Frozen/Burnt

I was up and out of bed just after 6am. And like most mornings since my two winter ski vacations, I woke sleepy and a little stiff. Downstairs I hit the go button on the coffee maker then completed calisthenics. From my lazy, sleepy state, getting to the end of calisthenics seemed like an enormous feat. Somehow I managed, and it’s never as daunting as it may seem at the outset. Once exercises were behind me I felt a little better.

It was 620am when I headed up to our room with Mindy’s morning coffee. She asked me to crank up the heat and close the bedroom window she cracked opened before bed. As for the weather, it was at or near 50 degrees with big rain forecasted all day. At the time, however, it was dry. Checking the radar, it looked like the bulk of the early storms would skirt to our south and east, though more was on the way.

There was some pretty important activity going on with one of my clients overnight. As such, I was engaged in proactive work related matters as early as 635am. All seemed to go well. Despite dragging my rear, I managed to get out for my run near 7am, or shortly after Jacob caught his school bus. I opted to wear a light long-sleeved wicking shirt and jacket. I was comfortable but had to unzip about halfway into my run to cool off a little. Tweener weather. Ran the full 4.1 miles.

Mindy was already off to school by my return, but I expected that. I headed out with the pug around 750am. Shortly after Bella was off to school I headed up for a shower. Didn’t leave the house until almost 850am. Arrived at the office just after 9am. My boss asked if I wanted to go up and visit Ken one day this week. Shared that I would likely go up Tuesday or Wednesday evening.

Stayed busy all day long opting to skip taking a formal lunch break. I originally planned to take lunch and return the bogus weed trimmer head I bought last Thursday, but instead figured I would stop at Home Depot on my way home. Rained hard through most of late morning and early afternoon. Work day went pretty fast. I left for home around 430pm, again planning a stop at Home Depot along the way.

They didn’t ask any questions about the return, but I offered my opinion on the product anyway. I also wrote and published a product review online so to help or prevent someone else from buying the faulty product. Was on my way home by 450pm. Called Mindy. She shared that my dad was joining us for dinner. And speaking of dinner, we were having chicken. Mindy gave me the option of inferno or plain. I opted for either.

After the days heavy rains the stream was fairly high. And for some reason, I was incredibly sleepy after my drive home. Actually, though, I was sleepy all afternoon. I asked Mindy if I had time for a nap before dinner. Yep. I took full advantage, stretching out on the sofa. Took a few minutes to quiet my mind but eventually slipped off to sleep. I woke when Bella came in asking if I wanted to see what the boys found. Jacob & Evan were out playing in the rain. Said they found some goose eggs in the woods. Oh boy.

Dad arrived about that same time. While waiting on dinner I chased a couple of those pesky geese from our yard. All it took was a little persistent clapping. Got ‘em trained. Dinner consisted of tender boneless chicken breast, fresh green beans, macaroni & cheese, potato salad, and garden salad. All very good.

Both kids headed off to play after dinner, Jacob back to Evan’s to shoot hoops, and Bella to Makayla’s where we heard they had a mini plumbing crisis earlier that afternoon caused by an overflowing upstairs toilet. Ugh! Took me about 20 minutes to manage kitchen clean-up. Mindy helped by putting away all the leftovers. Afterwards we enjoyed several option for dessert: brownies, strawberries and chocolate sauce, & finally mini éclairs. I opted for a brownie with some of the chocolate dipping sauce drizzled over top. I nuked it for a few seconds too. Totally yum!
Dad departed for home around 730pm, but not before Mindy extended an invite to join us celebrating Jacob’s birthday Friday evening with pizza and subs. After dad Mindy put in the movie Frozen. She was eager for the two of us to watch it. She and Bella went to see it at the movie theatre in mid-December.

I found it predictable and boring. In fact, so much so that I fell asleep about halfway through. Sure, there were some decent parts. Olaf the snowman comes to mind. He was an interesting character, but even he wasn’t a fresh idea, taken instead for the likes of Frosty. I woke with about the last 5 minutes. Mindy chided me for falling asleep. Hey, the great thing about movies, like all the arts, they’re valued in the eyes of the beholder. What one loves another may despise.

I think it was after the movie when Bella apparently put a slice of the leftover homemade pizza in the microwave set and walked away. We’re still not sure how long she put it in there for, but it was Jacob who called our attention to the thick smoke billowing from the microwave oven vents. Mindy checked its contents. Inside was a charred black slice of pizza. Mindy had Bella open the front and back door as well as a couple windows.

When Mindy quizzed Bella about what she had done she burst into tears making for a very dramatic scene. Later, when I went to console Bella she said, while holding back more tears, that she was afraid that she was putting all of our lives in danger. Said she didn’t know what was wrong with her. Cute! I encouraged her to come join us in bed for a few minutes for some snuggling. That helped big. After 10-15 minutes of snuggling she seemed fine. The house, by the way, stunk like burnt popcorn.