School Girls

Slept in until almost 6am. Didn’t prep coffee the night before so that became priority 1. Quickly completed sit-ups, windmills, and push-ups. Push-ups were tough. Already 615am when I finished calisthenics and delivered a cup of coffee to Mindy. Downstairs, I poured my own coffee then played around online for a while. It wasn’t too long before I logged on my laptop and got my work day started.

Jacob headed out the door to catch the bus for the last time this school year without his book bag. Mindy was downstairs a few minutes later. I didn’t feel like rushing off on my run. Decided to hold off on my run until after seeing Bella off to school. I used the next 45 minutes to take care of a few work tasks. Eiknarf was finally out of bed and downstairs near 755am. I went ahead and took her on a short walk.

I could see the excitement in Bella’s eyes as we prepared to head out to the bus stop for the final time this school year. I told that they next time we did this exercise, she’d be at the top of the food chain relative to her class seating at the school. Hard to believe. Made sure to take my camera and snap a couple photos. Kenny was out with Makayla. Said he planned to golf across the street. Lucky you! The bus arrived a couple minutes early. Wished Mrs. Vanorder well.

I checked in with work then headed off on a run. It was 822am when I headed out. I had to hurry since I needed to join a 9am conference call. With little choice, I trimmed my run to only three miles. It was gorgeous – sunny and close to 70 degrees. Fairly easy run.

Even with trimming my run to three miles, I had little time to spare before joining my 9am conference call. I grabbed a beach towel from the laundry room to wipe away the heavy sweat. I joined the call a minute late. As it turned out, we spent most of the time we set aside for the call talking about another more pressing issue. The call went well passed the allotted half hour, but it was time well spent.

Spent the rest of my morning configuring a new online work tool. Took care of a couple month end administrative tasks, too. Late morning it rained pretty hard but it was so brief that one could hardly tell an hour later. In fact, by 1230pm, it was all blue skies and sunshine. My plan all along was to cut the lawn at lunch. I headed out a few minutes later determined to get the entire lawn done as fast as possible.

As a change of pace, I did the tractor piece first, which generally translates into more of the lawn getting cut with it rather than the push mower. In addition to the back, I cut about 2/3s of the front with the tractor saving myself maybe 15 minutes and lots & lots of sweat. Had all the mowing completed in about 50 minutes – near record time. After checking work email & a water break, I headed out again to trim, edge and blow. Finished the lawn chores in its entirety in about 75 minutes. Headed in to shower.

After a shower and fresh clothes, I spent the next couple hours wrapping up the work week. Jacoby, Bella and Mindy were home from school between 3 & 415pm. As you might expect, all of them in a good mood. Mindy picked up where she left off the evening before, prepping for her school’s out party, which was set to begin around 5pm.

Her friend Phyllis showed up first, and unless I’m mistaken, still before 5pm. I was still in my office working while the two of them hung out. According to Mindy, several teachers stayed late at school for a meeting, something to do with filing a formal complaint against their principal. Not exactly a good way to end the school year.

I called Tom Clark around 515pm, or just after I wrapped up my work day. Invited Tom to stop by for Mindy’s teacher gathering. Mindy invited the school psychologist that she wants Tom to meet. I wanted Tom to look at our basement roughed in drain configuration to help me decided whether we should or shouldn’t put in a shower. Said he’d be over in about an hour. Cool!

Mindy was a little surprised when her principal called sharing that he was coming to her party despite the heated disagreement with most of the teachers. I give him props for having the fortitude to make an appearance. And actually, he’s a very nice guy.

Some teachers I am most familiar with showed around6-630pm: Kerriane, Shelly, and Kim. Kerriane and Kim brought a bottle of grocery store rum. Asked me to mix their drinks. I did my best to keep their glass full.  Tom showed around 630pm too. At the time, Mindy was giving her principal, Bryan, a tour of our home and yard. They were still out back having a lengthy conversation. Many of Mindy’s teacher pals joked that they were putting their money on Mindy.
Tom and I eventually made our way to the basement to check out the roughed in drains. Tom shared a few clearance minimums that would be a struggle to meet should we choose to put a shower beside the toilet. Apparently there needs to be a minimum of 15” from the center of the toilet drain to the edge of a shower stall. He also identified where we’d have to bust up the concrete and a couple potential problems, none of which were show stoppers, but still needed to be considered. I appreciated the advice. To be fair, the drain rough in that I paid the builder to install 19 years ago was intended for a vanity sink and toilet.

Rejoined the others upstairs. Nearly half of Mindy’s teacher pals departed before 8pm. Jodi and Larry showed up shortly thereafter. I didn’t realize that Mindy sent them the invite but was happy to see them just the same. Bella and all of her neighborhood peeps were in and out all evening. The plan as I understood it was that all of them were staying the night at Kenny & Chrissy’s. Tom, Jodi & Larry were the last to depart. They were gone by 10pm.

Mindy and I started clean-up right as soon as all of our guests were gone. Took care of the low hanging fruit first, tossing half full cups and plates, and then putting away leftover food. At roughly the same time the girls were preparing to head down to Kenny & Chrissy’s. Bella left her room an absolute mess, so Mindy and I insisted she take care of that before leaving. For some reason, Makayla felt compelled to mock my curt instructions to Bella, which was to follow through without lip service. I sent Makayla home for mocking me. She wasn’t pleased but I didn’t care. We don’t do that at our house.

The rest of the girls helped Bella get her room tidied up. Took about 10 minutes. The entire gang headed next door for their sleepover. Once the clean-up was completed, Mindy & I slipped out on the deck to enjoy a beer and some quiet conversation. It had rained significantly earlier, so we sat on outdoor pillows that do a remarkable job of not absorbing water. I’m thinking we were out there until 11-1130pm or so.

With Myself

Was up and downstairs by 535am.

Exercise, coffee, & internet

Expecting it to be sunny & hot – near 90

Delivered Mindy’s coffee near 615am

Meditate & stretch

Left for a run near 635am. Ran 4.1 miles.

Saw Bella off to school at 810am – counting Thursday, only 2 more school days!

Moved the Accord curbside so I could drive the BM’er to work.

Left for the office by 830am. Busy work day.

Headed to Saturday’s for a haircut at lunch time. Gone about 40 minutes.

Left for home near 5pm. Jimaken & Jacob leaving for soccer practice just as I arrived home.

Mindy & Bella left to shop for last day of school party food and supplies minutes later.

Sent Darwin and Bob a text letting them know that I was heading to Barley’s. Drove the BM’er. Arrived before 6pm.

Enjoyed a Centennial and Hopiate. Ordered the Thursday special, a Reuben. I haven’t had one of those for a while. Talked with the twins, Kent & Kurt. Katie and Janet were working the bar, but Katie eventually joined me on the customer side of the bar. Bob I. sent a text asking if I was still there. Yep! Just as Katie was departing, Bob I. showed up. Bob & I hung out for 30-40 minutes. I asked Janet to put Bob’s beer on my tab.

First day of the Memorial golf tournament. The leader finishes -7. Tiger finished -1.

Headed home near 8pm. Mindy already had the kitchen decorated for her Friday end of school year party. She asked if I was working from home on Friday. I wasn’t certain. Other than that, we didn’t interact much. I spent most of the next hour or so on the internet, and Mindy headed to bed shortly after 9pm. I headed to bed near 1030pm.

Careless UPS Drivers

I heard the irrigation system kick on at 5am sharp. It was hardly detectible, but I knew what to listen for. It’s certainly not as loud as it used to be before we had the primary water meter replaced. I didn’t get up for good until 545am. By then the irrigation system was in the middle backyard. Good to see it going through its paces. The coffee had just finished its brew cycle as I slipped into my exercise shoes. I whipped out sit-ups, windmills, and push-ups.

Headed to my PC with coffee and remained there until 615am when I headed upstairs to wake Mindy. Back downstairs I immediately transitioned to meditation and stretching. And once again, both went extremely well. I finished both by 628am and without hesitation dressed and left for a run getting out the door by 635am.

Sun had only recently cracked the horizon and was quickly rising between houses. I absolutely love that time of day - stunningly long shadows and dappled sunlight kissing all the landscapes. Our front walk was nearly dry after it’s the season’s maiden full irrigation cycle. I ran the full 4.1 miles without any issues. The trash truck was by while I was away. Our can was lying on its side. I picked it up and rolled it back to its resting place before heading inside.

Asked for help getting the pug since I had grass clippings dangling from my wet shoes. Mindy went up after the pug, who sat looking for atop the stairs. We headed out for our usual 8 minute walk. Mindy was still inside getting ready to depart when we got back. Mindy left near 725a.

I quickly started breakfast and packed my lunch. Mindy had a tub of fresh veggies already setting on the island counter. I added fruit, nuts, and cheese. Decided to make a plain omelet. It was good for a change. I was off to the shower even before 745am. I had a dental appointment at 9am, so I was a little more deliberate with my flossing, though I do so every work day anyhow. I was downstairs ready to go by 803am. As soon as Bella was on the bus, I planned to leave the house.

The bus was a few minutes early.In fact, so early that the nw family had to run to make the bus. I asked Mrs. Vanorder if she planned to drive again next school year. Said she would be driving but was unsure of her route since they’re apparently closing the Roberts Rd & 270 bridge for quite a while. Yikes! That was news to me.

I left for my dental appointment at 832am and planned to take Trabue to Riverside to Fishinger. However, the turn lane from Trabue to Riverside was backed up for about a quarter mile. I opted to go straight through Arlington taking Cambridge all the way to Tremont then north. That proved wise. I arrived by 845am.

While waiting to be called back, I perused a Home Decorating magazine geared to the greater Columbus metro area and highlighting the upcoming parade of homes. Neat stuff! Called me back just before 9am. First thing, Heather, my regular hygienist, asked me about the broken molar. I shared what happened. Before beginning the cleaning, she took a look. Her opinion was that it would need crowned since the lingual corner broke off. Said no filling would hold against biting, chewing. I figured as much. In the end, she said Dr March was the expert and would take a look after my cleaning. They actually had me down for chair time to begin whatever repair would be necessary. I shared that as concerned as I was with the issue, I wasn’t in any pain and really needed to be across town for work by 1030am. She understood.

The cleaning went well. I asked Heather about their Zoom whitening treatment on daughter Ashley’s behalf. She reviewed the whole process, including the in chair process as well as the take home touch up kit. She also added that she’ll need to stop smoking for at least 48 after otherwise the treatment will fail. Really, she emphasized that she needs to stop permanently. Duh, for sure! She also shared that the new swabbing products being marketed on XM radio simply do not work as advertised. Lastly, she recommended a thorough cleaning before any bleaching, especially since she just had her braces removed. It all made sense to me.

She finished up in all of about 30 minutes and then sent me over to see Dr. March and Lora, his assistant. Lora and I chatted about kids and vacations before Dr. March joined us. One look at my broken molar both were adamant that it will need crowned. Dr March was ready to start. Also said he spotted a tiny cavity in an existing filling he thought we should fix. I shared my lack of time, so we scheduled another appointment for next Thursday at 1pm. It was just after 10am and I was on my way.

Outside and to my car, it smelt and felt like mid-summer – warm, steamy, with a handful of landscapers taking care of the grounds. I wasn’t real sure the best way to get to new Albany from mid-Arlington but quickly opted to take Tremont to Kenny to Henderson and then to 315 and 270. Bam! I arrived in New Albany at 1027am, pretty much on par with the expectations I set with the customer the night before.

What was left of the morning went by quickly. I left for lunch near 1pm and headed to the nearest Home Depot. I wanted to look at their canned lighting options. Turns out, H.D's. lighting department is far more organized than Lowes. Got a much better understanding of the options available. I'm now leaning more towards 4" cans. I learned ,too, how the eyeball style works in the same base can, which until then remained a mystery. Essentially there's a supplemental piveting socket that comes with the eyeball trim. I'm thinking we may use those near the walls and then over the island. Walked away with some good ideas.

Did a little browsing afterwards. Somewhat impulsively, I picked up three very colorful deck (outdoor) pillows. Figured if Mindy didn't like them then I could easily return them. We've been wanting to add several more to our horseshoe benches. Out for nearly an hour, I headed back to the office near 2pm.

Stayed busy through the afternoon which in kind help ensure it moved swiftly. Soon it was after 5pm and time to head for home. Like most commutes across town, I tried calling Mindy once I was safely merged onto 270. I knew Jacob had a soccer game but wasn't exactly sure where and what time. No answer.
Traffic was intermittently heavy in the prone zones but never too bad. Never did hear from Mindy so I opted to head for home. Because of all the freeway work taking place on 270 near Roberts and 70, as well as the Roberts Rd bridge itself, traffic on Roberts and then north on Wilson has been an absolute nightmare. And word has it that it's only going to get worse before getting better as they close the Roberts Rd. 270 bridge. Traffic on Wilson Rd N was backed up and at a standstill all the way from Roberts down to I-70. Glad I was going the opposite direction.

Just an observation, UPS has long held a reputation for safe drivers unwilling to take unnecessary chances in traffic, and typically very courteous drivers. And given that there's a terminal on Trabue near Wal-Mart I get to see lots and lots of their trucks in rush hour traffic. I've noticed much more aggressive driving style in the past year or so. That's something - if I were UPS brass - that I'd want to pay close attention to and would go to great lengths to restore/protect.

As expected, Mindy's Pilot was missing from the driveway. Home was all mine. Inside, I did my usual after work chores then snacked on nuts while checking email. I played a little guitar then headed out on the deck with my book and a glass of ice water. Although it was summerlike steamy, the chaise lounge looked like an incredibly inviting spot under the shade of the nearby maple.. I was out there for a while reading and napping.

Mindy and the kids were finally home around 745pm. I soon headed inside. Mindy was already off to the shower while Bella was in the kitchen eating. Who had Applebees? After her shower, Mindy was briefly downstairs where she greeted me as sleepy head. I asked about dinner. Looked to me that their hunger had already been satiated. I was on my own. Thanks!

It was an early evening and bedtime for all. Mindy and the kids were in bed shortly after 9pm. I had a bowl of cereal or two and stayed up watching How It's Made until just after 10pm.

Charitable Bella

Was up shortly after 530am feeling OK but also like I never got the deep, nourishing sleep my body craved. Had some strange dreams just before waking, too. That usually doesn’t bode well. I had to remind myself that it was in fact Tuesday – not Monday. As such, it wasn’t a push-up day. After calisthenics I retreated to my PC with coffee. It was only 550am. I had plenty of time to myself.

The weather, meanwhile, was cloudy with light rain, but warm – already 66 degrees. I stuck my head out the door. I felt like a summer morning. Muggy & sticky. Apparently our less than desirable weather was gone. Nothing but mid 80s and higher looking ahead.

Woke Mindy at 610am with a fresh cup of coffee. She asked that I turn off the ceiling fan. I did as much then headed downstairs for meditation and stretching. I am determined to get back on track with my routine which leaves me feeling more centered. Both meditation and stretching went well. Found myself slipping into my running clothes by 635am. Yippie! Headed out the door a few minutes later.

I ran the usual 4.1 miles working up one heck of a lather. Felt great. Got back home near 715am. Requested help leashing up the pug, who was dragging tail coming downstairs. My shoes were a tad wet so I didn’t want to tromp throughout the house if I could help it.

The pug and I were out the door a few minutes later and out for about 8 minutes. Mindy was just getting ready to head out when the pug and I got back. It was very near 730am, and I quickly got started making my breakfast and packing my lunch. Proudly, for the first time in a long while, I finished eating and was on my way to the shower by 745am.

Ready and downstairs by 8am. Had time to organize myself for my ultimate departure for work. Headed to the bus stop at 810am. Asked Bella how many more school days. 4! The bus pulled up on time. Headed for home with the pug. Still cloudy but appeared to be clearing. I was hopeful. Headed out the door for the office near 830am.

Got a blackberry call just as I was pulling up at the office. It was a customer needing help, and one I was taking care of for a peer, who was serving his first day of jury duty. Last he and I talked, he was unsure how long his duty might go on. As a consequence, I felt behind from jump, which is never a good feeling. My boss stopped by shortly after 9am. I was busy multitasking and could only muster a grunt or two. He laughed and shared that one should return with a smile after a three day weekend. Yeah, that is how life SHOULD be. 

Once I got over the initial hump, the day wasn’t so bad after all. Just seemed that way at the start. At 1pm I left for lunch and visited Lowes where I looked at their canned lighting options. Now that the basement is framed, the electrical stuff is next. Way more options than one might think. Different housing types, different sizes, different reflectors/baffles. Yikes! It became quickly apparent that I need to bone up on lighting design so we don’t under light, or for that matter, over light. And of course, we want it to look great, too.

Looked for vinca vines and algaecide, too. Couldn’t find either. Used the last few drops of algaecide that we had on hand for Mindy’s fountain on Sunday. Figured I would stop at Home Depot on my way back to the office to see if they had any.

Whipped into Home Depot and headed in through the nursery. Found some vinca vines right away. Cool. I bought 6 more. Also found algaecide. This time I bought a much bigger bottle. It should last for many years. Without it, the fountain water grows algae and turns green in a hurry.

Was back at the office by 205pm. Had to park in the far lot. Not used to the lot being so full. Stayed busy all afternoon, both with my customer base as well as with my peers. Left for home around 515pm. Failed to share that the sky cleared well before noon. Summer was back! According to my car, it was 84 degrees.

Talked with Mindy on my drive home. She was busy prepping dinner so our call was short. Arrived home around 540pm. By then Mindy was gone driving Bella to gymnastics. She was home again by 610pm. Our grilled salmon wasn’t ready until almost 640pm. It was delicious, though. As sides, Mindy reheated Sunday’s corn on the cob and made a fresh garden salad. By the time dinner was complete and clean-up started, it was time for me to go after Bella. During dinner, I sent Darwin a text asking if he wanted us to take Lane when picking up Bella. Unfortunately, he didn’t respond until I was on the road and near the Georgesville Rd. exit.

Made great time arriving at 725pm. Got to watch about 5 minutes of Bella’s practice. Once again, it smelt like a sweat shop. Ugh! Bella, bless her heart, told me that she donated the cash Mindy gave her for snacks to the tornado victims in Oklahoma. She was worried that Mindy might be upset and agreed to pay her back with her own money. 

She complained of being thirsty and asked if we could stop for ice cream. Uh, no! Ice cream will not cure your thirst. I did grant her wish to listen to 97.9 FM. Grueling!  Arrived home before 8pm. I headed out to water flowers front and back. Probably spent a solid half hour out there. Mindy took Eiknarf on a walk while I was watering out front. It’s somewhat surprising how quickly things were drying out after just one warm day. I soaked everything well.

None of us were up too much longer. Mindy headed to bed just after 9pm, but I could hear that she was watching TV. I stayed up and downstairs for another 30 minutes or so.

A Rainy Memorial Day

I heard Mindy get up to greet the boys, who Lindsey dropped off on her way to work. She came back to bed a minute or two later. I never did return to sleep, and a few minutes later when I decided it was time to roll out of bed, I was concerned that I might pay a heavy price – think horrible hangover - for all the beer and Jack Daniels shots consumed the night before. It was 820am, and surprisingly, I felt fine, though perhaps just a tad sleepy. Not wanting to risk jostling one loose, I moved slowly while brushing my teeth and gathering up my running clothes.

The boys were watching TV quietly from the sofa while I prepped coffee. I knew the question was coming. “Papa, can we have some coffee? “ I didn’t immediately promise them any, but ended up making them some the same way I typically do, with far more chocolate milk, whipped cream and caramel than actual coffee. Landon asked for peanut butter toast, too. Rocky wanted nothing else.

Not only was the weather gloomy, but it started raining lightly too. The day wasn’t supposed to be a wash. The rain was expected to diminish as the day wore on. The high was forecasted to only reach a balmy 70 degrees. At the time it was still in the low 50s, and with a chilly, light rain. A little later when Landon and I walked Eiknarf, we both were cold.

Mindy slept in until almost 10am. Once she was up, I readied and left for a run. It was raining when I left the house and rained on and off through the entire run. It brought back memories of Memorial Day’s past, when it seemed we couldn’t buy a summery forecast for the holiday. The last few, however, have been quite pleasant.

Shortly after returning from my 3 mile Sunday run, I lengthened the chain on our front porch hanging basket and bent the brace hook as far away from the garage wall as possible. Looked a lot more pleasing to the eye after I finished, but still not perfect. Inside, both boys wanted more peanut butter toast. I suggested that we head out and toss the baseball, something I knew Rocky likes. By then the sky was showing signs of brightening.

I think it was near noon when Jimaken dropped Jacob off at home. That surprised me a little. Rocky invited Jacob out to throw the baseball with us. Jacob was still in a funk and only told Rocky that he was annoying. The three of us, me, Rocky, Landon headed out in the neighbors back yard to throw the baseball. It was fun. Soon the sun broke through the clouds and mostly blue skies appeared. Hoorah!

Rocky soon ran off to see if Evan was home. Those two play well together. Landon and I kept tossing the baseball. We kept throwing it back and forth until Landon caught one with his head. I think it’s the first time I’ve seen him cry. The crying didn’t last long, and there didn’t appear to be a bump or contusion of any sort.

After baseball I relaxed inside for a while. I was feeling a little sleepy, no doubt a byproduct of Sunday evening’s antics. Sometime near 1pm, Mindy ran to pick-up Joe and Rick so they could get their car. Said she was going to stop at McDonalds for some chicken nuggets on the way back, too. While she was away, I napped on the sofa. Felt heavenly.

I woke 45 minutes later to a rush of noise. Not only was Mindy back home with Joe & Rick, but all the kids were in the kitchen for some chicken nuggets 9our kids, the neighbors kids). Joe and Rick suggested I was faking my nap. I got up and joined the others for some banter. Those two looked no worse for the wear whereas I looked like crap. Oh to be in my 20s again!

I nibbled on a few nuggets and fries and then had a bite of Mindy’s Big Mac before heading upstairs for a shower. Joe & Rick left to go complete Joe’s home move.

A shower was just what the doctor ordered. Felt fantastic. After a shower I headed out back again, only this time to hot a few golf balls. Sadly, given the ugly start to the day’s weather, that would be the extent of my golfing for the weekend. Haven’t been out even once yet this season. Shame shame!

Unbeknownst to me, Kenny had the same idea, and was practicing his swing, too, only he was hitting light weight (felt like Styrofoam) balls. We joked around a little. Mindy soon came out and walked over to chat with Chrissy. Landon wanted to hit some golf balls, and eventually walked over to Kenny’s where he fetched him another club. He played over there for at least an hour while I rested on the deck. Some grandpa I am.

Mindy kept working on Lindsey’s laundry. And at some point asked how I felt about burgers, brats and dogs for dinner. Fine with me. I was feeling a bit blue. I am sure it was a combination of too much partying, the less than favorable weather, and the end of the three-day weekend. Late afternoon I headed to the livingroom where I strummed the guitar then napped from the recliner. Mindy had earlier asked me to grill, but when I woke, she was already doing it. About the time all the fixins were ready she asked if I was ready to head to the neighbors. What? That’s right! Mindy strikes again. Apparently she made arrangements for all of us to cookout and eat with the neighbors but failed to share the plan with me.
I wasn’t happy that she didn’t bother asking/sharing her idea with me, but was feeling too lethargic to press the issue. I walked down to the neighbors carrying a tray full of con on the cob.

Kenny grilled burgers and steaks. The O’Connell’s brought twice baked potatoes that looked incredible, and Chrissy made green bean casserole. Dinner was delicious. I had a thick burger. And unlike the week before, this one was grilled to perfection (pink inside). While finishing the last bite or two of my burger, I bit into something incredibly hard with my right, lower molar. Eventually pulled a piece of bone from the burger. I did a quick check of the area with my tongue. No apparent damage. A few seconds later, I felt a corner from that molar come loose. Not good, a broken tooth. Dammit! I went to the bathroom to inspect. Yep, one of the lingual busted off the furthest molar. The good news was twofold. It didn’t hurt and I had a dental appointment already set-up for Wednesday AM.

We didn’t stay around too long after dinner. I apologized then excused myself for becoming really sleepy after eating then headed for home. Mindy and the kids followed.

Lindsey was at the house gathering her laundry. Apologized for not bringing her insurance money. Said she’d bring it the following day. Mindy helped her carry the laundry out. I took another nap from the recliner sleeping for as much as an hour. I wasn’t up from my nap for more than 15 minutes when Mindy said she was heading to bed. I joined her a few minutes later, but by then my mind was racing with work stuff and I just couldn’t sleep. I ended up getting up from bed and heading back downstairs for a few. Stayed up until 1015pm.

Jack Daniels

I was up fairly early, somewhere between 7 & 8am. I quickly started coffee on what was a brilliantly sunny morning. However, not trying to fool anyone, I was really chilly again – only 43 degrees. I enjoyed coffee at my PC for nearly an hour before heading out on a run. I ran the typical weekend route of 3 miles.

After my run, Mindy and I enjoyed coffee on the deck. It was warming nicely – already near 60 degrees by 10am. However, as good as it felt, it wasn’t expected to get warmer than 70 degrees all day. Mindy and I agreed to keep the boys on Monday while Lindsey worked. At the time, there was still a chance that I might be golfing. Mindy sent Lindsey a text letting her know that we would keep them and to bring her laundry then, too. I suggested we spend some time planting the flowers we bought the day before.

We headed upstairs to change into attire more suitable for yard work. We headed out about a half hour later. Mindy’s job was to sink the flowers she picked out for the tree stump planter. My job was to do the patio pot. We finished that in a hurry. Next up, Mindy asked if I was going to plant the althea (rose of Sharon) that I bought two weeks ago. Once those were in the ground, all of our flowers would be in the ground.

The spot where we wanted to plant the rose of Sharon is severely sloped, so it was a challenge digging the holes and cutting a quick bed. The Idea being to eliminate having to cut the grass there in the future. Took about30 minutes to get them fully planted. I used the sod I dug up to fill a couple bare spots in neighbor Trena’s lawn. I planted a few more cannas bulbs there, too.

Watered everything we planted really well. Mindy headed for a shower and then out to run errands. I think she had planned stops at Target & Kroger. I suggested she pick-up some more beer, too. Though, beyond heading to her brother’s place around 430pm, we didn’t have any other plans solidified.

While Mindy was away, I played around online looking for available vacation homes in the Outer Banks, just as Connie and I talked about the night before. Geesh! All the houses I liked were several thousand dollars for one week. One in particular was $12K. Hell no! It was gorgeous though.

I spent a little time catching up with my blog, too. I hadn’t published or posted anything for more than a week. I had written everything through Wednesday, May 22nd. Mindy called to ask me what beers I wanted her to get. We agreed on some CBC IPA and some more Southern Tier XXIPA. Took a shower before Mindy got back home.

We heard from the kids. Jacob’s soccer team won the early game. Had another one coming up later in the afternoon. If his team won that game, then they’d be heading back again on Monday for the championship game. We left for Todd’s place near 415pm and arrived about 20 minutes later. He lives all way out near where Jennifer Eickel lived as a teenager – out near Norton & Grove City Rd. Nice place.

Several family members already there. Met Joe’s new interest, Rick, for the first time. Seems nice and a good match. At last year’s Memorial Day birthday event it was scorching hot – about 95 degrees. Todd had the misters running that day. This year was a different story. It was sunny but mild – close to 70 degrees. It felt really nice until a line of clouds moved in and blanketed the sun pretty much for the rest of the afternoon/early evening. Suddenly the mid-60s felt cool.

Food was good: hot dogs, pizza, chips galore, cookies, and pasta salad. I was ravenously hungry, just as I was pretty much all weekend long. I ate a lot. We visited, ate, sang happy birthday, and watched the girls open their gifts. We left for home near 7pm. Mindy talked with Jimaken. Jacob’s soccer team lost in the semi-finals. No Monday game. They were heading home. Planned to drop the kids by the house. Mindy made a pit stop at Lowes, wanting to look quickly for a hanging basket for our front porch. It’s a touch we’ve gone without the past couple seasons, but also one we wanted to reintroduce. I found what I deemed the perfect colors, a New Guinea Impatiens with dark purple foliage and pink flowers. In and gone.

I hung the new basket promptly, though wasn’t real pleased with how close it hangs to the garage wall. Not a lot we can do about, however, since we’re limited by the cedar supports just above. Thought I might lower it some the following day, but left it alone. Watered the front yard flowers while Mindy walked the pug. The kids arrived home while I was out front watering. They both seemed tired. Jacob still wasn’t speaking to Mindy. I guess he was still torqued about losing his phone. In fact, he ended up heading right back out with Jimaken. Only Bella was staying home with us.

Before we left Todd’s, Joe and Rick said they might be stopping by. Bella soon headed off to play with her peeps, something she’d been jonsing to do since she left on Friday. Mindy & I headed out on the deck in jackets and cracked opened a couple beers. By then the sun was out from behind the clouds that covered it for the past couple hours. It was still a little chilly, though.

Joe & Rick showed up a little while later. I heard Mindy inside greeting them while I remained on the deck listening to Pandora via my Kindle Fire HD through my Bose box. Joe snuck up behind m, completing startling me. Said it was paybacks for a few weeks ago when I did the same to him while he was cleaning with headphones on. Meanwhile, Mindy was still inside giving Rick the home tour.

They eventually joined us on the deck where we resumed the beer fest and tunes. Neighbor Chrissy & Teri had been partying all afternoon. And as a result, Chrissy apparently headed to bed pretty early. It was only 9pm when we saw Teri leave and pay a visit to Trena. Thirty minutes later she walked over to our place, to which we welcomed her with open arms and then learned that Chrissy was already in bed.
Bella, meanwhile, asked to have a sleepover with Kayla – big surprise.

Things were going swimmingly until I took Joe and Teri to see the framing work Kenny did in our basement. At first it was what I would deem as friendly banter, but soon it escalated into a curt exchange centering around Joe’s preferences and Teri’s inability to come to grips with it. Joe could take it no more and soon shared his not so polite opinion of Teri directly to her face. I did my best to mediate as we headed up and back out on the deck, but it only continued. Soon Teri up and walked away towards home. I talked with Joe about it some, but not for too long.

We cranked the music up a notch, and once the guys came off with their keys, I broke out the Jack Daniels. Rick was a bit more eager than Joe, but we all ended up doing our fair share. Mindy didn’t drink any Jack, but drank buttery nipples instead. Neared, our mini-fest ended up turning into a dance party. Aside from a couple buttery nipples, Mindy drank very little. I think she had just one beer.

Around 1am the guys asked if we would call them a cab or drive them home. Mindy agreed to drive them home. There wasn’t any way they were getting the keys, nor did they even ask. We all piled in the Pilot for Joe’s place leaving Rick’s SUV parked safely in front of our home. Agreed to come fetch them in the morning, too, since Joe’s car was back at Rick’s place. I fell asleep on the drive home waking just before we pulled into our subdivision. Now near 2am, we were immediately off to bed. Well, only after choking down three Advil to help ward off any potential headache come morning.

Orkin, Crawl Fish & Darwinian Fire

Our bedroom clock was flashing so I didn’t have a good pulse on the actual time. Downstairs I soon learned that it was 720am. Without checking, I knew it was chilly. There was light frost covering a few neighboring rooftops. I started coffee then went to my PC. Cold alright, only 38 degrees. It was sunny, though. Thing is, it wasn’t expected to warm much beyond 67 degrees. And there weren’t any summery conditions expected until possibly Tuesday. Oh well.

I played around online for quite a while finally heading out for a run around 845am. It was chilly enough that I wore long running pants and my jacket. Even though it was chilly, the late spring sunshine felt terrific. A few houses from home, I encountered Mindy and the pug out on a walk. I stopped and walked back with them.

Mindy and I headed out on the deck with coffee. We loosely discussed the day’s plans, which was to include a 10am visit from the Orkin man. We had plans to attend Ben & Ryan’s crawl fish boil around 3pm. I also suggested we make a run to Strader’s to get more flowers for two additional pots: the one hoisted on the ash tree stump, and then another by Mindy’s stone patio.

While awaiting the Orkin man, I finally got around to sinking several cannas bulbs and then the last two zinnias, which have been sunning on the deck for the last week or so. Keith, our new Orkin guy, showed up a little after 10am. He’s a pleasant fellow, and seemed knowledgeable. Treated inside and out, including the garage. We’ve seen only one ant since Greg was out a few Saturday’s ago. And we believe that one came in on someone’s shoe.

Mindy and I showered and headed out to run errands sometime early afternoon. Out first stop was Strader’s where we bought another $50 worth of flowers. Oh, and Mindy picked up a hanging basket of flowers for Ryan, too. From there, we headed to the Sam’s Club & Giant Eagle on Hilliard-Rome. Traffic was tight. Mindy agreed to pick-up brownies for Connie McVey from Sam’s Club. Only problem was, they had only one tray when she really wanted three. She picked up a giant platter of cookies in lieu of tray’s two and three. Problem solved.

Next, we headed across the street to Giant Eagle where we picked up two six-packs of beer along with a bag of ice. I think we got some Founder’s Session IPA and then some Lagunita’s Sumpin Sumpin. We planned to take that and more to Ben & Ryan’s.

We bypassed our own home and instead drove directly to the McVey’s where Mindy dropped off the brownies and cookies. Finally at home, we changed into attire more suitable for hanging around outside at Ben & Ryan’s. As long as the sun was out it was beautiful. We packed a cooler, walked the dog, then left for Ben & Ryan’s. We took Fisher all the way to Hilliard-Rome. Got stopped by a train at the tracks next 84 Lumber.

Arrived at Ben & Ryan’s near 330-340pm. Haven’t hung with the two of them for quite a while. Maybe four or five others there too, and they were expecting more. Ben suggested I visit his finished basement where he keeps tow beer taps. Said he had Magic Hat #9 and Harpoon IPA on tap. Sweet! Even though we brought two coolers of beer, I took him up on the draught Harpoon. Very good stuff!

It wasn’t too much longer before we headed out to the driveway & garage, which he had set up nicely for a party. It was time to dig into the boiled crawl fish he had shipped directly in from Louisiana. Also had a tub of sweet corn, red skin potatoes, and real andouille sausage. And fittingly, he had some Bayou music playing in the background. My first experience eating crawl fish. They were tasty but also a lot of work. The other fixins were just as tasty. I think I had 6 crawl fish, not a lot compared to a few others who heaped their plates high with a mound of them.

I met one of Ben’s neighbor’s who’s a grandpa. We talked for quite a while. In fact, he talked my ear off about things I cared little about. He reminded me much of Sean Meehan. It must’ve been his mannerisms and dialect. He rambled on and on about golf and Tiger Woods, and then about his daughter marrying a guy from Haiti. If memory serves me well, he was a West HD grad, class of 74 . He followed me around for a while talking about this and that.

I showed Mindy Ben & Ryan’s yard. I was most impressed with the old oak porch swing he hung from a 6X6 treated lumber structure. Told Mindy we need one of those for our backyard. We hung out with Ben & Ryan and friends for quite a while. Mindy talked at length with AJ, who owns a tattoo shop. She’s thinking about getting a new tattoo on her ankle – a poppie. But really, tattoos are so yesterday.

I arrived prepared to stay late into the evening, but Mindy suggested we head home around 8pm. She needed to drive. I’d had several beers and was feeling no pain - instead only shame.  We weren’t home long before Mindy suggested we head to the McVey’s. She suggested we walk, too. Good idea. We walked the pug before we headed that way.

I still had quite the beer buzz when we arrived at the McVey’s. I was a little uncomfortable because most of the guests were colleges aged kids there to watch Jordan’s band perform and not old enough to drink. Still, Darwin and his brother-in-law were drinking. Mindy brought along four or five more beers in Bella’s labeled lunch bag. How cool is that?

We hung with the McVey’s until dark. And Darwin had a rip roarin’ fire going. In fact, their fire ring is really nice. Connie expressed having second thoughts about skipping a beach vacation, and even suggested we each look for a beach house in the Outer Banks and then compare notes. The one we rented last summer wasn’t available the week we all have off, but she seemed convinced we could find one similar and for a reasonable price.

As the evening wore on, Connie suggested that she would drive the two of us home, but we wouldn’t have any of that. We opted to walk instead. It’s not really that far. The only real problem I had was that I needed to pee. I waited until we got home. Yikes! By then I thought I might explode!

Mindy pretty much headed straight to bed while I attacked the fridge looking for something good to eat. I joined her in bed a few minutes later asking if we could watch SNL. I don’t think I lasted any more than 5 minutes.

Diaper Rash

I was up at 550am. The sky was clear but it was chilly. I completed Friday calisthenics then poured coffee. I delivered Mindy’s before enjoying any of my own. I was only 43 degrees and the day’s high wasn’t even expected to get out of the low 60s. Bummer!

I played around on my PC until just before 7am when I logged on my work laptop. And yes, I planned to work from home. I got busy right away, first catching up on anything I might’ve missed being off on Thursday. I sent my peer that covered my day off a message asking if there were any gotchas out there waiting and then also thanked him for the coverage.

Mindy left for school around 725am after confirming that I was working from home. I didn’t plan to run until after Bella was on the bus. Chrissy dropped Makayla by the house around 745am. She must’ve had an early appointment. Later, when I checked my personal cell phone I had a text from Kenny asking if they could drop her off.

I dressed and stretched around 8am then headed to the bus stop with the girls a few minutes later. Kayla was wearing shorty shorts and a t-shirt. I knew she had to be cold, as it was still only in the mid-40s. Bella was dressed more appropriately for the chill and gave Makayla her fleece jacket. Bella was wearing a thick, long sleeved shirt too. In the sunshine, it felt much warmer. The bus arrived around 820am, and I headed off for my run a few minutes later.

I ran the full 4.1 miles wearing shorts, a long sleeved wicking shirt and a light jacket. That proved ideal. I was back at the house by 905am. I had two back-to-back AM conference calls I needed to join. The first call had just started when I saw Chris from nationwide irrigation pull up out front. I wanted to go out and show him the damaged line, say hello, and ask a couple questions, but by the time I was able to excuse myself briefly form the call, he was already gone. Wasn’t even there for 10 minutes. I could see where he had dug and repaired the sod. I planned to check the actual repair and run the zone #5 irrigation as soon as I got another chance. I headed back inside to rejoin call #1.

Joined call #2 right after the first call ended. The 2nd went until noon. My plan was to knock off early again after working a few hours extra earlier in the week. I stayed busy with work until 1:40pm when I took lunch then headed out to mow as much of the lawn as I could in about an hour. In total, I spent 62 minutes outside and was able to complete all the push mowing as well as the tractor cutting. Headed back inside and back to work at 240pm. Actually ended up working a little longer than I wanted, but I had a few things that I absolutely needed to finish heading into the long weekend. I knocked off for good shortly after Mindy & Bella got home.

It was a Jimaken weekend, the first one of those in 3 weeks. Mindy made it pretty clear that she wanted to go to CBC. Jimaken showed up to get the kids around 5pm. Once again, they were heading out of town for a soccer tournament. Dayton, I think. Mindy soon headed up for a shower while I headed to basement to clean-up more of the sawdust left behind after Thursday’s framing event. Filled a shop-vac bag with sawdust.

Around 530pm I headed upstairs to ask Mindy to stomp when she was out of the shower. I planned to get in immediately after her. The stomp came soon. I headed up to get a much needed shower. We left for CBC near 615pm. It was still a little chilly - only 63 degrees – with clear skies but a stiff, chilly breeze.

I knew Mindy sent a text to her peeps, but what she failed to tell me was that her principal pal, Jan and her husband, Jeff were already at CBC. We bellied up next to the two of them, Mindy sitting by Jan, and me at the other end sitting and talking with Jeff. I like them both. Quite interesting. However, what I didn’t appreciate was the element of surprise. I was miffed that Mindy failed to mention that they would be there and we’d be sitting with them. To me, that’s just a common courtesy. I made lemonade out of lemons, talking with Jeff about their recent biking trip to the Florida Keyes. He was very happy to share the stories and some cool photos. We talked about it for most of the evening.

Jennifer, the manager, stopped by to chat briefly about running. Said she had an odd question she wanted to ask. Chaffing, how does one prevent and treat it.  She seemed to recall me sharing once before that I use Vaseline. That’s true. Works like a charm, and I am sure, much like it does on diaper rash. We also talked about the benefits of stretching and hydration, which I believe are paramount to any structured running regimen.

Vince and Kate were working the bar and delivered bread and risotto balls. Later, everybody wanted to order food. Jeff and I both ordered a pizza with sausage, pepperoni, and hot pepper rings. I think Mindy had crab cakes, and Jan had the salmon, I think. I kept a loose eye on the Reds game whirling in the background. They won after trailing early.

I had three beers through the evening and dinner. Had we discussed it ahead of time and I knew I was driving, I most likely would’ve cut myself off at two. When the check came I sent it to Mindy who sent it back down the bar to me. I picked up our tab but felt it was really hers to get, especially since this was her outing with friends. I planned to share my thoughts about the way the evening played out later. I’m guessing it was near 10pm when we got home, though I didn’t really check.

Mindy headed almost immediately off to bed. I could see that the O’Connell’s had a fire going. I poured myself another beer and walked down to see what was going on. It was Mike, Teri, Chrissy & Kenny along with Mike’s niece and nephew-in-law. The kids were around too. Sounds as though Kenny might’ve found the Scotty replacement he’s been looking for. Mike’s nephew is fresh back from Afghanistan and seems eager to join Kenny’s team. Rightfully so, Kenny seemed cautiously optimistic.

I hung with the neighbors for no more than 45-50 minutes before turning for home. Kenny & Chrissy called it a night at the same time. Headed for bed around 11pm. Mindy was already sound asleep.

I've been Framed

Despite having the day off, I was still up around 6am in an attempt to have my exercise routine behind me early as if it were a work day. And really, it was a work day. The only difference being that I would be working on a personal goal, framing my basement.

The coffee maker performed well after clearing that clog in the pass thru lid. That made me happy. Completed calisthenics: sit-ups, windmills, and curls. Took Mindy coffee around 620am. Kenny said to expect he and his crew around 9am. To that end, I really needed to do my run before seeing Bella off on the school bus. I did a stretch and then headed out for a run until shortly after 7am.

I thought briefly about curtailing my run to just three miles but ended up doing the full 4.1 miles like any other week day. Glad I did. Was back at the house shortly before 8am. By the time I walked the pug it was darn near time to head out with Bella. Kenny was at the bus stop with Makayla. Shared that I would see him shortly. After the bus swooped up the kids I headed back to the house to get ready for a day of framing.

Mindy picked up four Wal-Mart subs for Kenny’s crew to eat. I picked up a case of Labatt Blue, their favorite beer. I had it chilling in the two fridges. I played around online until 855am. Kenny and crew showed up around 910am.

I helped carry in a few major tools: the air compressor, nail guns, and professional miter saw and stand. We spent the first 90 minutes reviewing the design, marking off the door locations and then chalking lines for the floor plate. Even though I bought Tap Cons for the floor plate, Kenny decided to use Ramset nails instead. And boy are they loud. Sounds like a shotgun blast with each nail. Only one small mishap where we had to pry it loose from the floor and move it. The ramset nails hold well. While Ivan and Scotty mounted the plates, Kenny was marking the ceiling joists for the top plate and figuring out how we were going to box in the two windows.

By noon, we had both the bottom and top plates mounted and just shy of half the basement framed. I was in awe! My role was relegated to gopher, which was fine by me. We took an hour’s lunch near noon. I asked Kenny if beer was appropriate. Nope!

Finished framing all the walls by 230pm. Unbelievable! We still needed to add blocking for the drywall and then box in duct work, which took another hour or so. By the time the kids were home from school the job was done. And not only was it done, but it was done right. Rock solid frame job. I am still very impressed and indebted to Kenny and team. They work well together.

Once we finished and carried all the tools back to the trailer, the beer was fair game. Scotty left to take the trailer back. Ivan and Kenny stayed to drink some beer and have a little more food. Mindy had something going on after school, but just what, I wasn’t sure. Kenny & Ivan hung out until 530-6pm.

Even though Kenny was helping as a friend and neighbor, and also after losing a friendly wager, I felt the need to give he and his crew some cash. The weather took a slight turn for the worse. Not only had it clouded over, but the temperature dropped like a rock. We were expecting rain overnight and then much cooler temperatures through the Memorial Day holiday with highs mostly in the mid 60s.

Talked with Mindy around 630-7pm. Said she was still at school and expected to be there a little while longer. At some point I headed out to the shed to fetch a few irrigation marking flags to mark the mainline cut on the westside of the house. I called and left a message for Nationwide irrigation on Wednesday afternoon. They left me a message earlier sharing that they would come out on Friday to make the repair. Said that I need not be home but to have the cut marked. Cool! I thought about digging back around the cut, but Kenny insisted that was overkill. I ended up simply marking the small hole exposing the cut.

Mindy got home around 730-8pm. I was anxious to show her the basement. She was in awe of their work too. Bella was excited, too, and asked if she could take a box of sawed 2X4s to her room to introduce the smell of Lowes. She later asked if we could actually saw a couple boards in her room over the trashcan to create saw dust and the telltale smell that comes with it. She wasn’t kidding wither. She loves that smell. 

I drank three beers earlier with Kenny. I had a pretty good buzz going until about 8pm when it finally began to wear off. I wasn’t too long for the evening. I fell asleep watching TV on the sofa around 9pm. I woke and headed for bed around 10pm.

Lost Scrolls

I was up a little earlier than the past two mornings and was quickly downstairs engaged in exercise. I purposefully didn't have the coffee auto programmed to start. Instead, I wanted to be there as it brewed to prevent a mess. Sure enough, same as the day before. I had to stop it three times to allow the coffee to settle into the carafe. Here's hoping the new pass-thru lid arrives fast.

I whipped out sit-ups, windmills, and curls, checking the coffee between each exercise. We have a spare coffee maker in our camping gear. I thought I might get it out and use it for a couple days until the new part arrives. I ran Mindy her coffee around 620am. We both laughed at my coffee maker babysitting antics. Back downstairs around 625m, I finally had an opportunity to enjoy a little coffee and internet. I played around until Jacob headed out to snag his school bus then headed to family room for a stretch. Mindy was soon downstairs in a new routine, showering at night before bed. She does that because her schools lack of A/C makes her feel sticky/dirty after a full day, probably not much different than I feel after working in the yard. I skipped meditation but did manage to do a little believe it or not, while running.

Speaking of my run, I ran the full 4.1 miles in warm, sticky conditions, much like the day before. I actually like it. As expected, Mindy was gone by the time I made it home, which was near 745am. I quickly leashed up the pug, took her on a walk, then cooked breakfast for the pug and I. Didn't have a whole lot of time between breakfast and bus time, but that's just fine. We headed out the door at 809am.

... lost scrolls

I finished this blog entry but lost it after an overnight reboot.

Tumbling @ the Sweat Shop

Slept in until 550am. Downstairs, I glanced out back at the weather then started and baby sat the coffee maker determined not to end up with the mess I encountered Monday. Sure enough about 3 or 4 minutes into the brewing process, coffee began to spill out of the carafe and down the sides of the maker. It was finally apparent that the problem had to be with the 'flow thru carafe lid'. I had paper towels lining the sides of the coffee maker to capture any spillage and then hit the off button long enough for the coffee currently in the flow thru lid to pass. Once it cleared I restarted it. Had to do that 3 times. After two mornings spent babysitting the coffee maker I became convinced that we simply need to buy a new one. This can't go on. In between watching coffee brew, I sprinkled in calisthenics. I delivered Mindy's coffee around 615am.

Enjoyed coffee at the PC until almost 645am. I heard the trash truck dumping our can. It was near full after stuffing in a broken kids chair from our basement and then a few stray pieces of wood. Stretched then left for a run shortly after 710am. Ran the full 4.1 miles. It was already warm and steamy - a balmy 69 degrees with humidity levels topping 80%. Expecting a high near 90 again. I would have planned to drive the BM'er if it wasn't so dirty. Looks like someone tossed their soda all down the driver's side. Not sure how or when that happened.

Mindy was long gone by the time I made it back home. The pug was waiting patiently by the door for our walk. I leashed her up and headed out. We were out about 8 minutes. It was much too late to make breakfast, pack a lunch, and shower before bus time. It was already 8am. I postponed food and a shower until after the bus.

We headed out to the bus stop at 810am. There we met Chrissy and the other mom. Can't recall her name. The bus came along after about five minutes of waiting. It was a beautiful morning, so no one was too concerned with the short wait.

I had a 930am meeting I needed to make. I rushed home to shower, cook breakfast, pack lunch. etc. Took a shower first. It was already 845am by the time i was downstairs. I still took the time to make breakfast and pack a lunch. It was well past 9am when I finally left the house for work. It was a gorgeous drive in. I arrived at 932am, a couple minutes late for our meeting, so I rushed straight to the conference room and joined the meeting just getting underway.

It was a technical meeting, and one I appreciated the content. Lasted about 45 minutes. I agreed to cover another weekly call for a peer who had the day. That call started at 1130am. Didn't seem like much time at all between the live meeting and the call. The call went well and wrapped up in no more than 10 minutes. With few gaps, the rest of my day was back to back to back meetings. I barely had time to eat the scant lunch I packed. Of course the benefit of an extremely busy day is the speed in which it moves. The wok day was over in the blink of an eye and it was time to head for home.

Mindy had already left to run Bella to gymnastics by the time I got home. She made steak wraps for dinner. Mine looked small but I was full after finishing it and a little potato salad. I didn't have much time before I needed to go after Bella. And we made arrangements to take Lane while going after her. I asked for Mindy's help moving the few things that have collected in the planned finished area in the basement. It took the two of us no more than 10-15 minutes to get everything cleared out. On my way to the Accord to leave for Bella, I tossed a broken kiddie chair along with a broken mini-basketball backboard in the trash can.

Lane was scootering when I pulled up, but came quickly. We zoomed off to the gym with no traffic issues. We talked about NBA basketball during the drive. Neither of us are too interested in the sport, but as the finals approach there's usually something of interest brewing. Lane shared his disdain for Lebron James. Like Kobe Bryant instead.

Because it was near 90 degrees and the gym had no A/C, it smelt like a sweat shop. Ugh! Kelly had the girls running to the drinking fountain for water between passes. Bella was excited to show me her latest pass on the trampoline - a combination front flip/back flip. Cool! She's doing great, and very proud of herself.

We left the gym and headed for home. And like most rides home., Bella asked if we could stop for fast food. She offered up many alternatives including Chipotle, Wendy's, and McDs. I agreed to stop. And since we had to take 270N all the way to Roberts due to construction, we stopped at the Wendy's just east of the corner of Roberts and Wilson. Same as usual, chicken nuggets, small fries and barbeque sauce. Quick pass through the drive-thru and then home.

I stretched out on the family room floor where I took a little nap. And like many recent night's, I fell asleep and pretty much for the night. I woke around 10pm to discover Mindy and the kids already off to bed. I secured the home then joined Mindy in bed. Good night half moon.

Barley's on a Monday

Not sure the time when I finally fell asleep but I’m guessing near midnight. As a consequence, I woke tired around 550am and drug myself downstairs and through calisthenics. The sweet smell of coffee served as motivation. Little did I know that minutes later I would be swearing at it.

Once again, our coffee maker is leaking freshly brewed coffee all over the counter and ultimately dripping into the drawer and cupboard just below. Had quite the mess on my hands. And with black granite, it wasn’t visually discernible. I worked on that mess for 10-15 minutes before pouring Mindy’s coffee and heading upstairs. Short slept and agitated with the coffee maker, let’s just say that I wasn’t in the best frame of mind

I poured my own coffee then took even more time to pull everything from the cupboard drawers to rinse it fee of coffee. I pulled the drawer liner out too. There was coffee underneath it, which was slowly but surely dripping down below. Ugh!!!!!

Finally, around 645am I was able to sit down at my PC and enjoy a cup of coffee. Ahh! I did my best to perk up. Worked marginally. Left for a run minutes after Mindy was downstairs. Had to be around 705am. Said goodbye to Mindy then headed out. It was recycling day. They were there before I left for my run. Sadly, we had half a can more still in the garage. We really need to recycling ick-up weekly – not biweekly.

I ran 4.1 miles. Running does me a world of good, but it really made a difference Monday morning when everything seemed to be caving in on me. The lovely weather was helpful, too. Felt summer-like, and we were expecting a high near 90.

Of course, Mindy was gone by the time I got home. And Bella was already upstairs after breakfast. Somewhat hurriedly, I leashed up the pug and headed out for our walk. It was darn near 8am by the time we were back at home.

Decided to wait and fry eggs after taking Bella to the bus stop. Smart move. We headed out at 810am. Gorgeous! Only nine more school days. The kids are excited. Heck, even though I have to work all summer, I still get excited about the last day of school. Hustled on back home after the bus picked up the kids. Decided to knock out a shower before making breakfast. It didn’t take that long, maybe 15minutes. I checked some work emails from home but tried not to get too involved.

Took my time making and enjoying breakfast. With dad’s trailer still attached to the Pilot, Mindy and I switched vehicles again I planned to drop off the trailer at his place on my way to the office. Left the house near 9am. Dad wasn’t home. I backed the trailer into its usual spot then sped off to work.

It was an extremely busy day at the office. Hardly enough time to breath, let alone take a lunch. I worked straight through the day. It was one of those days when once 5pm rolled around I was stunned at the time. I didn’t leave the office until 525pm. It was still, warm, and sunny. The temperature gauge in the Pilot read 90 degrees. I didn’t bother calling home since I was in the Pilot. Don’t like driving with a phone in my hand.

Mindy asked if we could do Barley’s for dinner. Why not? Jacob was at a soccer game. It would be just me, Mindy & Bella. I shared David’s text offering to fly us down for the Memorial Day weekend. We wouldn’t allow that, but do want to get down for a visit soon. We talked about it over dinner. Thought it might make more sense for them to come to CMH over Memorial Day. In turn, we might be able to head there the second weekend in June.

We left for Barley’s around 545pm arriving 15 minutes later. It was Monday and the parking lot showed it. Only about half full. Monday is wing night at Barley's($.60 each). It's something I've taken part in few times over the years. We opted for a barside table, which is serviced by the bartender who happened to be April. April was quick to fetch us beers. We both ordered a Hoptopus. Bella went with Dr. Pepper and a basket of fries as an appetizer. April brought over the newest bartender. Rachel, I think, to introduce us.

Thirty minutes later we all ordered dinner. Bella went with the kids chicken tenders while Mindy went with a shrimp & pasta dish. I settled on K.C. wings - all protein. I ordered a 2nd beer, too, only this time a Hopiate IPA. Yum!

Didn't take long for our order to show up. The wings were crazy good, even better than usual. Little Bob stopped in with Banker Dan. We chatted with them for a short short. Before leaving for home, we placed a to-o order for Jacob - his usual, chicken tenders soaked in buffalo sauce with gates of hell on the side and blue cheese. The to-go order was ready in a hurry. We left for home around 730pm.

We weren't home long before I stretched out on the family room floor to stretch and possibly even take a brief nap. My brief nap turned into more than an hour of blissful sleep. I woke to everyone else already in bed. Unfortunately, by the time I slipped into bed falling back asleep wasn't in the cards. As hard as I tried I just couldn't fall asleep. After tossing and turning for 30 minutes, I told Mindy I was going back downstairs.

Downstairs I checked work email, which depending on how you look it, could have been a mistake. I ended up working for two solid hours. Ugh! On one hand, I resolved two ugly issues that would've surely been waiting for me Tuesday morning, and already with too much on my plate, it was wise to knock it out then. Nature of the beast.

I rejoined Mindy in bed around 1245am. Still took a few for my mind to settle and fall asleep.

Camp @ School - Playground Mulch

I was up just ahead of 8am and quickly downstairs to start a pot of coffee. It was cloudy overhead with a forecast calling for partly cloudy skies and a high near 85. Supposed to approach 90 Monday and Tuesday. Played around online for about 45 minutes before being joined by Mindy. She and I sat on the deck enjoying the warm weather and coffee. We weren’t out there longer than 30-40 minutes but the sky transitioned between sunny and mostly cloudy numerous times.

Our plans for the day were still being developed, but Mindy wanted help decorating her school classroom like a campsite. The plan was for all of us to go, me, Jacob, and Bella. She was taking lots of our old camping gear. I, on the other hand, wanted to fetch and spread playground mulch around the treehouse and then also behind the shed. We’d need the Pilot for both tasks.

I headed out for a 3 mile run between 930 &10am. It was very warm and sticky 70 degrees with 80+% humidity. Mindy made everyone breakfast burritos. She got a little upset with me when I suggested that she head to her school alone and I would take care of the mulch. She wanted me to take care of the mulch and then head to her school later that afternoon. We eventually agreed to head to her school first, hoping ot knock out the decorating in about an hour. As it was, she had me in the garage hunting down various items for her camp site display.

She called Bella home around 11am. She came home but brought Makayla with her. She was apparently going with us. I disconnected dad’s trailer from the Pilot after chalking the tires and placing two traffic cones beside it. We loaded all the camp gear then left the house near 1130am. Lindsey was coming over while were away to do laundry.

Mindy had a good plan and put everybody to work in a hurry. My first job was to put up the small dome tent. I hadn’t put it together for a few years. Took twice as long as it should’ve. I remarked how long I’ve had that tent – about 25 years. I’m pretty sure I bought it for about $8. Definitely got my money’s worth out of it. While I put up the tent, Mindy made a camp fire using real wood logs but yellow & orange cellophane for the flames. Jacob, the girls and I made fishing poles out of yard sticks, yarn, and nuts. To make the campsite complete, Mindy set-up camp chairs and unrolled two sleeping bags in the tent. She made a little fishing pool, too.

I don’t think we were there for much more than an hour. Everybody was ready to leave. A couple of Mindy’s teacher pals were there on site too. And because they don’t have A/C in her wing, it was very warm and sticky. But just one more full school year with A/C. They’ll be breaking ground on the new school building on the last day of school next week. I think they’re slated to move in After Xmas break 2015 (1.5 years).
We weren’t home but 10 minutes before I changed gears and left to get the first trailer full of playground mulch. Jacob was supposed to go with me but was being negative about it. Mindy followed me out the door insisting I wait until Jacob had lunch. Not a minute to waste. I left without him.

Ohio Mulch was very busy, but the majority of the traffic and crowd was there to deposit yard waste. Amazing how many cars/trucks come dump their trimmings there. Dad’s trailer will hold about 1.5 cu. Yards of mulch without risking losing any in transport. I’ve learned over the years that I tend to get more by buying one yard at a time. Of course the inconvenience is more trips, but it’s only a couple miles from the house. I don’t really mind. When the kids dumped the first load into the trailer he motioned that that was it – a full yard. Hardly. I gave him a questioning look and without hesitation, he added another half scoop. I headed for home.

Jacob was outside and ready to help move the mulch by the time I was home. Lindsey, he boys and Olivia were there now too. I quickly fetched the tractor and trailer from the shed and headed out front. I had Jacob do all the driving and dumping. And unless I’m mistaken, it was the first time he’s ever driven the tractor by himself. Each big trailer full equals 4-4.5 small trailer loads. I had Jacob using the coal shovel to transfer from one to the other. He’s a lot stronger than he was just a year ago. His help actually made a significant difference. Of course the wee ones were very excited to be out and around the tractor and the trailer. We let them ride in the mulch and then back with it empty. Jacob was very concerned for their safety, several times giving them the dickens for not sitting still. 

As soon as we finished unloading the first trailer load I went for more. I asked Jacob to park the tractor in the back yard then left. Same drill. Paid for just one cu. Yard. Same kid loaded me, only this time I didn’t have to say anything to get the extra dump.

Jacob was waiting and ready when I pulled up. We picked up right where we left off. Jacob pulled the tractor around and I shoveled the first load. Jacob was much more comfortable driving, maneuvering the tractor with the 2nd load. He wasn’t happy about the wee ones hovering around us, but I insisted we tolerate their curiosity and he gave them trailer rides.

After transferring and dumping the entire 2nd load, we spread the several piles over the large play area surrounding the tree house. As expected, we needed a little more to cover the entire area. And I still wanted to put some behind the shed too. I went after load number 3. Same kid loaded me. And just like the two prior loads, he gave me a little extra. Of course, I would argue that he was simply giving me all I paid for.

Jacob helped with only about half the 3rd trailer load. Landon was all about helping, though his help was more of a hindrance to progress. I didn’t mind. The 3rd load was just about perfect. Was able to cover the entire play area, and then provide good cover behind the shed. Not so much an eye sore like it has been years past.

Mindy ran to Sam’s Club earlier to pick-up steaks and potato salad. I suggested we invite the neighbors. Mindy walked over and talked to Chrissy. They were in, and so were the O’Connell’s. We haven’t had an island cookout for a while. As tired as my body was and before heading in for a shower, I planted a few more flowers. At the same time, Landon asked that I turn on the sprinkler in the backyard. I finally succumbed to his constant asking. 

I took a really quick shower around 5-530pm. I think it was 6pm when Mindy asked me to start grilling. The neighbors were grilling their own meat before coming over. Ever since we robbed the ice from the ice maker Saturday evening, our fridge had failed to start making anymore. Too bad, because I wanted a Jack & Coke. Mindy willingly walked next door to borrow some. Thanks dear.

I grilled four steak (2 filets, 2 Ribeyes), and several hot dogs. Didn’t take more than 15 minutes. Our timing was spot on with the neighbors. They walked down a few minutes later.

The women served all the kids before Mindy served me. The salad, steak and potato salad were delicious. Hit the spot. It wasn’t quite as good as Market District prime beef but the price was far cheaper too. We had a good time over dinner, talking about, among other things, the relocated ground hog. After dinner Kenny asked how Wednesday or Thursday sounded for a framing the basement day. Awesome! I couldn’t do Wednesday but could possibly do Thursday. I would either try and work from home or better yet, take the entire day off. Kenny said he would bring his entire crew. Figures we can knock it out in one afternoon. If so, that would be amazing!

The neighbors left by 730p, and soon after the kitchen was cleaned up Mindy and I took the pug on a walk making sure to take a route by the neighbor putting a roof over most of their deck. I was very curious with the design as it’s something we’re considering as well. Probably most surprising is that they’re installing a hipped roof, which by design will bring water down on all sides (I.E. back towards the house). Looks gorgeous but I am not sure it’s the smart way to go.

Back at home we headed to bed early but watched North America, on the Discovery Channel. Bella joined us. She loves watching nature related programming. We watched until I started to dose, It must’ve been around 10pm when Mindy booted Bella from our room. Unfortunately, I woke shortly thereafter and struggled from then on to find my sleep groove. Had a few things on my mind that no matter what I did I couldn’t shake.

To-Mulch-ewh-Us Day

 

I was up and out of bed near 740am. Out the window, I could see that we were under mostly cloudy skies but they didn’t look threatening. I quickly started a pot of coffee then played around on the computer. I checked the radar to see if there was any rain the offing. While there was a chance of thunderstorms forecasted, there didn’t seem to be any nearby. Our plan was to spread mulch, so I was hopeful that it would remain dry through at least late afternoon.

Mindy joined me downstairs between 830- 9am. We spent a little time together on the deck enjoying coffee before I ultimately dressed and headed off on a run. Jacob was up before I left. And at his request, Mindy started making breakfast burritos. During my warm-up lap, Kenny pulled up with a construction trailer full of bagged mulch, a full skid for himself and then another 15-20 bags strapped down for the O’
Connell’s. He commented that he hoped it remained overcast.

I ran the usual weekend 3 miles. Felt good. By the time I was back at home the girls were up too. Mindy asked if I wanted a burrito and then if I wanted her to put it together. Yes. It was really good. I’m thinking it was after 11am when we headed to start spreading mulch. Mindy agreed to meet me out front and spread while I cut and dumped. By then it was mostly sunny and only got sunnier as the day progressed. Before spreading the first bag of mulch, we had to pull some baby weeds that had already sprouted in the east most flower bed. I also raked the edge clean by hand tossing it all into a five-gallon pail. Mindy was going to do the weeds, but I had them all pulled by the time she joined. I had the Bose iTouch dock blaring Goo-Goo Dolls from the garage. Seemed like we were making great time working our away around the front and then along the west beds then the back. I tried to stay a couple bags in front of Mindy. Had to borrow a couple bags from the back beds to complete the front and westside. Still a pretty goods eyeball estimate. Mindy took a very brief break to check the laundry and fetch us some Gatorade, but other than that we kept going until 2-230pm. By then we had most of the back down barring the large red maple tree and the bed out by the shed. We took a 30 minutes break and Mindy made sandwiches. I wasn’t sure if we would have enough to finish. I knew one thing, it was going to be close.

There was poison ivy in the shed bed. And since Mindy’s less inclined to get a rash, she agreed to do the removal while I cleaned the edge up. Took her a while to carefully pull the poison ivy. While she did that, I took care of the small beds out front near the front door. When I finished we only needed a half bag more out front for one of the street side maples.

I had 2.5 bags leftover from last year’s mulching stashed under the shed. In year’s past any remaining bags turned almost completely to dirt. But keeping them out of the elements must be the trick. The two unopened bags looked good as new and came in real handy. Bottom line, we had just enough to finish the entire job. It was 4pm when we finished and Mindy headed in for a shower. We were supposed to be at Lane’s (Darwin’s son’s) 13th birthday party at 6pm. Mindy still needed to make a Target run to get a card and gift as well as picking up prescription. While Mindy rushed off to the shower, I got the girls set-up with a sprinkler in the backyard. Emma was over, a new neighborhood friend of Bella’s. She was at our home all afternoon after her dad stopped by to let us know that he was heading out. I mistakenly assumed he was running a quick errand. Emma later told us he went golfing. 

I got in the shower when Mindy got out. I was careful to use the exfoliation scrubber all over my arms, legs, face and neck to wash off any possibly poison ivy residue. Mindy left for a Target run while I hung at home with all the kids. They were outside playing for the entire time making my job extremely easy. I spent about 45 minutes writing in my blog. Mindy was gone a little more than an hour. I asked Mindy what she thought about taking Emma with us since we were quasi responsible for her. Mindy figured it fine, but has Emma call her dad. She ended up handing the phone to Mindy. We left for the McVey’s around 615-620pm. Mindy, Jacob and I opted to drive while Bella and Emma rode their bikes/scooters.

As expected, lots of cars lined up out front. We parked just around the corner on a street less traveled. Lots of kids gathered out front. And a lot of their family was there already too. Mindy jumped right in helping Connie in the kitchen. She was whipping up all sorts of interesting dishes for the party. When they realized they needed more ice, Darwin and I opted to make a run to the nearest carryout. I drove. He suggested we visit the Quarry Carry-Out on McKinley near 5th ave. Darwin wanted to pick-up more beer – CBC IPA. He knows the owner of the carryout and proudly introduced me to the two brothers. Can’t recall the older one’s name. The younger one’s name is Mohammed. Nice guys. After grabbing a six pack of IPA and a small bag of ice we were on our way back to Darwin’s.

By then the Weber grill’s coals were ready for Darwin’s shish kabobs. While Darwin grilled, I spent time with the kids playing out back and then talked with Darwin’s brother-in-law, Tom. Headed inside to check on Mindy, too. Darwin must’ve grilled 30 shish kabobs some chicken and some beef. I didn’t eat until most others already had their fill, though I did snack on the veggie pizza and cheesy sausage dip.

Shortly after I finished my shish kabob, Connie brought out a pyramid of chocolate donuts serving as a birthday cake for Lane. I snapped several photos. Shortly after the birthday song, many of us headed to the basement to listen to Jordan’s band play a few tunes. They’re certainly not ready for prime time, but it was fun just the same. According to Darwin, having several of his friends over the following weekend where he and his bandmates are putting on a mini-concert.

Most of the family members left soon after Jordan’s performance. It was around 9pm. Meanwhile, Connie was preparing to take Lane and several of his friends bowling, including Jacob. Mindy helped Connie get the house somewhat back in order, putting away most, if not all of the leftovers. Darwin was staying home and hanging out around their fire pit with his b-in-law, Danny. Mindy and I headed home with Bella. Darwin invited me to stick around but I headed home with Mindy. However, I did leave open the possibility of walking back in a short while.

Once at home, Bella asked if she could have a sleepover at Makayla’s. Those two are largely inseparable. Mindy agreed. I cracked open another beer and sat on the deck under the moonlight. It was a gorgeous early summer evening for doing just that. Both Mindy and I were tired and declared it bedtime near 1030pm. Mindy agreed to watch last week’s replay of SNL. We might’ve caught 15 minutes before turning it off and falling asleep.

Darwinian Evolution Proudly Dampened by Hopiates

By design, I slept in until almost 6am. I felt OK but still a little sleepy. Downstairs, I started a pot of coffee and then decided to skip calisthenics, which is something I rarely do. And because I planned to work at home, I got my laptop fired up while waiting on the coffee to finish brewing. Headed upstairs to wake Mindy at 615am. Left her coffee on the night stand.

Back downstairs, I didn’t hear the usual telltale sounds of Mindy up and stirring until almost 645am, or shortly before Jacob headed out the door for the school bus. Sounded as if Mindy skipped a shower. That wasn’t a good sign. By 7am, I was fully engaged in my work day. I didn’t plan to run until Bella was on the bus and off to school. By design, Mindy took the Accord to school. She left near 730am. I wanted access to the Pilot so I could go after mulch later that day in preparation for Saturday’s yard work. In fact, if all went as planned, I wouldn’t work much past noon.

I made sure that Bella was on pace to head out at 810am and then headed out with the pug for a walk. It was soupy, warm and foggy – about 62 degrees. Bella and I headed out on time. Just before she boarded the bus, I asked how many school day remain – just 10 including this one. After a short conversation with Chrissy I headed home to ready for my run. I was out the door by 825am.

Already, I could tell that the fog was beginning to lift. It was still cloudy but at least visibility was much improved. I ran the usual 4.1 miles and felt good doing so. Worked up one heck of a sweat. I was back at home shortly after 9am and quickly reengaged in work. I joined a quick call at 930am. Stayed busy with work until 1pm when I called it a day. I headed to dad’s place to pick-up his trailer and then onto Ohio Mulch. Buying bagged mulch, I knew I’d have to make two trips. I paid for 50 bags up front, but only took 25 at a time. I had to remind the two young guys helping me load of the current bag count multiple times.
At home I went to the shed for the tractor and trailer then delivered the 25 bags strategically around the flower beds starting out back. It’s hard work first lifting them out of the larger trailer then out of the smaller trailer in the yard. By 20-25 I was sopping wet with sweat. But as hard as that work is, it’s far easier than buying mulch it bulk and having to shovel it into the trailer. I took a short food, water and work check break before heading back to get the rest of my mulch purchase.

I had to laugh when once again the kid helping me load miscounted as if he was trying to short change me. As many times as I told him the goal was 25 bags, he kept trying to cut it to 20. He tossed in a couple ripped bags too. Oh no! By 230pm the sun finally broke through the thin cloud cover and really steamed things up. It wasn’t that hot, but still very humid. Was more than happy to finish unloading the last of the mulch before 3pm. Again, I didn’t plan to spread even the first bag until Saturday. With the mulch bags strategically in place, I took about 30 minutes to sink four grey gorge patio stones into the front edge of the westside flowerbed to making passing between the bed and the blue spruce pine trees a little easier. The task was much harder than I envisioned.

Jacob was soon home from school and quickly headed off to find and play with friends. After cooling off and then taking care of a couple administrative work issues, I headed out to mow the lawn. I was still worn out from heaving 50 bags of mulch around but the idea of having the lawn work completed by Friday evening was just too enticing to pass up.

However, before cutting the first blade of grass, I took a few minutes to saw up the rotted sheet of 4’X8’ wood siding I pulled off the front of the house last summer. I sawed into pieces small enough to fit in the trash can. That was another one of those tasks that’s been lingering on my to-do list for some time. Glad it’s finally done. I spent the next couple hours mowing, trimming, edging and blowing, finishing up the weekly (every 5 days) lawn chores by 530pm. Before heading in for a shower, I watered all the flowers front and back. I became aggravated by the damage already done to several of our plantings, either by animals or intolerance to weather conditions. I found that a couple of our large deck pots were rummaged through my squirrels. I could tell that Mindy was amused by my cursing at the plants.

Bella was having an overnight guest, her friend Alena. Leading up to her arrival, she and Makayla played outside. I told Mindy that it would soon turn into Makayla staying over too. It didn’t take but 10 minutes for that to come to fruition.  Mindy & Jacob asked about doing dinner at Barley’s. As good as that sounded and as hard as I worked, I wasn’t at all looking forward to Barley’s with four kids. IN fact, it sounded more like punishment. 

I knew Darwin had a rare Friday night off work. I sent him a text asking if he wanted to meet at Barley’s. Minutes later, I thought he responded but it was Bob Imber instead, asking I/we were going to Barley’s. I asked Mindy how she felt about me going to Barley’s alone. She was fine with it. She was busy working from home in an attempt to catch up on several yearend tasks, including report cards. I texted both Bob & Darwin that I was a go. Bob later withdrew citing Mary Ann’s desire to go elsewhere. I left for Barley’s by myself around 645pm. If memory serves me well, the last time I went to Barley’s alone was back in October.

Not too big a crowd at all and very few regulars. I talked with two older gentlemen I see in there quite often. Both are retired. The one guy shared that his wife passed away and he retired. Said he ran marathons’ until his knees gave out. Said he quit smoking at 40 and took up running. Felt on top of the world when he was 55. He soon added that it was all downhill from there. He encouraged me to keep running until I can’t. He did add that it’ll likely cripple me. That was an encouraging conversation. 

After those two left I stood quietly waiting for Darwin to show. Soon, Barley peep, Al showed up. I don’t know Al that well, but well enough to know a little about his family life. He encouraged me to belly up next to him at the bar. At first I declined the stool simply for preferring to stand. But then he asked me to sit down again. I sensed that he wanted to talk about something, but just what I wasn’t sure. He soon went on to share that his 20 year old daughter recently shared that she’s pregnant and he was devastated. Needed to talk to someone, and he said he knew that I had been through it before too. And for a short while there, his emotions got the best of him. He was struggling with several emotions: shock, fear, and anger. And some of the thoughts he shared were similar to those I had when I first learned that Courtney was pregnant with Kaileigh. I shared that despite my initial anger, fear, and resentment, Kaileigh was an absolute blessing and that I wouldn’t trade her for anything. We talked a lot about help without enabling. We both laughed when we both shared our first thoughts which was that our daughters couldn’t even take care of themselves, let alone a baby.

Soon Bob & Carol showed up. They’ll often stop in for one beer. And holding with tradition, they had one beer and left, but not before inviting me up to their nearby lair, which I’ve been. I had to decline the invite, however, since I was still awaiting Darwin’s arrival. And speaking of Darwin, he showed up around 8pm, or just before Bob & Carol left for home. Al soon left for home too.

Darwin and I sat for a while, me eventually ordering dinner – a Cuban with bacon. And man, was it ever delicious. I woofed down the whole thing. I drank three beers during my visit. My tab was only $20. Before cashing out, I offered to get Darwin’s too. After all, he & Connie helped us the evening before by picking up Bella from gymnastics. And since Darwin was dropped off at Barley’s, I drove us home, but not before texting back and forth with Mindy. She offered to come pick us up if necessary. I was fine having drank only three beers over 3 hours and eating a very hearty sandwich.

Darwin came in our place. Said he’d have Jordan come pick him up later. Mindy was already up in bed, but still awake and reading. Bella and her two friends – Alena and Makayla – were watching Grown-Ups in the family room. I went up to chat with Mindy briefly. She said she was coming downstairs to say hello. She never showed. Darwin and I each had one more beer but that’s it – a Hop Notch. As planned, Jordan came by to get Darwin around 11pm. I headed for bed as soon as Darwin left. Told the girls to make sure and turn off the lights and TV.

Favorite State

I was up at 525am after perhaps the soundest sleep I've gotten in the last couple weeks. Felt excellent. It occurred to me during exercise that there just might be a direct correlation between taking a 500mg Naproxen shortly before bed and quality sleep. I remembered, too, that it was a Todd Rundgren day. Mindy & I had tickets to his State tour show at the LC pavilion for later that evening. That elevated my spirits higher than they already were.

A thunderstorm rumbled through during the overnight. It was still cloudy but the rain was pretty much gone. It was fairly warm too, a balmy 68 degrees. Enjoyed coffee and internet until it was time to wake Mindy. Stretch and meditation were next. Both went reasonably well, though my meditation of late hasn't been as thorough as it needs to be. I left for a run around 635am, running the usual 4.1 miles. Great run.

Mindy was still at the house when I returned, but not for long. As soon as she left, I got busy making breakfast and packing my lunch. Bella and I headed out at our usual time - 810am. The bus was there on time. I took care of a few loose ends before leaving the house, including listening to more of Todd's new CD.

I was soon off to work, but not to the main office. Instead, I was working from New Albany since I was in training all day Wednesday. It was supposed to be another decent day but with a chance of storms. I opted to not drive the BM’er. Left the house near 845am taking 670 east. Thankfully, the traffic wasn’t a problem at all. I listened to ESPN on XM. All the talk was about Saturday’s Power Ball drawing, now forecasted to be $500 million. Note to self, buy a ticket. Arrived in New Albany around 910am. Beautiful walk into the office, already near 70 degrees and sunny.

Once I was logged in and settled I went in search of the director so we could catch up on a few things. Because it wasn’t my regular onsite day, we didn’t have any meetings or calls planned. I stayed focused and busy all morning. Left for lunch around 1pm and headed to Lowes where I bought a couple more big beautiful zinnias. I wasn’t gone that long, only about 30 minutes. Still, getting out in the lovely weather and milling about the Lowes nursery was therapeutic.

Once back at the office I grabbed my packed food from the fridge and got back to work. I had a very productive afternoon and subsequently the time went by quickly. Leaving the office, my mind was flooded with work issues, but I did a more than remarkable job burying those thoughts since this was a Todd Rundgren night. I called Mindy once I was safely on 270. We discussed the evening’s logistics, which included dropping Bella at gymnastics before leaving for the concert. My dad was then expected at the house by 730p to intercept both kids after their extracurricular activities. Jimaken was taking Jacob to soccer practice.

I made good time barreling around 270, getting home by 525pm. Mindy asked if it might make more sense for us both to take Bella to gymnastics and then head straight to the concert, which according to the tickets would start at 7pm. Why not? We both changed clothes and then left to take Bella by 540pm. As is always the case, traffic was tight the entire drive to gymnastics. We took the back way because the freeway is always a no-no that time of day. We dropped Bella a couple minutes ahead of 6pm.

Destined for the LC Pavilion in the Arena district, we took 270N to 70 E to 670 E eventually exiting at Neil Ave. Any concern for heavy traffic going that way was for not. Smooth sailing the entire way. We parked in the North Market parking lot. Figured it was centrally located to many bars and restaurants as well as the concert venue. It was only 615pm. I suggested Barley’s Ale House #1 or the North Market. We opted for the North Market. Neither one of us had been there for years.

We did a full loop of the indoor market checking out the food and beer offerings. We ended up getting gyros at the Firdous Express, a Mediterranean place. We ate outside under the cover of their patio. Nice! After woofing down our gyros we ventured over to the Park St Tavern to have a beer. Our ex-CBC peep, Kayla was working. Haven’t seen her since the end of September. We were hoping they’d have Bodhi on tap but Kayla reported just running out. I opted for Great Lakes Rye of the Tiger IPA. Mindy went with Nugget Nectar. We talked with Kayla the entire time. Learned she’s a poly-sci major. It was 7pm. We headed after just one beer.

Fairly long line waiting for entrance. I guessed they only recently opened the doors. The crowd appeared shockingly old to my eyes. I can only guess that I appear that way to others too.  Interesting how we view ourselves as compared to others. The line moved swiftly. Inside the venue by 715pm. We checked out the t-shirt offerings at the door. Mindy offered to buy me one, but I didn’t really care for the design/selection. We headed to the bar where we surveyed their draught beer offerings. All bad! We opted for booze instead. I ordered a Jack & Coke while Mindy ordered a Rum and Diet. We went and found our seats which by design were in the last row at the end. Turned out, however, they added a few more seats moving us in about 4 or 5 chairs. No biggie.

We sat for a while talking and people watching but then got up to use the restroom and then walk around. We never did sit in our seats again. Spotted a couple Barley’s peeps and spent a while talking with the two of them. We stood just behind the last row of seats center stage. I’m guessing no more than 150’ from the stage. The show started very near 8pm with Todd playing Imagination, the first song on his brand new CD. It was just three musicians – Todd, a drummer and a bass player. Todd, of course, played guitar, keyboards and vocals. There was a lot of prerecorded background stuff mixed in too.

The music was fantastic, and Todd’s voice was spot on. The presentation was top notch, too. Bottom line, the show ranks right up there with some of his very best, and most of the tunes he played were from his last three CDs. Still relevant after 4 decades. The new stuff has a strong techno influence. His encore included Can We Still Be Friends & Hello It’s Me, but juiced up with a flavorful techno beat. Very cool!

I did notice a couple couples leaving apparently in disgust, shaking their heads in disapproval. They must’ve come expecting Todd to play his old stuff. I left fulfilled and I know that Mindy loved it too. I think he’s finally won her over too, this her fourth T.R. show. The show was over by 940pm. We headed back to our car. Mindy had a decent buzz after two or three rum & Cokes to go along with the glass of wine she had before leaving the house and then the beer at Park St Tavern. She was texting her teacher pal Shelly, who was at Brazenhead. Asked if we could go meet her. It wasn’t until she learned that they were at the Dublin Brazenhead that she recanted. We headed home where dad was watching the kids.

Arrived home by 10pm. Kids were already off to bed after watching the American Idol finale. Bella shouted over the railing that so and so won. We chatted with dad for a good 15 minutes before we thanked him and he left for home. I took a couple Advil more as an insurance policy. But Mindy, I guessed was going to have a rough start come Friday morning. 