Gimmie some Candy, Dammit!

Not planning to run until Bella was on the bus, I allowed myself to sleep in a little, not getting up and out of bed until about 605am. Downstairs a few minutes later, I quickly stepped out on the deck gazing skyward. Nothing but clouds overhead and extremely warm temps. Back inside, I quickly breezed through calisthenics. It was near 625am when I delivered Mindy's coffee.

Like a handful of other recent mornings, I made it a point to meditate ahead of enjoying coffee and PC time. At the time I still planned on heading into the office to carry out my work day. When Jacob came downstairs for a quick bite ahead of heading out to the bus stop, he shared that it was 60 some degrees. Geesh! I wished him well at the final night of basketball tryouts since I almost certainly wouldn't see him until afterwards.

Mindy was downstairs shortly after 7am and already shouting out for Bella to get up. Mindy asked if I planned to work at home or at the Hilliard office. Hilliard office. She left for school a few minutes early. It was donuts with someone special day again. Bella and I did our usual stuff ahead of bus stop time. She disappeared upstairs and I toggled between pleasure and work.

I slipped into my running clothes and stretched ahead of bus stop time. We headed out at 757am. Even though it was warm, there was one heck of a breeze kicking up. Chrissy shared that Trick or Treat might be canceled, postponed, or moved up due to an impending storm, something I had no idea of prior. She went on to say that they were forecasting 40-50 mph winds and heaving rain for the evening hours. Apparently many surrounding communities had already changed their plans. Hmm?

The bus was there before 805am. I hadn't yet walked the pug, so she and I headed across the street before heading home. Back at the house I topped off my coffee and sat down at my PC for a few minutes contemplating my run. It was then that I decided that I might as well work from home. I was already set-up and in the middle of a few things anyway. I left for a run around 830am.

I ran the full 4.1 miles, opting to wear my light weight jacket but unzipped to the starter course. The cool breeze made it feel cooler than it really was. Just after the three mile marker, I decided to shed the jacket by pulling out my arms and tying it around my waist without missing a beat. I was soaked head to toe with sweat. In hindsight, I should've left the jacket at home. I felt a whole lot better by the time I made it home.

Back at the house by 910am, I was dripping sweat from head to toe so I toweled off with a beach towel then topped off my coffee again. The sweat kept coming for the next 10 minutes or so. Once I was settled in, I fried eggs for the pug and I. After breakfast, kept my nose to grind stone for pretty much the rest of the day. Mid day checked the web for any changes to our local Trick or Treat times. Sure enough, like a lot of surrounding communities, Columbus decided to move it from 6-8pm to 530-7pm. I guess that meant the worst weather was expected later.

Got two pieces of good news that day. One, the IRS let me know that my case was now closed. I was correct. Finally! Two, Mindy called to share that the extra day she requested off was approved meaning we can take an entire week off in February for our annual adult ski vacation. Wahoo! She asked that I not book airline tickets, however, until she receives written approval which would most likely come the following day.

During what I'll call my lunch break, I headed upstairs for a shower. As always, felt a whole lot better after.

As recent as Tuesday or Wednesday I had commented to Mindy how long the foliage was hanging onto the trees this season. Most years the maples are bare by Trick or Treat. Thursday's wind and rain, however, was taking its toll. The leaves were coming sown by the bushels, and we hadn't seen the brunt of the fall storm yet.

Soon Jacob was home from school. He seemed very eager but nervous about the evening's final basketball tryouts and ultimately the final cuts. Jimaken agreed to drive him to tryouts but I was supposed to pick him up. Bella was home about 10 minutes earlier than normal. In the door by 340pm. And then Mindy was home about 10 minutes later. She had several bags in her hand, apparently stopped to pick-up some stuff for dinner.

Ahead of Trick or Treat, Mindy whipped up chicken & noodles using a whole rotisserie chicken. That sounded good, though I would've been just as happy having the chicken and mashed potatoes. As the afternoon turned to early evening, the rain and wind picked up just as it was forecasted to do.

Jimaken arrived to fetch Jacob around 430pm. Because of tryouts, Jacob would miss all of Trick or Treat, but he didn't seem to care in the least. Bella on the other hand, was excited that gymnastics was canceled. She, Makayla, and Emily were heading out together, but not until after dinner. I asked Mindy if she wanted to hold off on having dinner until Trick or Treat was over. She said she was hungry and wanted to eat prior. Worked for me, though I could've waited.

Bella wanted only broth. Not sure what was up with that. Makayla had a bowl of chicken and noodles too. Mindy and I both had two helpings. I finished up clean-up just ahead of 530pm and the start of Trick or Treat. The first kids showed at our door right at 530pm. We can't complain, Bella and Makayla had already headed out too. The kids were rather fortunate. It was really windy, but the rain wasn't much more than a sprinkle.

Mindy answered the call from most of our ghoulish visitors. She genuinely loves to greet the children at the door, especially the little ones. While she passed out candy, I read by ebook from a recliner. The inclement weather helped stem the usual steady stream of Trick or Treaters. Mindy guessed we had about 50 kids, keeping in mind that most come in clusters, that's not too many. Time passed quickly. Mindy shared that Jacob privately asked if she would come get him after tryouts. She said he was really nervous, in fact, more nervous than she's ever seen him before. She believed he wanted her to do the pick-up just in case he was cut. I understand. At the end of the day, he's still just a young boy that needs things only his momma can provide.

While Mindy was off to get Jacob, the Trick or Treaters continued to come to the door despite the event formally ending at 7pm. I'm pretty sure we had kids come as late as 810pm. We had a couple kids actually open the door to come in. Yikes! Mindy & Jacob were back by 730pm. I knew instantly the news wasn't good. I could hear Jacob outside swearing like a sailor. He spoke not a word and went straight to his room. Mindy strolled in just behind him. She looked whipped. She quietly shared that Jacob had been in tears most of the way home. Said he was devastated. He wanted no one to console him. We left him to himself hoping he might get over it in a hurry. He made some outlandish comments. But I understand, his pride had been crushed.

Bella came in around 8pm with her pals. The pals stayed just a couple of minutes. Soon they were gone and Bella emptied her pillow case of candy onto the family room floor. Might be the most Halloween candy I've seen anyone garner in years. We pulled her aside and told her about Jacob, just so she didn't walk into a buzz saw. She was very mature about it, and expressed deep sorrow. I was a little surprised. She's a very caring sister.

Mindy sent Jacob a couple texts asking if he wanted anything to eat. At first it was an absolute no! Late, however, he responded that he wanted food but was not coming downstairs to eat it. Mindy laughed but responded that he'd have to starve then. Bella requested French bread pizza. I took care of that while Mindy did some Ava Anderson stuff. I prepped two even though Jacob said he didn't want one. I knew better.

Around 805pm Mindy dispatched Bella to the shower. At the same time, I tuned the TV to CBS and the newest Big Bang episode. I planned to watch TNF on the NFL Network -the Bengals/Dolphins game. Bengals have long been my fallback team. Big Bang was funny. I poured a Jack & Coke then tuned to the game at 830pm. Aside from about 5 minutes of the 3rd quarter when I tried unsuccessfully to go to bed, I watched the entire game, and most of it alone. Mindy headed up to bed around 9pm. I just wasn't sleepy. And even after the game, which was just after midnight, I still wasn't that tired. I enjoyed a bowl of Cap'n Crunch then headed for bed. I'll bet I laid there for a good 30 minutes before I finally fell asleep.