Gettin' New Runners

I was up and out of bed near 6am. Mostly clear and cool – about 43 degrees. Expecting mostly sunny skies and a high near 70. Exercises behind me by 615am, I soon delivered Mindy’s coffee and woke her for work. Downstairs, I enjoyed coffee and internet until 640am when I forced myself away from my PC for meditation and a stretch. Near 710am I headed upstairs again this time to bid Mindy farewell since I knew she’d be gone by the time I got back to the house after a run.

I ran the full 4.1 miles. Back home near 750am, I promptly walked the pug. Still ahead of 8am, I took a couple minutes to pull the BM’er’s battery and stowed in the trunk of the Accord hoping to replace it at lunch. Noticed Kenny at the bus stop with Makayla. Walked down and talked with him. Been a while since he and I were at the bus stop together. We talked plumbing problems since we’ve both been through one or two of late.

Back home for another cup of coffee and eventually a shower. Having forgotten my lunch on Wednesday, I sat it out for that afternoon. Left for the office near 840am arriving just ahead of 9am. Stayed busy all morning working on monthly reports. Left for lunch near 1pm, first heading to the Tuttle mall Finish Line to look at new running shoes. Had my $10-$20-off coupons in my back pocket just in case. Like most shoe shopping trips, I cut through Macy’s Men’s department.

They had an Asics model and color scheme I liked on sale for $69. I tried them on. Not only did they fit well, but they were incredibly comfortable too. The sales associate assisting tried upselling me on full insoles. Once I declined that offer he tried pushing heel cushions. Uh, no thanks! They actually had to color schemes I liked, and for the price, I toyed with buying one of each, but in the end went with just the one pair.

Cut through Macy’s again on my way back to my car. Looked at a couple things but bought nothing. Gone about 40 minutes, I headed to the nearest Advance Auto Parts on Cemetery Rd in front of the Kroger. Carried in my old, depleted Diehard. The counter was busy. I had to wait a few minutes. No worries. Tested my battery while checking availability of a replacement. According to their website, they had two models for the Z3. Test indicated a dead cell. I wasn’t surprised.

Problem with the recommended replacement was that the venting hole on the battery was located on the end, not the center like my old battery. Not wanting to fuss with retrofitting the venting tube, I refused the replacement battery thinking I would try elsewhere, including Sears. Back to the office.

While working through the afternoon, I took a minute to call the Sears Auto Center at Tuttle mall. The fella said they had the right battery and even walked back to make sure it was center vented like my original. Offered that I would stop by sometime that afternoon to pick one up.

Finished my work day near 430pm. Headed back to Tuttle mall and more specifically to Sears Auto Center. Turns out, their offering was vented no differently that the one at Advance. I was peeved because the kids told me he went and looked at it to make sure it was center vented. Oh boy! I wondered if I might have to retrofit the vent tube. I opted to keep looking around. I headed for home.

I was planning to jump on 270 S from Tuttle mall, but the traffic to 270 was backed up all the way to the on-ramp which was a good ½ mile. Heck no! Instead, I opted for the back way down Old Dublin Rd. Nice drive and next to no traffic. Awesome!

Arrived home around 515pm. Bella and Mindy would soon be leaving for gymnastics. Bella had a ham sandwich before they left. I had Mindy leave it out so I could trim what was left of the ham off the bone and consolidate it into a Ziploc. Ended up with a baggie for us and another one for the pug. I unloaded the dishwasher before Mindy got back home too. I am such the good husband. Just ask. 

At my computer, I did a little more battery research. Seems even the replacement batteries at the BMW dealership are vented on the ends. Hmm? I guess I’d simply have to buy the venting tube kit and retrofit the venting tube no matter where I bought the replacement battery.

Mindy worked on sub plans when she got back from taking Bella to gymnastics. It was such a nice evening we walked the pug together. Around 7pm I asked what time she was leaving to get the peanut. I was only joking. I did ask if she wanted to ride along. She did. Jacob, by the way, was at soccer practice.
We left to get Bella earlier than usual and a result, we arrived at the gym near 710pm.

We sat in the mini-bleachers watching her and others practice. I think Bella was happy to find that we both came to get her. Home near 745pm, the sun was still well above the horizon. Still getting used to it being daylight at pick-up time.

At home, Bella was soon off to the shower. Shortly after 8pm I tuned the TV to CBS and a new episode of Big Bang. We watched Big Bang and The Miller’s, both were hilarious. Enjoyed a couple Jack & Cokes while watching TV, too. Hadn’t touched the stuff since Utah. We headed for bed before 10pm.