S of the U

I was up at 535am and downstairs a few minutes later. I felt good and seemed to have my energy back. I did my calisthenics then enjoyed coffee and internet for about 15 minutes before heading upstairs to wake Mindy. At 615am I returned to the internet just long enough to get a better feel for the current weather conditions. I then spent the next 20 minutes meditating and stretching.

I left for a run around 645am, well ahead of Jacob heading out for the bus and also early enough that I'd almost certainly be back in time to see Mindy before she left for school. I ran 4.1 miles without incident. Felt good. It was about 34 degrees and cloudy, so the weather wasn't of any concern.

As expected, Mindy hadn't left for school yet. I walked the pug, gone for approximately 10 minutes. Mindy left for school shortly after we got back from our walk. There were cheesy scrambled eggs waiting on the stove. I dished up some for me then rationed off a portion for the eagerly waiting pug. As is usually the case when Mindy makes scrambled eggs, there were more in the pan. I eventually dished those into a small container and placed them in the fridge.

For the first time in a while, I showered before seeing Bella onto the school bus. Was back downstairs by 8am. Threw together a work snack though my boss and I had tentative plans to lunch together before or after a customer meeting.

With Makayla and family still at Snow Shoe, it was only us at the bus stop. She showed up around 815am as expected. I fooled around at home not leaving for the office until about 845am. Arrived at the office at 9am sharp.

I had a busy morning that included two important conference calls. My boss and I left for our onsite meeting just ahead of noon. We agreed earlier to skip stopping for lunch. I was happy eating some of the snacks I packed. Arrived about 30 minutes ahead of the scheduled meeting start time. We met up with a couple other team members before it began.

The meeting started at 1pm and lasted about 35 minutes. Went well. We didn't hang out too long. Headed straight back to the office arriving somewhere close to 215pm. I spent the rest of my afternoon putting the finishing touches on a monthly presentation in preparation for Wednesday. I finished up and left the office for a couple errands and home around 415pm. My first stop was Aspen Ski & Board, where I dropped off my Mantras to have then tuned (edges and wax). Looked around a little bit, but bought nothing else.

I left there taking Tremont south to Lane Avenue. Last second decided to stop in at the Kingsdale Saturday's for a much needed haircut. My last cut didn't work out so well. Not only was it cut a tad too long, I have to trim it up myself, too. Not a big deal. It grows back quickly enough only to be cut again. There I met Emily, a young Arlingtonite who works their part time. She was noticeably pregnant - 7 months so. She was fun to chat with and did a decent job cutting my hair. Was out of there near 5pm.

Mindy called just as I was getting back on the road for home. She was just leaving school after a couple planned parent/teacher conferences. She reminded me of the evening's agenda which included her running Bella to gymnastics and then making salmon patties for dinner. She knows I don't care for them, the expectation being that I would eat leftovers. I planned to have the rest of my Dragon Palace War Su Gai.

Got home before 530pm. Wasn't there even ten minutes though before Mindy left with the kids to drop Bella at gymnastics. While she was away, I played on the computer some while also snacking on chips and salsa. Read about the State of the Union address happening later that evening. I planned to watch.
Mindy & Jacob weren't gone that long. Back by 610pm. Mindy quickly got started on the salmon patties while I curled up in the family room chair for a nap. I slept good for an undetermined amount of time. She woke me when my leftovers were ready, which she reheated in a stone pan. They were good, though perhaps a little dry. But better dry than runny!

I was still tired. Mindy picked up on that and offered to go after Bella as long as I agreed to take over kitchen clean-up Deal! That's a deal I'd take almost every time. Cleaning up the kitchen is something I enjoy doing. I suspect the almost instantaneous results as the primary reason why. I like seeing results quick.

After clean-up I changed into my PJs then tuned the TV to the Science Channel where I watched How It's Made until 9m when the State of Union began. I DVR'd two episodes of Strip This City that opposed the S of the U. I was amused with the pageantry of the S of U, all the dignitaries marching in in a predictable order, and a who's who of our government. It's a bit over the top. Form before Function.

Mindy and the kids wanted no part of the President's address. In fact, Mindy was off to bed before its start. In total, I watched probably the first 30 minutes, but only 10 minutes of that was Obama's actual address. Again, the first 20 minutes was the formal pageantry. I fell asleep by 930pm not waking again until it was over. It was sometime after 10pm when I secured the home and headed up to bed.