly shared that their last keg of Bodhi was about to blow and that they wouldn’t have more on tap for 2 weeks.  Mindy quickly asked Kevin, who was also working the bar, to fill our growler. Sadly, he got about 20 ounces in the jug before the keg blew. Dang it! Before I forget, Kevin is a musician and loves Todd Rundgren. Told me that he’s coming to Cleveland for two nights, Friday & Saturday October 12 & 13. Hmm? I suggested to Mindy that we make a weekend trip out of it.

Vince allowed me to pour the little bit of Bodhi from our growler into my pint glass. He promised to get us another growler of regular IPA to take home. Cool! Jacob was at home after soccer practice, so we didn’t plan to stay too late. I’m thinking it was near 830pm when Mindy asked for our to-go order of wings. I picked up the check. We had to take the back way home due to the marathon, which was still underway. We took the alley that runs from Short St just north of the Kroger to Front St and then took it to Greenlawn and eventually 71N to 70W. I saw a flash of light. Asked Mindy if that was lightning. Hmm? As we neared home it was apparent that some significant rain had moved through. Cool, we needed it.

Jacob was waiting patiently for his wings at home. While he enjoyed wings, I changed into my lounging clothes. While getting changed a storm whipped up, blowing wind, lightning, and fairly heavy rain. That lasted for at least an hour, and the rain kept coming down even after the wind and lightning stopped. Mindy had only two glasses of wine but sounded as though she’d drank an entire bottle. She headed to bed around 915-930pm. A few minutes later Bella came running home. Said the football game was canceled. Kenny called a few minutes later to confirm that she made it home.
Jacob, Bella and I were watching TV when my Droid rang. It was Sean & David calling. Obviously, Sean made it to David’s. We talked for about 10 minutes agreeing that the three of us should hook-up. Losing Geno out of the blue last summer was a sobering experience. The kids headed to bed around 1030pm. I stayed downstairs a while longer until I fell asleep on the sofa. I headed for bed around 11pm.