Looking Up

Was reluctant to want to get up and out of bed come the usual wake-up time. Little wonder, I was up again in the middle of the night unable to sleep. Think it was between 1-2am. Had a couple bowls of cereal and played around online until I felt sleepy enough to return to bed. Mindy was actually out of bed well before me. Can't recall what she was doing when I finally pulled my sorry ass from bed, or for that matter, exactly what time it was. I do know that it was after Jacob headed out for the bus, so it had to be later than 650am.. After quickly brushing my teeth I headed downstairs for exercise and coffee.

It was Tuesday which is a non-push-up day. I completed the routine quickly. By then Mindy had already gotten her own coffee. What a slacker I am. Mindy was off to work in a jiffy. Just like that, it was just Bella and I.

I did my run after Bella headed out the door. It was shaping up to be a gorgeous morning. I ran the full 4.1 miles. Once back from my run I got an IM from my boss asking if I wanted to meet him up at the hospital. Told him that I planned on going up that afternoon instead. Said he'd head up alone. Felt kind of bad, but felt at peace with my decision.

Quickly made my breakfast and then headed up for a shower. Left the house for work around 10am stopping first to fill-up the gas tank. Took 15.4 gallons at $3.50 each. Netted about 21.5 mpg last tank full. Made good time heading across town. Had to park in the far lot, though once I walked up saw that a 20 minute parking spot was indeed available. Oh well, it was a beautiful morning - already about 50 degrees and sunny.

Quickly settled and logged in. Kept largely to myself, though did chat briefly with one of the managers who spent the last week in Florida on vacation. Shared how challenging it was to get back into the groove. No kidding! Stayed busy as ever until our standing 1pm meeting.

Meeting was somewhat low-key. Not all players were on hand. Still beneficial, however. Had a couple meetings and calls to join that afternoon. Originally, I thought I might leave early and go to the hospital to visit Ken. I still planned to visit but figured it would be closer to 530pm. Finished up my work day close to 445pm. Talked with Mindy before I left. She offered to meet me at the hospital if I wanted, but she also reminded me that Bella needed to be at gymnastics. Told her I would go alone and stop on my way home.

Made excellent time barreling around 270 to 315 south. Didn't take more than about 15 minutes to get there from the Easton area. My former manager was there again with his wife, and Ken's wife was there too. Ken was out cold, apparently only recently sedated due to pain. Lori was once again very informative, describing the day's events and Ken's status. Gone were the large gauze bandages from around his head. Noticeably swollen. Could now see where they cut into his skull. Looked painful. Lori tried waking him to let him know that we were there. Both my former manager and I asked her not to bother him. Still, she continued and he eventually woke however only briefly. But in that short amount of time he managed to utter a few recognizable sentences, most of which were incredibly funny. First, he asked if his head scar looked cool. A few minutes later he made a very funny reference to an inappropriate Family Guy episode , one where Peter Griffin has a stroke. Ryan was in stitches. A cute young nurse happened to be in the room at the time. She said she didn't get the reference - hadn't seen the episode. But she was very happy that he was talking and responding.

He was in obvious pain the entire time. Keep reaching for his head, the same side where they removed part of the skull. Shared that it hurt. The nurse was anxious to tie his right arm to the bed rail to prevent Ken from ripping the feeding tube from his nose, something he had apparently done earlier that day. Lori shared that he had a couple ornery episodes that day. Lori left before Ryan and I. She was planning to come back and spend the night. Ryan and I stuck around for another half hour or so.

Think it was near 7pm by the time I got home from the hospital. Was surprised to see dad's minivan out front. Inside I learned that Mindy invited dad to dinner her drive back home from dropping Bella. We were having Mindy's chicken, artichoke and pasta dish. I was starving. The meal was delicious. Because I had just arrived home, Mindy agreed to go after Bella so I could finish my dinner, talk with dad, and perhaps relax a little. I very much appreciated it.

Among other stories, shared the happy resolution to my toilet problem with dad. He had a shared interest since he witnessed my dilemma on Sunday. Dad was still there when Mindy & Bella returned, but not for long. He left the house before 8pm. I spent the remainder of my evening reading, playing on the internet. Headed to bed near 930pm.