Manifest My Destiny

I slept OK but still didn’t want to get up once morning rolled around. I’ll bet I woke 8 times between 530 and 630am before finally getting up around 645am. Downstairs the coffee was long since brewed. After disabling the security system I launched into calisthenics completing sit-ups, push-ups, and windmills. As usual, once they were knocked out I felt much more awake.
As a result of sleeping late, it was 7am by the time I was settled at my desk with coffee. I played around online until 735am which is when I forced myself away from my desk for meditation and a stretch. As a result of my late start, it was close to 8a when I launched my run. It was sunny and 60 degrees immediately out the door. A few clouds moved in during my 4.1 miles run. Feeling really good of late. No pain.

Like I often do during a run, I spent my brain cycles contemplated life. A couple of things were at the forefront of my mind. One of which was setting and achieving goals. I thought about how one goes about achieving seemingly unachievable, long term goals, be them financial, educational, career, fitness, etc. Take my running streak as an example. I doubt it would be where it’s at today had my stated goal been to run every day for 17.5+ years. Instead, I simply set a goal to run every day. It may seem like a play on words but it’s not. By stating simply that I would run everyday kept my focus only on the day ahead. Not too daunting, right? On the other hand, had I stated from the outset that I was going to run every day for 17.5 years I would have been able to see the end goal being achieved and would ultimately have failed. .

And the same can be said for financial goals, say, retiring with X amount of dollars. It’s far easier to set smaller, target goals where progress is apparent so success can be achieved, and then tweaks can be made if necessary without considering failure. This thinking works for any kind of long term goal setting. In the same vein, And carrying this thought process further, I believe the same thinking can be applied to undoing ugly habits as well, like smoking, drugs, etc. That said, I’m not oblivious to the fact that some addictions run deep. However, it’s not impossible to beat them. Start simple. “I am not going to smoke today”. The same the next day, and so on.

Running by Darwin’s place, it looked as if they’re ready to hit the road for their beach vacation. I made a mental note to ping him later and also to keep a close eye out for any unusual behavior in or around his home. Arrived back at the house near 830-840am. No one was up but then again, I didn’t expect anyone else to be up either. I took care of a couple work emails then it was off to the kitchen where I I quickly prepped breakfast and lunch.

A shower was next. I took Mindy coffee and dripped a little on the white bedroom carpet in so doing. Dang it! Thankfully, it’s not something I do with regularity – spill it that is. I quickly cleaned up the few spots with a wet rag. Felt better heading into the shower confident that I got the mess before it became permanent. Ready to go by 930am. Mindy joined me downstairs for a few minutes before I needed to leave. She said she and the kids would be spending the day cleaning the house. Jacob was at an overnight at Cody & Zach’s but Mindy was going after him around 11am.

I headed off to work near 950am stopping first at the Circle K for a fill-up. Gas was $3.27 and the Accord took 14.2 gallons. That’s about 25 mpg. Made good time crossing town. For some reason, there were a number of cars going under the speed limit in the fast lane. That’s very unusual. Arrived across town around 1015am and got quickly situated and busy.

I didn’t plan to take lunch. Instead, I figured to plow straight through the work day. I had a number of two-dos scrawled out and dug in right away. Amongst them was joining an online live class at 1130am. I was familiar with the material which afforded me the opportunity to multitask. By day’s end, I made a huge dent in my to-do list. Felt really good with all I was able to accomplish. I packed my gear and headed for home around 415pm fully intending to do a little more work from home.

Instead of calling Mindy, I called my mom instead. Hadn’t talked with her for a couple of weeks. She sounded a little rough at first. I wasn’t sure if she was sick or just caught off guard. I guess a little of both. She went on about her latest ailment. As I understood it, they performed an ultra sound on her kidneys and found an unusual spot that they want to have checked more thoroughly via an outpatient hospital visit. She gave me more details on her last hospital stay, which included a kidney stone and dehydration. I joked but don’t think she caught the comment about she having the kidney stone because dad had one too. It’s simply uncanny how often she ends up with the same problems as dad. We’re talking back, heart, knees, and now stones. Perhaps they’re kindred spirits, connected in a dimension we’re not equipped to readily see.  Though I think it’s fair to say that dad always seems to heal better, faster. We talked about a few other issues on her mind, too, but I won’t divulge details here. We wrapped up the call as I neared my 270 exit.

I called Mindy at the exit ramp but Bella answered. She sounded like she was in an really good mood. She shared that Mindy was upstairs “spot” cleaning her room. And then after our call got disconnected and she called me back, she continued to describe what her mother was into. She insisted that I not go upstairs once home for the mess in the hallway. As I understood things, Mindy have everything out of Bella’s room. Ugh!!!

Arrived home around 450pm. I got situated downstairs with a snack (cashews) and work. Bella greeted me and reiterated that I shouldn’t go upstairs. She even shared that when she was last up there she hurt her foot. What? Jimaken was at the door a minute or two later. He was there to pick-up the kids for date night – theirs and ours. 

I noticed that Rocky’s 2nd bday gifts arrived, both from Walmart.com. Heck, I ordered them on Sunday and had them both by Wednesday when the promise date was yet a week out. The few times I’ve ordered from them I’ve received similar results. Way to go, Wally!

Just before Jimaken left with the kids, Mindy came downstairs. I’m not sure that she knew I was home until then. By then I was relaxing in the recliner with a glass of water and my Kindle reading. After bidding the children farewell, she greeted me then headed back upstairs. A few minutes later she asked if I wanted to go out or stay home. I was indifferent at first but soon changed my tune suggesting we go out. She was OK either way, but needed to know so she could shower real quick if we were going out.

She was showered and back downstairs around 550pm. Ahead of that I was completely absorbed in my latest Kindle book essentially about manifesting. It’s called, E Squared. Before blow drying her hair Mindy came downstairs brining me the two Ultimate Lithium batteries I’d been looking for for two months. She said she found them in Bella’s room. Oh boy! I had them stashed in my desk and was driving myself crazy trying to locate them. Mindy remembered me asking Bella more than once if she might’ve taken them. Each time she was adamant that she hadn’t. Before we left for Barley’s, which we’d only settled on the venue moments prior, I suggested she take the batteries back upstairs and insist that Bella bring them to me later once we were all home again. She agreed.

Arrived at Barley’s around 620pm and bellied up to the bar which was about ½ attended. Daniel was tending bar. I ordered their flagship Pale Ale, which for my money is the best anywhere in the country. Mindy opted for a Green Flash IPA only to later ask for something different after we both agreed that it was darn near flat. She opted for a Stone IPA in its place. Much better!

Mindy wanted an appetizer and in turn asked if I was interested in sharing either kettle chips or French fries. I wanted neither, basically putting my foot down on real bad for you snacks, at least for now. She went with the kettle chips. Daniel soon shared that the Xmas in July has been a big success. In fact so much so that they’re already out of the Xmas ale of which I believe they had three kegs. They still have the St Nicks, however, although not sure how much longer it will last.

Around 7pm I ordered a 2nd beer along with food. Stuck in a wing craze lately, going for 10 K.C. wings well done. Mindy went with a burger and asparagus. This time I went with a ZIPA, their zesty summer IPA, which has an excellent bite that comes in a 6% abv. Good stuff!

My wings were prepared to perfection and as a result, I ate all ten of them. I’m proud of myself. I didn’t touch even one of the yummy looking kettle chips sitting right next to me. Mindy cut her burger into quarters and ate all but one section, taking what was left home for Jacob. She agreed to pick-up the t ab. Through dinner I exchanged texts with David and Darwin. Darwin shared that they were already in VA. Wished them a happy one. David shared that the backyard barbeque we tentatively planned with his son and grandkids for next week during their visit was off due to issues with his son. Hey, it happens. I am sure we’ll fill the time with lots of fun stuff.

Left for home near 8pm. As we entered the subdivision and passed the first cul-de-sac, Mindy shared that she saw a couple of deer in the front yard of a neighbor and was certain one of them was pooping. We turned around to validate her somewhat peculiar citing. Sure enough, in the front yard of a former coworker of mine were three deer – a doe and two fawns. And just as Mindy suggested, the doe was taking a dump. I asserted that Mindy hurry and snap a photo. All sorts of funnies could come of that.:) Sadly, I think we spooked them as we got within a house in the car.

At home the kids were already back from dinner with dad. When Mindy offered Jacob her leftovers he quickly rejected them after taking a look. I quickly changed into my PJs and brushed my teeth then went to my PC to do more writing for my blog. Mindy headed upstairs to work on putting Bella’s room back in some semblance of order, enough at least that she could sleep in her own bed. As it was, her carpet was still a little damp.

Before I headed to bed, which would’ve been around 930pm, Mindy asked that I take a look at Bella’s room, now ridded of much of the clutter. Way less clutter, that’s for sure. Among other things, she’s getting rid of her Barbie apartment and accessories. I checked with Mindy to make sure that she would take care of securing the home before joining me in bed.

As a sleep aid, I tuned the TV to The Universe. I barely saw any of it though, and as a result can’t recall one bit of what the episode was about. Mindy joined me in bed around 10pm. I remember her removing the remote from my grippers but that’s about it.