Adding Flare

Before I was out of bed, Jimaken dropped Bella by the house so she wouldn’t have to endure Jacob’s early soccer tournament game. That had to be somewhere around 8-830am. I slept soundly and didn’t wake until almost 9am. I had a small headache but nothing a couple Advil wouldn’t cure. I started coffee then took a couple. By the time the coffee was finished brewing the headache was gone.

The weather was a mixed bag, periods of both clouds and sun, but the clouds prevailed. The temperature, meanwhile, was a chilly 41 degrees. I played around online for more than an hour before finally heading out on a run. Like most weekends, I ran just 3 miles. Mindy still wasn’t up when I got back home. I think she slept until almost 11am.

I didn’t bother moving my new desk into place. Figured I would do it later. Instead, I left it in the middle of the livingroom floor. Mindy, Bella and I made plans to go shopping at the Lane Avenue Pier 1 and then Bed Bath & Beyond. Talked about stopping at Giant Eagle too. Initially, the idea was to drop Bella at Jimaken’s around 2pm before the start of Jacob’s 2nd soccer game that day.

I showered around noon. Mindy made arrangements to stop by Lindsey’s and pick-up her dirty laundry sometime that afternoon. We left the house around 1230pm and stopped at Pier 1 first. There, Mindy picked up a couple knick-knacks. She showed me a couple pillows she liked. I asked what she’d been smoking and then accused her of horrid taste. Bella concurred. 

We drove to the other end of the lot to the Bed, Bath & Beyond. There we had a much more fruitful shopping experience. We picked up valances, rod, pillows, as well as new bedding for Bella. There were a few other items too. Our color and texture choices relative to the pillows and valances were a bit daring but we also understood that we could always return them if they looked hideous put together. It was after 2pm. I was starving having not eaten anything all day. I suggested a stop for lunch at El Vaquero. Bella quickly chimed in that she needed to be at her dad’s place. Mindy had Bella call about us simply bringing her to the soccer field later. That worked for Jimaken. We made a beeline for the Vaq.

We were quickly seated at a table in the main dining area. And as it turned out, we were seated right next to the McVey clan, who were there celebrating Lane’s confirmation. Darwin was noticeably missing having just left for work. I was hungry and immediately made a pig of myself with the chips and salsa. Bella soon shared that she wasn’t hungry. I ordered a full powered Coke for my drink. Can’t remember the last time I had a real Coke. Anyway, it was good. Ordered a #132, which consisted of a burrito, taco, and rice – beef. Mindy ordered something similar. And just like most Vaq visits, our food was served in a jiffy.

I woofed down very last bite of mine. Perhaps because I was so hungry, it’s never tasted better. Connie offered us some of Lane’s cake. Mindy and Bella partook. I did not. I’m guessing that we there for no more than 35 minutes. Mindy wanted to run to Giant Eagle. I asked if I could simply go home. Now with a full belly, I was incredibly sleepy. As soon as we arrived home and carried in all of our goodies, I rushed upstairs and jumped into bed. I tuned the TV to a cooking show then drifted off to sleep. Felt heavenly.

I slept for 30-40 minutes then woke feeling refreshed. I watched about 20 minutes of another cooking program before getting up and heading downstairs. Mindy wanted me to hang the new valances, but before doing that I needed to move my desk into place. I took my time swapping desks being extra careful not to take down my PC by mistake. Probably took upwards of 45 minutes. Looks really nice.

Just about the time I finished with the desks, Mindy was ready to run Bella to the soccer field to meet up with Jimaken and Jacob. I started hanging the valance as soon as she left. I had to move the new chairs and the end table out of the way. But even still, it didn’t take too long. Good call buying three valances to cover 72”. They seemed to blend well with the chair pattern, which I think was a concern for both Mindy and I.

Nephew Joe came in the door while I was finishing with the valances. Startled me since I wasn’t expecting anybody. Said he talked with Mindy and agreed to go shopping with her. She dropped Bella at soccer then came back to the house. She liked the look of the new valance so much that she immediately suggested she buy two more for the dining room window. I was OK with that. She planned to stop at the Hilliard Bed, Bath & Beyond while out shopping with Joe. There were a few other things she wanted to pick-up, too.

I played at my new desk while Mindy & Joe were off shopping. Spent more than an hour working on my blog and listening to Pandora. Had a nice relaxing time. Mindy dropped Joe by the house so he could make a date with a friend. She went on to run another errand though I am not sure where or what. Joe was gone less than five minutes later.

Mindy was home around 5pm. She made stops at Target, Giant Eagle, and Bed Bath & Beyond. They only had one valance matching our existing ones. Said she’d have to run back to the Lane Avenue store to get the other one we needed. After 10 minutes or so she decided to go ahead and run back to Bed Bath and Beyond. While she was away, I hung the rod for the dining room valance. Mindy also picked up some new knobs for my desk to replace the ones that came with it. I didn’t care for them because they were square and sharp. She said Joe picked the new ones out. Looked like coke bottle glass. I wasn’t sure about them at first but they grew on me in a hurry. I installed those while Mindy was away, too.
Mindy was gone no more than 30 minutes, and probably less. As soon as she was home I put the dining room valance up. It looks nice. As evening set in, we talked about whether or not to go out for dinner. At first, Mindy was in favor of staying home. Our late night Friday took its toll on her. But after another hour or so, she offered that we make a quick run to CBC. I wasn’t too surprised that she changed her mind.
We brushed up and left the house around 810pm.

CBC was fairly crowded, but like most weekend nights the crowd thinned shortly after our arrival. 9pm seems to be the hour. We were there at 835p. Vince and Emily were bartending. No Kate. We both ordered a Bodhi. And Vince saw to it that we had some bread and risotto balls too. Yum! Mindy was already tired, and I think the Bodhi only made it worse. She was fading fast and made it known to our CBC peeps. I followed up with a 2nd Bodhi while considering ordering dinner. I vacillated between the steak, artichoke dip, and wings, eventually settling on some wings. I thought Vince was joking when he shared that they were all out. Really? Dang it! I ended up ordering these chicken skewers. They were just OK.

Vince shared the new brunch menu with the two of us. Apparently that begins the first weekend in May, which means they’ll now be opened on Sunday’s from 11am to 9pm. It couldn’t have been much after 10pm when we paid our tab and headed for home. Mindy said she was ridiculously sleepy. IN fact, she rushed off to bed the second we got into the house. I opened a Southern Tier XXIPA that she picked up earlier while getting Jacob b-day party food. I made it through three or four sips before becoming extra sleepy myself. I corked my beer and headed for bed.