Electric Kayaker

I was up, out of bed, and downstairs near 8am. It was a chilly mid-August morning, sunny but only 49 degrees. I stepped out on the deck and glanced at my lovely flowers on the east side of the deck. Noticed something unusual about the giant dahlias I planted from bulb – their giant blooms were lying on the ground. I stepped down off the deck to inspect only to discover that they’d been vandalized along with a bell pepper plant by some critter, and they got both of them too. I felt mad and sad seeing such beautiful flowers that I’ve nurtured from bulb to bloom all summer long destroyed in one night. I was angry about the pepper plant too, but have come not to expect much from them anymore, despite vigilant efforts to protect them from critters with tomato cages and tight chicken wire. Whatever it was, it was strong enough to pull both the cage and wire mesh away before devouring the plant down to bare stems. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Inside, I went about a quiet morning enjoying coffee and internet until maybe 915am when I segued into a run. I wore a running shirt to combat the slight chill, which felt really good. The 3 mile run was almost effortless, my mind elsewhere the entire time.

I felt a bit anxious inside, due mostly to no solid plan for the day and with so many options – perhaps too many. We could hike, bike, boat, kayak, or work in the yard or basement. The options were plenty. Mindy was up by my return and on the deck with the pug. I topped off my coffee cup and joined them. We hung out on the deck for quite a while. I showed Mindy the damaged flowers and veggies. She was sad about it too. I trimmed back the tattered remains in hopes of salvaging what we could.

Without a clear plan for the day, Mindy soon took to reading from the deck. Me, I was still suffering from option overload. It’s a difficult feeling to convey, but one that drives me batty. It must’ve been around 1130am when I decided to take charge of my happiness and declared that I was going to kayak the pond, something I hadn’t done since the first week we bought those darn things. By then it had warmed nicely into the low 70s and still under cloudless skies. I opted to launch from behind the shed, perhaps the deepest water in the entire pond save for right up against the dam. I took a bottle water and packed my phone in the waterproof bag.

I am amazed at how beautiful the pond is once behind our property near Agee island. From past experience I knew to go around the island to the west. Just beautiful as well as peaceful. And there were zero geese anywhere to be seen either. There were a couple blue heron who took immediate notice of my presence. The flew off to nearby tree branches, and largely out of sight while I paddled around. I paddled around for an hour or so, very much enjoying the tranquility. And perhaps more importantly quieting the anxiousness I’d felt all morning.

Back at the house I pulled out and washed down the kayak leaving it and my water shoes in the sun to dry before stowing. Mindy was still reading, obviously enthralled with the novel. Having eaten only a banana prior, I made a little snack and then took a brief nap. Felt nice! Waking slowly from my nap I was surprised to find that the sun was no longer shining and veiled behind thin clouds despite a sunny forecast and zero percent chance of rain. I briefly toyed with the idea of washing my Accord and BM’er, something I haven’t done for a couple months running.

However, instead of doing anything outside, I decided my time might be best spent doing something in the basement, namely starting the wiring. Without mention of my intentions, I headed to the basement with a printed copy of my wiring plan and all the necessary materials. There I spent perhaps the next 2 or 3 hours wiring all three of the lighting branches, 17 cans in all. The wiring went largely without a hitch or any swearing.  I did have to bail myself out of one minor mistake but that was solved rather easily.

By the time I was done was closing in on 5pm. It was still cloudy outside and Mindy shared that it sprinkled rain on and off. Ugh! Where the hell did that come from? She also shared that she’d all but finished the novel she’d started just that morning. As much as I like to read, that’s just something I can’t do – dedicate an entire day to reading.

I walked the pug and then took a shower. Mindy got a shower too. At some point we made plans to head to dinner at CBC. We are so creatures of habit. The only thing about dining at CBC was the fact that we made plans to have brunch there Sunday with Ben & Ryan. CBC overload!!! Thinking it was near 630p when we arrived.

For the first time in a while they had Bodhi on tap, and it was cloudy, too! Really yummy. Vince promptly hooked us up with some risotto balls. We sat next to a couple from Dayton that were in town for a bike ride and decided to check out the local beer scene. We talked with the talked with the two of them for an hour or so.

I ordered a 2nd Bodhi about the time that Mindy ordered dinner. I planned to order some food too but wanted to wait a while. Mindy went with steak. And about ten minutes after her meal arrived Vince asked Mindy how the steak was. She ordered it medium pushed towards rare, but it came with just a hint of pink in the center. Without hesitation, he went to fetch another. By then she’d eaten half, if not more. At the same time, I ordered the Cuban burrito, and then worked on the rest of Mindy’s first steak. She asked Vince to make the replacement steak to-go order while I woofed down half my burrito. It was delicious. I had them pack what remained for home.

A few months back they added a couple new CBC t-shirt colors. I really like the blue on gray and asked Mindy for one. She happily bought me one to go with the two others I already have in my closet.

Thinking it was 930pm when we arrived home, and it wasn’t too long before Mindy was off to bed. I wasn’t tired, so I cracked another beer and spent another hour or so watching the Vikings preseason game against Arizona via Yahoo. They won easily and seemingly played well. Headed for bed around 11pm.