Chilly, Wet Trick or Treat

I was up Wednesday near 545am to more rain, wind, and chilly temps. Not complaining, though. Instead, just documenting the experience. As it was, we were far better off than our counterparts in the NE who were dealing with flooding, power outages, and lost homes. I did my calisthenics which included windmills, sit-ups, & push-ups.

Enjoyed coffee at the PC. Not surprising, virtually every Yahoo headline had something to do with Sandy. The current weather was light rain and 39 degrees. Expected the rain to subside prior to trick-or-treat. Any talk of postponing the event was pooh-poohed by the city.

Woke Mindy at 605am – right on schedule. Jacob was already up too. I did meditation and stretch then headed out for a run. I wasn’t looking forward to the drippy, chilly weather, but wasn’t going to let it stand in the way of my larger goals. I got late enough that I encountered Jacob and his peers at the bus stop. Jacob was flirting with two high school girls walking by on their way to the more distant HS bus stop.
I ran the full 4.1 miles, once again my legs feeling somewhat loose and alive. It’s nice when my attention is immediately elsewhere heading out for my run. Mindy was just about to depart when I got back from my run. Shared that Lindsey called wanting/needing my help with her car. Apparently broken down on/off Sawmill close to work. I had no bandwidth or time to deal with it and largely ignored the issue. I had to get busy on a report detailing Sandy impact, which I did from home even before eating my breakfast.

Off to the shower near 745am and downstairs again around 805a, or just minutes before bus stop time. Bella, the dog and I headed out near 810am. There we met Chrissy and Makayla. Once Makayla saw that Bella had gloves on she wanted hers and sent her mom in the house after a pair. She returned with justy one. I couldn’t help but laugh. Surprisingly, she took it. Chrissy commented about me wearing jeans, too. Explained that I was working remote and that my customer’s dress code is far more lenient that ours. The bus was along near 820am, and once the kids were scooped up I headed back home with the pug.

At the house, I enjoyed more coffee and sent that report I created earlier. My boss wanted it in hand prior to 9am. Once all that was taken care of I left for work. It was near 845am, and I needed gas. I stopped at the Circle K where gas was $3.37 per gallon. Drippy drive into the office, arrived near 915am.

We had our usual 10am call. That went well. As you might expect, a lot of discussion about the hurricane’s impact. Stayed busy all day helping with Hurricane Sandy issues. What a mess! At the same time, Lindsey was blowing up my phone with texts about her car. I genuinely feel sorry for her. She has no back-up plan whatsoever. Wants me to fix the problem – of course. I chose to largely ignore the many texts for most of the day, but come late afternoon I drafted a small response, mostly pointing out where she could save money and better prepare for such events. I mean, it’s not like no one saw this coming. Her car was proven unreliable almost from jump. Frankly, I’m surprised that it lasted this long. More immediate, she did have arrangements made for the kids and a ride home from work. Also had the car at the AAA repair shop just down the street from her office.

Talked with Mindy late afternoon. She shared that she paid to have her car towed to the shop. Told her that it threw a rod and needs a new engine. Nice! Mindy reminded me that it was trick-or-teat and that her mother was coming over to hang out through the event. I shared that I would end up working late since I had to have a report out around 7pm. Didn’t make sense to leave, rush home, and log back on again. I stayed at my customer’s location until 650pm.

Earlier, the weather forecasters thought that the rain would be gone by trick-or-treat, but it was still raining when I headed out in the dark to my car. Given the late hour, I decided to try 670 for the commute home. Good move. Pretty much wide opened. Called Mindy. The kids were off trick-or-treating and she and her mom were busy passing out candy. Said it was only a light drizzle there. It was pouring out east.

Passing the Circle K again on the way home, I remembered to stop in and by a Powerball ticket. The jackpot was $110 million! Once again, I forgot to bring our $4 winner in for redemption. Arrived home by 720pm. I was a little frazzled from the long work day, but Lindsey’s car situation was eating at me too. We didn’t talk much about it in front of Gloria. Mindy quickly dished me up a bowl of chicken tortilla soup. Not a lot of trick-or-treaters, maybe 5 groups after I got home. The house, meanwhile, looked a bit like it was under siege – hot chocolate cups on the table, leaves all about the floor, and otherwise a little messy. Kids were in and out. They both had friends over to trick-or-treat.

I offered Gloria my last piece of chocolate pie, in part to get her feedback. After all, it’s her recipe, and she’s been making them for several years. She said she’d take it home and have it on Thursday for lunch. I began to settle/calm as the evening wore on. The kids were back at the house just before 8pm. They all dumped their booty on the floor. I hadn’t planned on eating any candy, but once I got started I kept going. I’ll bet I ate 5 or 6 junior sized bars of one sort or another. No biggie! I suggested the kids should weigh their loot. Jacob and his friend did. Jacob said his weighed about 3lbs. His friend, Josh’s weighed a whopping 7lbs!

Mindy agreed to run Alana, Josh, and her mom home. They left the house around 830pm. While she was gone, not only did I change into my PJs, but also tidied up the kitchen a bit more. Mindy and the kids were back just after 9pm. Another 10 minutes didn’t pass before Bella began crying from her room that her stomach hurt horribly. Her cry was different – a genuine painful one. I could tell she was serious. Mindy went to her aid and gave her comforted and some Tums. It stopped the crying but apparently not the pain. Late, when Mindy and I headed to bed, Bella was in with us, and so was Eiknarf. We were in bed by 10pm.