It was Wednesday and I was awake and out of bed just after 535am. By the time I finished brushing my teeth and made my way to the kitchen it was 542am. I slipped into my exercise shoes then slowly but surely made my way to the livingroom to whip out sit-ups. The first 25 were tough, but like most days, the second 25 were much easier. Onto windmills and push-ups next. All exercises were done by 552am. Went immediately for coffee and my PC. I crave that time like crack. Thee I spent the next 15 minutes or so reading headlines. headed up to wake Mindy around 610am.
Once she was awake I went back to my PC, but only for a couple minutes before moving on to meditation and stretching, but not before putting my power cord and mouse in my backpack while I was thinking about it.Took my dear old time with meditation and stretching. And by the time I was dressed for my run it was after 655am. I headed upstairs to wish Mindy well before my run. I knew she'd be gone by the time I got back home. It was 30 degrees, not too cold but not exactly warm either. I wore long johns, hand and ear covers.
I ran the full 4.1 miles without issue. My mind was very busy throughout. It was one of those runs when I had three miles in seemingly in the blink of an eye. I passed the older couple that walks most mornings twice. The pug was still in bed when I got back to the house. However, she must've heard me jingling the leash and was quickly on her way down the stairs eager for her morning walk.
We walked across the street with her taking care of business in relatively short order. Back at the house there were fried eggs waiting in the microwave. I zapped them for 12 seconds to get 'em real hot. Perfect! Bella had just finished her breakfast when I sat down. She was quickly off to her room with the iPhone. I enjoyed some fresh fruit - pineapple and strawberries with my eggs. Good stuff! A check of the clock, it was already 755am, hardly enough time to shower before bus time. Instead, I used the time to pack a lunch of fruit, cheese, nuts, and carrots.
Went to my PC again before heading out to the bus. Pulled up the link to the shuttle from SLC to the canyon. Time to head out with Bella. Headed to the bus stop with Bella and the pug. Asked Bella to add an extra layer. She was wearing only a winter fleece. She added a light sweatshirt hoodie underneath. The bus arrived near 815am. Hustled back to the house where I picked up where I left off on the shuttle booking. Got it about booked until it wanted paid via Pay Pal. What? No thanks. You can call and make a reservation too. Figured I would take care of that later that evening or possibly even on Thursday.
It was Wednesday, which meant I'd be working in New Albany. I left the house at 830am, but quickly realized I'd need to stop for gas. Darn it! I needed to join a call at 9am with a few work peers. A stop for gas all but insured that I'd be in transit at the call's outset. Gas was pricey - $3.75 per gallon. The Accord drank 14.5 gallons after 287 miles, or an average of 19.8 mpg.
Tried connecting my BB to my Handsfree Link before pulling out. Wasn't successful. Dang it! The clock struck 9am just as I was entering 270 north from 670. Dang it. I decided to dial into the call using my person l cell through the handsfree. had to tap in the password my hand though. Tough. I parked at 905am but sat in my car on the call until it wrapped up near 915am.
Inside, I got settled fairly quickly. Started our weekly call at 10am but there were only two of us, me and the manager who sites right next to me. We opted to end the call and talk face to face. Much better. :) We met again in his boss' office for the monthly service review meeting/call. My boss and a peer joined remotely. Went really well.
I worked diligently until 105pm when I left for lunch. I planned two stops, one at the nearby Kroger for Valentine's roses and then another at Macy's to look for another pair of tan Dockers or jeans. Kroger had a wealth of nice roses and in many colors. I opted for traditional red. I checked the stems for freshness. The price was good, though a bit higher than usual, but that was to be expected. I picked up some of Mindy's favorite chocolates too.
Onto Macy's, which is the opposite direction from the customer's campus. I parked just outside the Men's department. Real convenient. I found a pair of casual Dockers in light tan. I tried them on and liked the fit. They were on sale for $36.99. I decided to pull up the Macy's website on my smart phone and was able to access a15% shopping pass good for Wednesday only. Cool. That saved me another $5. Gone just under an hour total, I headed back to the office.
The afternoon went about as smoothly as it could possibly go. I really needed an afternoon like that, too, after the past week and a half.
Mindy sent me a text with an attached picture around 130pm. Looked like the hallway display that covers the entire stretch of wall outside her classroom was destroyed, ripped down, apparently by an angry 6 year old. Said she was pissed! Yikes!
Got caught up on several to-do's through the afternoon. Finally felt like I was in control again. Left for home around 430pm in hopes of getting home a little early. Mindy and I planned a dinner date. After all, it was a Jimaken night. I figured it would serve as our Valentine's Day date too. Called Mindy once I was safely on 270. We talked for a while, her sharing the details of the hallway art that was destroyed. Yep, and angry 6 year old destroyed it. Mindy shared her anger with the process.
As foolish as it sounds, they're not allowed to restrain a kid out of control. Instead, as long as they're not harming another person or themselves they have to let them go wild. Crazy! Not only did Mindy and her students have countless hours invested, but Mindy bought all the materials with her own money. At a minimum, I would have put the kid in a basket hold. 6 year olds need immediate repercussions to their transgressions. Mindy agreed but said teachers can lose their jobs if they even touch the kid nowadays. Cited examples of those that have. Oh boy!
We talked until I was a 1/2 mile from home. By then Jimaken was there to pick-up the kids. But they were already gone by the time I pulled up. Mindy was still seething over the school day incident. Couldn't let it go even as we readied for our evening out. We decided to visit the Pint Room, a new place on 161 just east of Riverside Dr.
Mindy's principal called her cell on our drive up. The call did some good, at least relative to Mindy's anger. They talked about the situation for the entire drive. She was calmer and laughing by the time we parked. I suggested each teacher keep a roll of duct tape. She and her principal seemed to like that idea. :) The Pint Room is new as of Xmas time 2012. They have 101 beers on tap and supposedly a top notch pub menu. We've been meaning to pay a visit for the last month.
We found two stools at a detached bar, but quickly transferred to a 4 seat able that had recently cleared. Our server's name was Kaylan. We struck up an interesting conversation with her over beers and dinner. As advertised, they had 101 beers on tap. I wanted to try two IPAs that I haven't had before. I opted for the Four Strings White IPA, first. Mindy went with the Epic stout. I asked about Bodhi. Recently ran out. Figures!
We talked and studied the menu, the school display thing still dominating Mindy's world. I all but polished off my first beer before ordering any food. By the way, I wasn't real excited about their 'pint glasses'. They're small and I'm betting they hold no more than 12oz. We got to know Kaylan better. She's a Junir at Otterbein studying graphic arts but also with a minor in business. I applauded the combination. Of course, Mindy has both of her degrees from there so they hit it off immediately.
We eventually ordered another round of beers and food. Mindy opted for the Irish, which is essentially their reuben along with another Epic. I went with the classic cheese burger, for which they use a blend of prime and Kobe beef and opted for a side salad in lieu of fries. Mindy went with sweet potato fries. For my second IPA, I went with one from Utah - Hop Notch. I liked it better than the Four Strings, more flavor.
My salad was delicious and my burger was decent. I tried a bite of Mindy's Reuben. It was tasty too. Her sweet potato fries were cold. Yuck! Like a lot of new food, beer joints, they use iPads and touches for orders and checks, essentially using a app and wi-fi for the entire transaction. Something happened and the system broke down during our dinner. :) About the same time, I got a call on my Galaxy III from Alarm Force sharing that they received an alarm from our home and wanted to know if we wanted them to dispatch the police. Duh! I explained that they were just out on Monday to re-do our motion sensors and that it was likely our dog, but that they should dispatch. Otherwise, why have a security system? I wasn't too happy with them.
Pint Room? In a twist of irony, they serve their beer offerings in smallish glasses that problably hold no more than 12 ounces.
We went ahead and finished out dinner then paid our tab. Because we were so close. we called Jimaken and offered to come pick-up the kids, thus saving him a drive to our house. Aren't we nice? We picked up the kids near 8pm. I joked with Mindy that Jacob's first words would be something to do with our leftovers. I nailed it. Immediately in the car he asked if we had leftovers. Too funny!
We had a friendly bet as to whether or not there would be cops at our house when we finally got home. Well, there weren't any cop cars, but there was a notice tapped to our door. It was a false alarm warning. Great! They appeared to have more information than us. They knew the alarm was from the livingroom motion sensor. Had we known that much detail and that there was no other alarm, we might very well of called the dispatch off too. What assholes! Alarm Force, that is.
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