Showing My Browns

I woke when Mindy started the shower but quickly and easily drifted back to sleep until the blow dryer kicked on. The smell of coffee was overpowering. I tossed and turned for a few more minutes before giving up on any more sleep. Satisfied with more than 8 hours of sleep, I got up, brushed my teeth, and headed downstairs.

It was about 715am. I opted to skip sit-ups and push-ups since I was off work. Instead, I went right for a cup of coffee and my PC. As usual, Mindy left for school near 730am after confirming that I’d be home to see the kids off the bus. She wanted to stick around after school to catch-up on a few things if at all possible. 

I didn’t figure to run until the kids were on the school bus. Consequently, I didn’t figure to be painting until 10am at the earliest. I enjoyed some leisure time at the PC with coffee until bus time (810a). It was only 32 degrees under sunny skies. I made sure the kids wore the proper jackets. Met Chrissy at the bus stop with the girls. Sounds like everybody in their house had the crud this week. Lasted only about one day, however.  

We made bus time dog walking time all rolled into one. Worked well. The bus was there a few minutes early again. The pug and I headed back home immediately after. Before doing a run, I enjoyed a 2^nd or 3^rd cup of coffee at the PC. It had to be near 9am when I finally headed out for a run. By then it had warmed a few more degrees but remained fairly cool. The brilliant spring-like sunshine made it feel a whole lot warmer.  

Like I often do on days off, I curbed my run to only three miles. I figured my body could use the extra rest. I was back home near 930am with the entire day still in front of me. That felt really good! I poured some coffee then gathered painting material. I forgot to check for masking tape the day before, but luckily found about 2/3’s roll amongst the painting supplies. I removed all the art work and wall plates then spent the next 30 minutes masking the wood trim in the hallway. Tedious, but time well spent. 

I was ready to paint just after 1015am. I put on some music to help energize me – Pink Floyd’s, The Final Cut. The hallway is a relatively small area but one that requires lots of cut-in, including two doors, the ceiling, the floor trim, and the banister. The cut-in was slow going, especially at first until I found my groove. I’m guessing it took about two hours for the cut-in. I took a brief break after when I enjoyed my leftover Reuben. 

The rolling goes must faster than the trim. Of course, having painted with extra dark colors a time or two past, I knew it would take in all likelihood three coats. Bet the first coat was on by 1pm. I took another break only this time for about an hour. With the initial coat completely dry, I started coat two around 2pm. By the time coat two was on I could see what the final product would look like. The bold brown brings out the lighter woodwork in a positive way.  

With the time in between coats, I finished writing a couple blog entries. It was nearing 4pm, or about time for the kids to get home, when I started coat number three. It’s difficult to see the thin spots but using a combination of diffused sunlight and artificial lamp light I was able to see where I needed to focus more attention.  

The kids got home right at 4pm. I asked that they try and avoid walking through the hallway while I finished painting. I was done painting for the day around 415pm and promptly started clean-up. I asked the kids if they had any homework. Bella had none. Jacob had some but said he never has to do it on Friday night. Not wanting to break with tradition, I left him go about his business as usual.  

I’m thinking that it was near 440pm when Mindy arrived home. By then I’d gotten a badly needed shower. I wasn’t so sure how she’d feel about the paint, though we picked the color collectively. Thought she might think it too dark. She gushed about the paint work immediately in the door. And just like me, she especially liked how nicely it enhances the wood work. All the tools and material were cleaned up, but I left everything out but tucked away in a corner so I could do another coat if necessary come Saturday morning.  

Jimaken showed to get the kids around 515-530pm. They’d be with him for the night but back home by noon on Saturday. In kind, Mindy and I planned to got out for dinner at CBC. Lindsey texted just after the kids left asking if the boys could spend the night.  We responded that we didn’t have the kids and had a date. We’d later offer up Saturday night as an alternative.  

I tried taking a little nap in between the kids leaving and us getting ready for dinner out. I never fell asleep but did get some rest in the recliner. We left for CBC just before 7pm. We took the Accord. I dropped Mindy at the door then went in search of a parking spot. For the first time in recent memory, there were none to be had. I circled twice before giving up and heading across the street to a meter on Liberty St. It was 708p when I fed the meter. I know that because it would only give me 2 hours and 52 minutes, or until 10pm when parking becomes free. It seemed like an eternity since I dropped Mindy at the door. Was glad to find Mindy at a single stool in a very crowded bar. I stood for the first 15 minutes or so until a couple vacated the two stools next to us. Others were hawking stools too. We were fortunate. My legs were weary from all the up & down the ladder painting.  

I sipped a Bodhi, which was absolutely terrific. It might be my new favorite. Mindy sipped a glass of wine. We planned to order food but didn’t so for quite some time. It was restaurant week again, by the way. Vince passed us the special three course menu they have selected especially for the event. For the first time in a while, we each planned to order our own entrée.  

Both of us went with the risotto and a salad, but differed with our main course. Mindy went with the salmon while I opted for the barrel cut sirloin medium rare. Mindy asked Vince to slow the arrival of our portions so we could savor each.  He followed her directions to a tee. They were very deliberate with the timing, spacing each a good 20 minutes apart. In fact, there was so much time between our salad and steak, that Vince brought us another risotto to share.  

Before, through, and after dinner, I consumed a total of 4 Bodhi’s. They’re just that good! I’m thinking that it was closing in on 1030-11pm when we settled our tab and headed for home. I paid and tipped well. Mindy drove.  

At home, I walked Eiknarf then enjoyed a fire in the fireplace. I also poured a White Rajah. We hung out in front of the fire for about an hour before headng to bed. 

Long Lost Reuben

I was up a little late and quickly downstairs staring my routine. And while it wasn’t raining initially, it started in earnest just few minutes later. The one bright spot was that Thursday was really my Friday. That felt good. I completed sit-ups and push-ups then enjoyed coffee at the PC.  

Sadly, it didn’t appear that the rain would let up anytime soon, but the temperature was far and away warmer than any other morning in the recent past. It was a balmy 59 degrees. However, it wasn’t expected to get any warmer. In fact, they were predicting a slow drop to about 50 by midday. 

As it worked out, I was finished with everything else I needed/wanted to get done until well after 630am. And it was 645am by the time I left for a run.  About the halfway point I decided to be a slacker and curb my run to just 3 miles. Between the time and the rain, I didn’t feel even an ounce of guilt. Actually, though, the rain wasn’t too heavy after the initial drenching.  

I walked the dog in the rain once I was back home. The warm temps must’ve helped Eiknarf. She relieved herself in a hurry. Smelt like spring outside. By the time we were back at home Mindy was ready to leave. As I recall, there was nothing special on the agenda after work, except for Jacob going to a hockey game with his dad. I kidded Bella about it being family night.  

Off to the shower near 735am and ready a short while later. The kids and I waited for the bus from the garage. We weren’t there long, however, because the bus once again showed early.  

Before leaving for work I made sure I had the Sherwin Williams paint chip # for Tea Chest. I planned to visit Sherwin-Williams at lunch if everything went well at work. I spent the entire morning working on monthly reports. That under control, I took my lunch near 1230pm and headed to the Hilliard-Rome Sherwin-Williams store.  

I was a little surprised at how dark the actual paint chip color looked compared to that online via my monitor. After mulling it over I decided to stick with what we chose and ordered a gallon of the Tea Chest in an eggshell finish. The kid working the counter advised that due to the dark color, our only option was their low quality or highest quality paint. Wasn’t available in Super Paint. I about choked when he shared that the Duration (highest quality) was $58 per gallon. I quizzed in more detail then offered that he give me credit for the $10 off coupon available online. He wasn’t going to do it until I shared that I could pull up the coupon on my smart phone. Bottomline, I paid $47.XX for one gallon of their best paint. Yikes!  

Back to the office. I took Hilliard-Rome north where it actually becomes Avery Rd to Davidson Rd. There was a train moving at a snails pace at the Davidson Rd RR crossing. It looked like it might stop at any second. L Thankfully, it just kept chugging along and soon  the end was near. After waiting patiently for about ten minutes it cleared the crossing.

The afternoon went fairly smooth with me spending most of my time tying up loose ends in preparation for a three-day weekend. I left for home around 515pm.

Everybody was home, including Jacob who was waiting for his dad to arrive for the hockey game. Mindy, Bella and I made plans to visit Barley’s for dinner, a rare Thursday night visit, which likely meant I could get the smoked Reuben, one of my favorite sandwich, and only available on Thursdays.

Jimaken arrived around 545pm and left before 6pm. Wasn’t sure what time they’d leave the game for home. We headed off to Barley’s shortly thereafter. It was still spitting rain and had been all day long. The good news was that the forecast for the next three days called for nothing but sunshine with highs near 50 but warming to the mid 60’s by Sunday.  

As expected, it was Reuben special night. Mindy, Bella and I quickly grabbed the first barside table. Janet immediately greeted us and took our drink orders. I went with a Fortune Teller imperial porter and Mindy went with a Loose Cannon IPA. Bella opted for a Dr Pepper. As is tradition, I held off on any food order until my first beer was history. We did, however, order some fries to tie Bella over. Mindy, meanwhile, abandoned Bella and I to talk with Jersey and Sarah sitting at the table next to us.  

We eventually ordered food, me the special, Mindy KC wings. Bella ordered wings, too, buffalo-style. I had a 2^nd beer, the Loose Cannon IPA. I’d compare it to White Rajah but just not quite as good. Wasn’t long before our food orders arrived. My Reuben was really good. I ate only half. Figured to take the rest home for later. Bella complained that her wings were over done. More than once Mindy and I had to ask her not to play with them. Both she and Bella ate no more than half their wings. We got two to-go boxes for home. Jacob would be more than pleased with the leftover wings.  

We left for home around 740pm. Mindy paid and drove. Arrived home ahead of Idol elimination night. Jacob wasn’t home from the Blue Jackets game until almost 9pm. He predictably enjoyed some wings immediately in the door. Mindy peeled off to bed after Idol ended at 9pm. Because I wasn’t working on Friday, I planned to stay up for a while yet and was happily enjoying a couple more beers – White Rajahs.  Both kids stayed up to watch the Finder after Idol. I fell asleep on the sofa near 945pm effectively missing the end of the show. Both kids saw themselves off to bed at its conclusion. I woke and headed up to bed covering about half a pint glass of White Rajah with a baggie.

I fell asleep fairly quickly.

Spring Done Sprung

Even after falling asleep somewhere close to 730pm on Tuesday evening, I still felt I needed more sleep when 530am rolled around. However, I am sure getting up at 1230am and playing on the PC for 30 minutes didn't help either.

I woke initially around 500am but then played cat and mouse with the clock for more than another 45 minutes.  By then, the smell of fresh coffee permeated the entire house. Long story short, I wasn’t in the kitchen until 550am. I'm fortunate that I didn’t oversleep more than I did. But then again, it was a late start day for the kids, meaning we'd be sticking around the house until 1015am. The way I saw it, I had plenty of time to exercise, relax, play, then run.

I glanced out back to a mostly clear sky then slipped into my exercise shoes and headed to the living room where I whipped out 50 sit-ups. Sit-ups quickly behind me, I headed straight for the kitchen where I did 50 push-ups.

By the time calisthenics were completely behind me I was more than ready for some coffee. I took my coffee to the PC where I spent the next 15-20 minutes. The forecast was nice. Calling for mostly clear skies with high’s in the mid 60s. At the time it was still a cool 43 degrees.

I left the PC behind near 620am and headed to the family room for meditation. But after thinking twice, I figured I’d better wake Mindy ahead of meditation and/or stretching. By the time I delivered Mindy’s coffee then completed meditation and stretching, it was already 645am. It took another 5 minutes or so before I was dressed and ready for my run. However, since the kids wwere sleeping late the only risk was missing Mindy’s departure. It was just about 655am when I headed out the door.

Of course because I was running about 15 minutes behind, it was already broad daylight, and the sun already piercing the eastern skyline. Very pretty. I ran the full 4.1 miles and felt good through out. I was really surprised to see Mindy’s Pilot still in the driveway as I rounded the last stretch for home. She wasn’t there long, however. She made mention of running behind schedule herself and then asked me to turn the temperature down on the pork roast before I left for work. Boom, just like that, she was out the door.

My eggs were ready and waiting in the microwave. Before settling down to eat, I took a minute or two to send my customer an email letting them know that I’d be late into their office. I also let them know that I still planned to join the 10am call only from home.

Despite being slightly cool from sitting out, the fried eggs were still pretty good. After breakfast, I took a leisurely cup of coffee to the PC where I spent the next hour or so. I didn’t bother checking on the kids until 9am when I figured it time for them to get up and moving. Both kids it turns out were already awake in their rooms. However, both were still in their beds  playing on their Kindles. I headed for a shower. Just out of the shower, Bella came in asking if she and Jacob could wear shorts. She had her Kindle in hand showing me that it was 50 degrees with an expected high of 70. Why not? Just no shorty-shorts. She was beyond excited.

I was dressed and ready to go by 930am. Once the kids came downstairs I reminded them that they needed to be out at the bus stop by 1010am and that I had a conference call to join at 10am. I told them that if it went past 1010am to head out on their own and have a good day at school. We’ve done this before. They know the fire drill well.

Come 950am, I stepped out on the deck to soak up some spring-like sunshine. Man, was it ever nice! Bella came out with me and shared that it was already 55 degrees.  Unfortunately, she let the dog out as well. Eiknarf wasn’t out 10 seconds before she took off into the yard. I knew that was gonna happen. I dispatched Bella after her. She was in her bare feet. Oh boy! Eiknarf took the play stance and ran round and around the neighbor’s red maple tree with Bella trying hopelessly to capture her. Jacob must’ve caught a glimpse of the drama from inside and after about 5 minutes, he came to the rescue sharing that he would capture her in a matter of seconds.

He didn’t catch her in seconds, but it didn’t take more than a minute or two. He distracted her while Bella snatched her up. Crisis averted. They had her back inside moments before I needed to join my call. The call was quick. No urgent issues to discuss. Rather, they only heaped praise on our company for the excellent support. Sweet! That was nice to hear. Before ending the call I shared that they should expect to see me there by 11am. The call ended by 1005am. I leashed up Eiknarf and me and the kids met Kenny and the girls  already at the bus stop.

While we waited, the girl we’ve seen walking her new puppy a few times recently crossed the street and joined us  with her golden retriever puppy. The puppy rolled over on her back and let Eiknarf sniff away. J Can’t recall the puppy’s name, but the girl’s name is Sarah. Said she lives in the brown house off the eyebrow court next to Katie. Shared that she have a 7 month old child. I didn’t ask at the time, but now wonder who was keeping an eye on the baby while she walked the dog. Hmmm? The bus pulled up a couple minutes later and the kids quickly boarded. Kenny dashed off as if he were late for a meeting. I wished Sarah well and told her to stop by and meet Mindy some time. Said she would.

Back at the house, I took care of a few things before heading out, including tidying up the kitchen and logging off and packing up  my laptop. I thought I might drive the BM’er. Why not? It was sunny and already near 60 degrees. I hadn’t started it since early December, though. Dang it! I tried, but it just wouldn’t start. It almost did but just couldn’t do it.  No time to fool around jumping it then, so I changed my plans and headed back to the Accord. I left for good near 10:30am.

It was a fast, easy drive to New Albany with no traffic issues whatsoever. Arrived just before 11am listening to Comedy USA for the entire drive.  I spent the first couple hours doing proactive stuff, including getting up to speed on a new customer’s network topology. I talked with Mindy sometime mid-day. I think during her lunch. Among other things, she said she got a text from Lindsey asking if we would be open to having the boys for dinner. Well, we typically have a more traditional meat, but I was game for trying something new. :)   We talked for about five minutes.

I spent the two hours from1-3pm on three different conference calls. Believe me, come 3pm, I was glad they were over. I spent the last 2 hours of my work day on monthly reports, and I left for home right at 5pm.

Called Mindy once I was on 670 towards home. She was already there after physical therapy. Said that she’s healing fast, and that the therapy is going well.  She was busy making dinner, pork roast. She also shared that the grandsons were over for dinner just as we talked about earlier. We talked until I reached 270 & Wilson Rd. I was home minutes later.

Jacob was at soccer practice. Bella and the boys were playing back by the tree house. Lindsey didn’t’ stay. She went home to catch up on chores, including vacuuming out her car. While Mindy put the finishing touches on dinner, I completed a few routine chores, including prepping Thursday’s coffee. Rocky came running up on the deck asking if he could please shoot his airsoft gun from the deck until dinner. Why not? We bought it for him to play with. I agreed, but reminded him of the simple rules. Don’t point it at anyone.

Soon Landon and Bella were on the deck too. And now Landon wanted to shoot an airsoft gun. I ended up giving him one without BBs. Of course, we will only let him shoot with adult supervision. Gave him the same pointers: no pointing it at others. Meanwhile, dinner was just about ready. Glad it was. Mindy had me call the kids in to wash their hands for dinner.

Just before sitting down to my plate, I had the urge for cooked carrots. I asked Mindy how long it would take to microwave a bowl of fresh baby carrots. She suggested seven minutes, but that was after I had already set the timer to 3 minutes. I checked them soon after. She was more right than my guess. They were still crunchy. I set it for another three minutes. The pork roast was exceptional. The mashed potatoes good. The cooked carrots delicious too.  Rocky was a clean plater. Landon didn't want his mashed potatoes, but did eat two helpings of pork roast, which he loves. We let the kids head back out on the deck to play arisoft right after dinner. We let Bella join them too, but with a 630pm stop time since she needed to ready for gymnastics.

Mindy would do the drop-off, and me the pick-up. Mindy said she planned to make a quick stop at Kroger after dropping Bella. Needed to pick-up a few things. On the slight chance that Jacob and Jimaken would be back from soccer practice before her, she asked that I be prepared to reheat Jacob's dinner. They left at 650pm.

Jacob was home shortly after Mindy & Bella left. As requested, I reheated his dinner. Not a surprise, the boys asked for another plate of pork roast, too.  I obliged their request. Lindsey was soon there to pick-up the boys, and unless I'm mistaken, gone just before Mindy returned home, which had to be around 730pm. I played around on the PC while Mindy & Jacob tuned into American Idol. I caught one song before leaving around 820pm to fetch Bella.

Arrived at DCW near 830p. Bella was already winding down and preparing to depart on queue. As soon as we were in the Accord she asked if we could  stop at Wendy's. No, but you can have a bowl of Krave! Mindy picked up yet another box while at the grocery store - the fifth in a little more than a week.

Mindy quickly dispatched Bella to the shower while we watched the rest of Idol. The guys were doing Stevie Wonder songs while the girls, Whitney Houston. A couple of the girls were surprisingly good, but none of them, boy or girl, blew me away. Idol was over at 10pm. We all headed to bed at the same time. It was still very warm, somewhere in the 60's. Good night spring moon!

Gimmie Gimmie Shock Treatment

Woke Tuesday near 530a, but because I have the bedroom clock set 4 hours and 12 minutes fast, the real time didn’t immediately register. For some reason I thought that I was about ten minutes late. Slightly discouraged, I raced off to the bathroom to brush my teeth, grab my running clothes, and quickly heading downstairs.

I was surprised to see that it was only 532a when I got to the kitchen. What happened? It quickly donned on me that I forgot to calculate in the extra 12 minutes. I glanced out back to a partly cloudy sky then quickly got into my exercise shoes and whipped out sit-ups then curls.

I enjoyed coffee at the PC until 6am. I was happy to see that two of the three tax returns I e-filed the night before were already accepted by the government entities. That was fast. I headed in for meditation around 603am and went for about ten minutes. Did stretching ahead of delivering Mindy’s coffee. She hasn’t been getting out of any sooner than 620a these days anyhow.

Mindy seemed in better spirits when I finally delivered her coffee around 620am. I felt good and was eager to get on with my run. With a temperature at or near freezing, I dressed in full winter attire even though the day’s high was forecasted to reach into the mid 50s. There was a completely clear sky immediately out the door. It was already daybreak too. This will be the last week I can say that. Next week we spring forward. It’ll be another 5-6 weeks before the sun catches up.

I ran the full 4.1 miles strong. Felt really good. I headed inside to get Mindy’s keys then started the Pilot. Afterwards I headed back inside to get the pug, who was already standing at the top of the stairs. I’ve learned that if I simply sit on the lower steps with my back to her she’ll come down on her own without coaxing. We’ll see how long that works.

We walked up the street to the west with her taking care of business quickly. Mindy asked if I still planned to meet her for Bella’s appointment in Worthington at 330p. I did. She was still a bit cold in her interactions, obviously still disappointed with the way her b-day turned out.  Bella picked up on it too and promptly asked. Mindy opened up that it wasn't her in any way. Rather, it was me who made completing our taxes a priority over spending quality time together on her b-day. I let her vent without defending myself.

Mindy left for work reminding Bella that she’d be there to pick her up right after school for the appointment, and then she reminded Jacob that grandpa would be there to get him after catapult practice. Right after Mindy left Bella gave me a rash of crap about doing taxes on her momma’s birthday. Please!  I finished my eggs then headed up for a shower.

I was quick with my shower and back downstairs by 757am where I spent the next five minutes throwing together my lunch. Jacob headed out through the garage so he could carry out the catapult. I put the garage door down on my way out. I started the Accord on my way to the bus stop. It was still quite chilly, though the sunshine felt great.

Kenny was out with the girls and even chatted some with Jacob about his catapult. I was happy for that. I don’t want Jacob to feel ostracized over the touching issue. The bus was a few minutes late. This being the third time Jacob’s had to carry the catapult on board, he’s finally got it down to a science. Didn’t take nearly as long for him to get it on the bus and back to his seat. It’s quite the albatross.

 I wasn’t too long back at the house before heading off to work. It was close to 825a when I left for the office. I stopped at Thonton’s for a fill-up along the way. The Accord took something close to 15.2 gallons, as low as I’ve let it get yet. In fact, the fuel warning light came on for the first time just as I pulled up at the pump. I got little more than 20 mpg last tank. Not sure why it’s gone down the last few tanks when I was actually expecting it to go up. The advertised MPG is 20mpg city – 30mpg highway. It took a little more than 15 minutes to get to work,  driveway to parking spot. Not bad especially considering the fuel stop. I made all the lights without a stop.

I was covering for my boss all day while he took a well-deserved vacation day. Admittedly, I was more than a little concerned for what might come across my plate, but nothing really did. I am not delusional, though. I know his job can be really crazy. I was just fortunate. I had plenty of my own stuff to keep me busy, however. That’s never an issue.

In the back of my mind was Bella’s 330p appointment in Worthington. I worried that an escalation would come in during my time away. That’s just how it goes sometimes. Mindy and I talked midday. I think she called when she was leaving school to pick-up Bella. I advised her then that I would be meeting her there in Worthington.

I had a conference call I needed to join at 230p that lasted until right at 3pm. As soon as it was over I packed up my things and made a beeline for Worthington. I was smart enough to Google map the address from home before leaving for work that morning. It’s right off route 23 about 2 miles north of 270 on the east side of the road. I made excellent time arriving as much as ten minutes early.

I was certain that I beat Mindy and Bella, but noticed Jimaken already there just sitting in his car. Just as I was getting out of my car I noticed Mindy’s Pilot already there too. Mindy and Bella were presumably already inside. Wow, they made excellent time. Meanwhile, the weather was incredibly nice. It was 60 degrees and sunny. Felt like mid spring.

I headed inside, waving to Jimaken along the way. Mindy and Bella were waiting in the lobby. I greeted both cordially. Jimaken soon joined us too. Erin came out and asked to see Bella real quick. Needed to complete one more quick exercise.  Erin soon returned with another one of those questionnaires for Jimaken to complete. Apparently, he didn’t complete all three like Mindy and I.

At the outset, I wasn’t really sure what the goal of this meeting was. Erin came to fetch all of us just at about 340pm. We headed back to her office to talk. My first impression was that she’s a bit hyper but happy. She’s a tall, slender woman with an almost constant smile, and very, very chatty. She likes to agree and say yes, and sometimes even before realizing what she’s agreeing to. However, when she really didn’t agree, she would always circle back and explain, or seek input as to why we felt the way we did.

Turns out, the goal of the meeting was to share the roll-up of all the assessments and then a plan to perhaps help Bella be more successful in school. The first thing we reviewed was an overall score sheet broken down into about 12 categories, including verbal and non verbal IQ scores. There was a section for reading, math, processing too. The graph plotted dots under each category showing how Bella compares with other girls her same age/grade.

Her verbal IQ score was first, which was pretty darn high - 120 to be exact. That puts her in the 93^rd percentile. Her nonverbal IQ was somewhat lower and in the upper tier of the median range with others her age/grade. Interesting.

With her noted struggles in math and reading, I think all of us expected her math and reading scores to be somewhat below normal, but they weren’t. Instead, she was typically right on par with others her age/grade. However, the one glaring area that testing pointed out issues was processing speed. She is slower to process numbers, questions, data etc. It’s not that she doesn’t understand. Rather, just takes her longer to grasp.

The cumulative scores from all the forms that we (teacher and parents) completed tracked similarly. There was one glaring area needing addressed, and that was  centered around focus/attention. Give Bella a list of five things to complete, you’re lucky to get the first one or maybe two finisdhed.

The long and short was that Bella meets the criteria for ADD. Erin feels strongly that the only reason that Bella does as well as she has in school is because of her higher than normal IQ. Said that if the ADD isn’t addressed, she’ll likely fall further and further behind as the school years roll on once the visual stuff becomes less prevalent in the instruction. Made sense. Bella is a very visual person.

I found the testing and all the data fascinating. For the first time, I felt we had a complete picture of our Bella and what makes her tick. I’ve always felt that she was a very, very bright kid, dating as far back as before kindergarten when she would solve verbal math problems, not to mention often using big words in their proper context even if she mispronounced them. But her shine is more in the non-traditional areas. For example, she’s very creative and definitely into the earth sciences. Both are things I absolutely love about her.

Erin feels strongly that by addressing the ADD tendencies, we can very likely improve her math and reading scores/results. Believes her issues all center around focus, which is a classic problem with ADD kids. They treat ADD with stimulants. And according to Erin, you should see results almost immediately.

We didn’t finish the appointment until almost 515pm, the entire time, Bella waiting for us out in the lobby. She was sitting, rocking, staring out the window; the telltale sign of a young woman gone mad. J Not really! Said she was board just like you’d expect any nine year old to be. She opted to ride home with her mom. In the parking lot, Jimaken, Mindy & I discussed the pros and cons of this being a Jimaken night. I agreed with Jim that it made little sense for him to drive all the way to our house to get Jacob and then take the kids. I suggested we skip it this week. We all agreed and headed our separate ways, me just a couple car lengths behind Richard Petty, or, I mean Mindy, all the way home. Mindy celled me right out of the lot. I let her know that the left brake light was out. Need to have that addressed soon. Arrived home around 545pm, or about the same time I would've arrived home on a normal work day. Dad was there with Jacob, but napping in the big chair. Jacob was on the sofa watching TV.

Dad didn't hang around long at all. Was soon up and ready to go. I opted for Chipotle leftovers for dinner while Mindy & Jacob had Mindy's famous salmon patties (canned salmon). No thanks! Bella had an individual-sized frozen pizza.

Mindy called her brother Craig to discuss the outcome of Bella' appointment. While she did that, I spent time reading my new book, The Purpose-Guided Universe, Believing in Einstein, Darwin, & God, Bernard Haisch. I must've read for a good 30 minutes or so before ultimately falling asleep. I was out only briefly, however. I'm guessing no more than ten minutes. Felt great!  Now approaching 730pm, Mindy, Eiknarf and Bella joined me in the livingroom. By then I was playing on my PC. I didn't do that for too long before I was overcome by the urge to stretch out on the livingroom floor. Next thing I knew it was 805pm. I stumbled to my feet, grabbed a glass of water and declared that I was heading off to bed. Good night all!

Taxing Birthday

HaPpY 43rd BiRtHdAy MiNdY

Was a up a few minutes ahead of 530am and already engaged in sit-ups when the coffee maker kicked into action. The sky was cloudy with a few flurries still dancing around. It was cold, too, a bone chilling 27 degrees. I finished sit-ups and push-ups then enjoyed coffee and internet until roughly 6am. I did a good job managing the clock and was done with meditation and stretching by 620am. I delivered Mindy’s coffee and wished her a happy birthday then headed back downstairs to ready for a run.

I was out the door at 629am where I stretched my hammies from the stoop before taking off. There was a chilly wind blowing seemingly from several directions. I warmed quickly though, and even started to sweat after the initial mile. I ran the full 4.1 mile track and was home sometime after 7am. I headed in to grab Mindy’s keys as well as Eiknarf’s leash and a grocery bag. Then, after starting the Pilot, I sat on the steps until Eiknarf joined me at the front door. We walked across the street where she fairly promptly took care of business.

I placed Mindy’s b-day card on the island before I left on my run. She opened it soon after I returned from walking the dog. I figured we’d give her our gift later that evening. I offered to take Mindy out to dinner but she countered that I simply pick-up Chipotle on the way home. Jacob would be at his initial soccer practice and Bella had gymnastics. It would’ve been a logistical nightmare going out to dinner. I agreed, but asked that she email me with the specifics of what she wanted from Chipotle. Mindy reminded the kids to bus home with Noah then headed off to work.

Once Mindy was gone, I asked the kids if they remembered to go shopping for a birthday gift, or if they made cards. No to both. I helped Bella get started on a custom made card and even gave her an example of a store bought just before heading up for a shower.

I was back downstairs and ready to go by 755am. Both kids were upstairs but Bella’s homemade birthday card was perched by mine on the island. I read it, and it was funny. She used the old age theme and even designed her own card logo on the back. Cute!  I could tell that she signed Jacob’s name too.

We headed out to the bus stop at 810a. I felt bad for Jacob having to face Kenny and Lillian so soon after Sunday evening’s awkward discussion. But he handled himself quite well. Good job, Jacob! The bus was early by a couple minutes. Eiknarf and I headed home where I powered down my laptop after a weekend of on-call. Glad it was over. Left for the office at 822am.

Quick drive into the office. Unlocked my office door at 835am and spent the first fifteen minutes stowing my lunch, filling my water pitcher, and logging on the network. I had a number of issues requiring my follow-up as well as some monthly report stuff to finalize. I spent some time chatting with my peer who was off on vacation all of the week prior. Glad he was back.

The day moved along briskly. I ate my packed lunch while working at my desk. I left for home around 540pm. Earlier that afternoon, Mindy sent an email detailing what she wanted from Chipotle. I stopped at the one at Mill Run. She and Jacob both wanted chicken burrito bowls with similar ingredients, but not exactly the same. Took a while to place my order along their assembly line. I ordered a barbacoa (shredded beef) burrito for myself. I asked for three bags of chips and two guacamoles, and two mild salsas as well. Two of the three employees were obviously new, as they had to ask the supervisor for direction a couple of times. No biggie.

Took the back way home from Mill Run winding south down Old Dublin Rd to Trabue. Arrived home just after 6pm. Went I lifted the main Chipotle bag from the passenger side floor board, grease poured out from the bottom of the bag and all over my leather seats and the floor board carpet. The entire bottom of the bag was tore open from the juice, too. Dammit!

I carried in the Chipotle bag along with my work back pack angry with the employees for the poor packaging. I grumbled as a sat the bags on the island then quickly grabbed two small towels form the laundry room wetting one before heading out to clean-up the inside of the Accord. Took a couple minutes to clean-up but it came up easier than I envisioned. Headed inside where I wished Mindy happy birthday again.

Mindy unpacked dinner, but unfortunately discovered that she forgot to add rice to the chicken burrito bowl ingredients email. Instead of eating it as it was, she promptly started making some rice at the stove. While the water boiled, she sat at the table enjoying chips, salsa, and guacamole while I enjoyed my burrito and while Bella and Makayla enjoyed plain hot dogs. 

Bella readied for gymnastics while I tidied up the kitchen. Mindy was just beginning to enjoy her burrito bowl as I was finishing up in the kitchen. I planned to do both the drop and pick-up so Mindy could relax. After all, it was her birthday. We left for gymnastics at 645pm. Makayla headed home as we headed out.

Back from the drop by 705pm. By then Jacob was home from soccer and was already enjoying his burrito bowl. I went immediately to my PC to see if I could figure out the fix for my tax issue. I quickly reviewed the Turbo Tax screens available to me to see if I might’ve overlooked something. After about 20 minutes I was satisfied that I didn’t and once again contacted Turbo Tax for some help, only this time I called to speak with a live person.

This time around I got someone that seemed well versed in their software and was also eager to help solve my issue. I was more than a little peeved when the first few things she recommended didn’t work. She didn’t give up or get flustered. Instead, she kept digging for answers, eventually opting to send via email a link so I could download the Turbo Tax Premium software directly to my hard drive. She said that version would allow me to enter the FICA overpayment directly to the 1040 form. She claimed once it was downloaded to my PC that I could import my previously completed form, which she coached me through saving to my desktop earlier.

That solution worked. Was able to download the software, import my completed 1040 form, and update line 69 with the FICA overpayment. What’s more, she assured me that I’d be able to e-file without being prompted to pay a 2^nd time. She was right. It recognized that I had already paid and securely signed. However, what it didn’t do was import my two completed state forms. We could’ve gone in and saved those to the desktop too, I suppose, but based on the programs behavior and the fact that the FICA issue wouldn’t impact the state returns in the least, I planned to e-file those ffrom the online version where I had already paid for the service. Told the agent that I’d call back if there were any further issues.

By the time I e-filed both the fed and two state returns, it was already time to pick-up Bella. I quickly grabbed my phone and keys and headed off to DCW. Bella was already preparing for her departure when I arrived. Perhaps Emily alerted Bella to the time. She’s not usually ready when I get there given that the actual class goes until 9pm. As she often does, Bella asked if we could stop at Wendy’s. No. I offered that she have a bowl of Krave instead.

As soon as we were home Mindy asked if she could open her b-day gift. Of course. I didn’t want to give it to her earlier without both kids there since it was supposed to be from all of us. She opened it, two new Pandora charms – one with a ‘J’ and the other with a ‘B’. She said she liked them but her body language said otherwise. I think she might’ve been expecting something more splashy!

After Mindy opened her gift, I headed back to my PC long enough to tie up the loose ends with our taxes, including printing off copies of all the forms and returns. That took no more than 10-15 minutes. It wasn’t even 9pm when Mindy surprisingly said she was heading up to bed. She looked sad.

Once I finished the taxes I headed up to see if Mindy was OK. She was reading but looked teary. Said she didn’t feel that her birthday was special, and that we didn’t bother to sing to her. I immediately called for Bella so we could sing happy birthday to her from our room. Bella asked Mindy why the long face.

Bella and I headed back downstairs together and sat on the sofa watching about 45 minutes of American Pickers. Bella suggested we organize another surprise party for her mom. Bella’s so thoughtful. She and I stayed up until 10p. I tucked her in then headed for bed. Tuesday was expected to be much more spring-like. Good night moon!

Celebrating all Three - 54, 49 & 43

I slept in until 805am not waking even once until 730a or so. Mindy was sound asleep and didn’t budge as I headed out. I quickly prepped a pot of coffee then checked in with work and played around on the internet. It was cloudy with snow flurries and only 28 degrees. At times, the flurries were really heavy but brief.

I chose to let Mindy sleep versus delivering coffee and waking her. She got up on her won somewhere close to 10am. Soon after she was up, I took Eiknarf out for a walk. It was still quite cold with a stiff breeze blowing in from the west. Burrr! Wasn’t expected to get too far above freezing all day long, but after Monday it looks like 50s and 60’s as far out as one can look.

I didn’t bother readying for a run until 11am or so. That’s about the latest I’ve run all year long. While on my run the snow came down exceptionally hard for a spell, and was probably the hardest snow fall I’ve witnessed all winter. It wanted to stick initially but was melted off by the time the run was over. I was back at home near 1135am.

Mindy was texting with Lindsey letting her know that she could come over at 130p to do her laundry, though the texting feature on Mindy’s Droid was giving her fits. It's been dropped one time too many. Mindy planned to go grocery shopping before heading to b-in-law Craig’s. She was showered and ready to head to the grocery sometime around noon. We planned to leave for Craig’s around 2pm, and made arrangements to pick-up Jacob & Bella from Jimaken’s place on our way.

While Mindy was grocery shopping, I took a shower and then did some reading from the recliner. I had a very relaxing time. We were expecting Lindsey and the boys anytime after 130p. It was hard to relax as that hour neared. But surprisingly, it was Mindy who was home from the grocery first, but just before they pulled up. They arrived while we were carrying in everything. Mindy asked for help putting things away too. Not to be in the way, I debagged and prepped food items for stowing. That made most sense to me.

Lindsey started laundry while the two boys played Wii. Unfortunately, the two of them playing Wii is a recipe for constant bickering even when the no arguing ground rules are established up front. It’s at its worst when they play Super Mario Bros. because of the mutual dependency element of the game. 

Lindsey asked if she could go after Olivia before we left. We suggested she not. We didn’t really want our house overrun with children while we were away celebrating the 3 Thompson b-days. I packed up my laptop and we left the house around 210pm making our way north up

Riverside Dr

to

Bethel Rd

and eventually to Jimaken’s. On the drive up Mindy was lamenting over how crazy busy her birthday Monday would be. For one, she said she’d have to stop at  the BMV to renew the Pilot’s tags. Said she didn’t receive the notice by mail like most years past. I advised that they typically send it three months early, but then later seemed to recall her sticker being good through 2013. When I mentioned that as a possibility, she wasn’t sure. I planned to check once at Jimaken’s, though thinking back she could’ve popped open the glove box and checked the registration right then.

It was after 230pm by the time we arrived at Jimaken’s. Mindy headed inside to get the kids while I waited in the car. I jumped out to check the tags while she was inside. Yep, sure enough, tags are good until March 2013. That explains why she didn’t get a notice in the mail. I knew that would make her happy. Took them a few minutes inside. It was 245pm by the time we started off again towards Craig’s pretty much taking Sawmill Rd from its southern most intersect all the way up to its northern most point. Traffic was slow up Sawmill until we passed north of Powell Rd. Mindy mentioned it taking an unusually long time to get there.

We were some of the last to arrive, which was somewhere near 310-315p, almost a full hour after leaving the house. If memory serves, we hadn’t been to Craig & Jeff’s since June, I think, when we celebrated Gloria’s b-day. Completed a remodel of their kitchen since then, upgrading to granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, a new tile back splash, all done in a warm tan color palette. Looks nice.

Jeff was busy making jarlsberg finger sandwiches as an appetizers in the oven just as we arrived and greeted everyone. Nephew Joe and his new pal David were last to arrive. They were a good 20-30 minutes after us. We visited and enjoyed appetizers for an hour or so before Craig & Jeff had pizza delivered. At 4pm a number of folks gathered in the sunken TV room to watch the final regular season OSU basketball game against Michigan State. If OSU won, they’d share in the big ten title for the 3^rd year in a row. The task seemed daunting, especially given that the game was at Michigan State.

I opted not to watch. As I’ve said many times. It does little more than get me aggravated. Pizza arrived a short while later. There were three varieties, pepperoni, veggie, and a veggie/meat combo. I had some of the pepperoni and the veggie meat combo. The pizza was good, but not Minelli’s good. Had a chicken tender, too. Now they were really good.

The Buckeye game seemed to go longer than usual. Jacob advised that they were down by as many as 15 points in the first half but were making it close in the 2nd half. In the end, somehow or another, they managed to pull out a win forcing a three-way tie for the conference championship. I was surprised.

We visited for another good hour (I actually even napped briefly) before b-day dessert was served.  I browsed the copy of Exaltation of Larks, by James Lipton, resting on the coffee table. A fun, conversation igniter type of book. Near 6pm Gloria took the wraps of the b-day desserts: yellow cake cup cakes with chocolate frosting, butterscotch pie (Mindy's favorite), and Boston cream cake. Candles were placed in the butterscotch pie. We sang happy b-day to all three of the birthday contingent: Jodie, Craig, and Mindy (54, 49, 43 respectively). Mindy blew out the candles.

I had a piece of the butterscotch pie and then one of the small, quarter-sized cup cakes. Both were really yummy. We hung out until just before 7pm when we, like others, readied to leave for home. It was a work night and both kids had homework and needed showers. We said our goodbyes then headed for home.

It was chilly and a dusting of snow coated the windows on most of the parked cars. Burrr! As we ventured south on Sawmill towards 270 west I was reminded of the conversation Mindy had the day prior with Chrissy regarding Jacob. I decided to quiz him on the topic and try and get his perspective without imparting guilt or blame. Initially, he denied any knowledge of the accusations, but as we dove in deeper he at least had some recall, but far less dramatic than the message conveyed. The long and short of it is this. One of the girls said that Jacob touched them inappropriately during play. We didn’t dwell on the conversation but needed to ask.

We arrived home close to 745pm. Mindy quickly dispatched the kids to the shower. While they were up bathing, I checked my work email for anything needing my immediate attention. Happily, there was nothing of an urgent nature. Mindy’s cell phone soon rang.  It was neighbor Kenny calling to talk about the ‘incident’.  Apparently he wasn’t willing to write it off as innocent horse play. And looking at it from his perspective, the father of the girl making the accusation, I can’t say I blame him.  I would’ve pushed the issue similarly, neighborly relationships be damned. 

Mindy shared openly what we discussed on our drive home and then Jacob’s take on it. Kenny wasn’t happy with the explanation so Mindy offered that we get the kids together and talk about it. As it was, the details were still very sketchy, at least for Mindy and I. After tad more drama, the neighbors decided to come down as Mindy suggested – all of them minus big Jake.

We called our kids down to the kitchen. The neighbors showed up around 820pm. We quickly and somewhat awkwardly gathered around the table for a discussion, kids included. With no one immediately vying for initial speaking rights, Mindy took the lead asking Lillian what actually happened. The logistics of her story were corroborated by Jacob.  In short, they were playing capture the flag in the woods and tree house. And as the story goes, part of the game involves taking prisoners. Apparently, Jacob would tickle prisoners if they tried to escape. And when Lillian tried to escape, Jacob reach out and grabbed her by her shirt tail, his hand slipping down the back of her jeans.

It all sounded somewhat innocuous, at least from the way Jacob described it. Lillian obviously and genuinely saw it differently, as did Kenny. I watched everyone’s body language carefully as the conversation proceeded. At times it got a tad heated, but cooler heads eventually prevailed. After all, we are talking about 10 & 11 year olds that so far have shown little or no sexual behavior.

After each kid shared their spin of the events and challenged the other, Mindy offered a simple (perhaps too simple) remedy. No more touching of any sort and no boys and girls in the tree house alone. That seemed to satisfy everyone, though Kenny wasn’t done. He gave Jacob a stern verbal warning about any reoccurrences. I was proud of Jacob for his response. He looked at Lillian and said he was sorry. It’s fair to say this too, there were a few other similar pile-on accusations, but we didn’t give them a whole lot of credence given that the story changed three or four times in the matter of minutes.

Everybody got up from the table still friends. Believe me, even that was in question at the outset with the way the emotions were flowing.  I shook Kenny’s hand and gave him a brief man-hug before he left. I know it’s not easy being the father of the girl in that situation.

It was 9p or after when the neighbors departed. Thoughts of our discussion were still swirling around in my head. We watched a little TV before heading to bed around 10p, but not before I finished the beer I started late Saturday night.

Celebrating 43 @ CBC - Taxes and a Spill

Happy 54th Jodie

I woke near 530am as though I needed to ready for work, but after a few seconds passed I was pleasantly reminded that it was Saturday, and that felt terrific. I happily rolled over and fell back asleep for a couple more hours.  Come 745a I woke for good and quietly brushed my teeth then slipped out of the bedroom and downstairs to the kitchen where I promptly started a fresh pot of coffee.

While the coffee brewed I checked in on work. Nothing pressing needing my immediate attention. That was nice.  I spent the next couple hours bouncing between work and pleasure all while enjoying coffee in my PJs. I didn’t hear a peep from Mindy until after my run.  I’m thinking she slept until almost 1030am. She had plans to do lunch with her bff Teri N.

I left for my run just ahead of 10am dressed once again in full winter garb. It was 36 degrees and cloudy. And since it was Saturday, I ran the abbreviated 3 mile track. Somewhere near the halfway point a big black dog that looks something like a giant poodle came charging after me barking aggressively. The same dog has done this more than once prior.  I stopped to protect myself ready to go for the throat at a moment's notice if necessary. The owner, a tall older gentleman, called to the dog just as he has past. As I restarted my run she tore after me again until he called out to her a 2^nd time. Now a half block away, the mini-crisis was averted.

I finished my run near 1030am and quickly leashed up Eiknarf who was up and eager to get out for her own morning walk. She took care of business after an unusually long walk. As we neared our return to the house, I saw that same dog that came after me earlier out on a walk with its master. The master waved as if to flag me down but I just kept walking up to the drive and into the house with Eiknarf.

I stood at the door as they passed. The gentleman motioned once again for my attention. I obliged and opened the front door. He asked if we could do a training session of sorts. Said his dog never does that to any other. I agreed though leaving Eiknarf behind. I already had my running shoes off buy still in my hands. I met them both at the foot of the driveway. His dog, Morgan, immediately hid behind him while Terry, the master, suggested we try and bond. I did my best to humor him and called to his dog by name. She seemed to want to trust me but just couldn’t get herself to fully commit. At one point he suggested I not move so suddenly. Honestly, I was beginning to bore of the exercise and really wanted to head back inside and enjoy more coffee.

The owner, Terry, went on to say that he thinks I may have scared his dog one time past, and that’s why she’s so leery of me. The time he’s speaking of I seem to recall.  I was running past their house and drive just as she was coming from behind their parked car. I was startled and so was she. She expressed her fear by chasing after me viciously. As I’ve learned, always turn towards the dog and stop. Never keep running. Anyway, we tried making friends for a few minutes, me more willing than she. I even sat on the driveway thinking that might help calm his pea-brained canine. I introduced myself by name as did he, then begged off inside.

Mindy was up and at her laptop. I shared the interaction with her while I slipped out of my sweaty fleece and wicking shirt. I poured some coffee then returned to my PC where one again I balanced my time between work and pleasure. Work remained calm from a reactive stand point, which was very nice, but one can never get too comfortable given that at any moment something can go awry.

Mindy left for lunch with Teri some time near 11am. Said they’d be meeting at Bob Evan’s somewhere in Worthington. She expected to be gone for the better part of the afternoon.  Since I was on-call, I didn’t make plans to go anywhere. Instead, as long as it remained quiet on the work front, I planned to get started on our 2011 tax return. As much as I hate thinking about doing taxes, I was parked at my PC, so I figured I might as well take advantage of the time.

I spent a solid two hours doing the taxes via Turbo Tax, the same software I’ve used for the past 3 or 4 years with relative ease. This year’s return, however, would be a bit more complicated with my late summer New York work assignment and all. I knew going in that I’d have to file two state returns, one for Ohio and one for New York. Further complicating matters was the fact that I changed roles mid-year. And while both with the same company, I ended up with two W2s for what seemed like silly reasons (too hard to explain).

Initially, that seemed little more than just a minor inconvenience until Turbo Tax alerted me that I overpaid FICA taxes (too much withheld) and wouldn’t be able to formally e-file my return until the matter was resolved.  Long story short, I sent an email to payroll and even contacted an online Turbo Tax agent for more direction. He said I could simply claim the amount over paid on line ‘69’ of form 1040. The only problem with that was in Turbo Tax you don’t actually fill out the 1040 form. Instead, the program does. And when I reviewed the form after completing all the entries, it left that line blank with no apparent means of correction.

Anyone that knows me, knows that I absolutely hate to leave something like that dangling out there. I want to charge hard and get it done, but I just couldn’t. I’d have to leave it sit until hearing back from payroll.

Mindy was home sometime between 3 and 4pm I’m guessing. By then I had taken the time to shower and dress in leisure clothes. I was more than a little frustrated with the tax problem. The overall numbers looked even better than expected, but again the delay in finishing frustrated me to no end. Mindy was talking to me while I was tried one last time to find my own solution in the Turbo Tax software. She wasn’t pleased when I stopped her in her tracks asking that she not question me right then. I couldn’t focus.

I finally relented near 4pm coming to grips with the fact that our taxes wouldn’t be finalized and filed until Monday at the soonest, and maybe even longer.

Lucky for me, work remained fairly calm except for an simple issue or two. I did some proactive stuff though, just to help stay on top of things. Mindy and I made plans to go out to dinner at CBC to celebrate her birthday. Figured we’d leave around 6-630pm.

At some point Mindy shared some somewhat disturbing news she’d received from Chrissy after calling and quizzing her about the 'drama' that prevented them from making it to the Barley’s birthday gathering. Some of it was the prior week’s bachelor party events and some regarding our son Jacob and their daughter Lillian. It wasn’t anything huge, but certainly worthy of us digging deeper. 

We readied and left for CBC around 6pm, both of us a little concerned that the place might be splitting at the seams given that this was Arnold Classic weekend, which usually packs the local downtown restaurants.

I let Mindy off at the door while I went to park. There were still a handful of spots available. Inside, the bar area was packed in pretty tight, presumably with couples/parties waiting for tables. Mindy and I stood for longer than we typically do waiting for some stools to free. We also had to wait a while for drinks but they eventually came.  Mindy went with wine while I went with beer – a Bodhi. 

Two stools eventually came free and we snatched them up. We each enjoyed two beers/wines before ordering any food. As we often do, we opted to share a dinner entrée and side salad, settling on the steak, mashed taters and lobster special. This time I asked to have it cooked medium rare since they tend to overcook their steaks to my eye.

The meal was mouth wateringly delicious. Perfect! I ordered a third Bodhi. Well, actually, Jamie brought it without me even asking. I later learned that we ran the keg dry. She always takes care of me. Mindy stayed with wine, and I am pretty sure that she had a third glass. Sitting at the other corner of the bar all alone was a familiar looking face. It was Mary Ann of Mary Ann and Dennis, a couple we met in CBC as far back as winter 2006. We hadn’t seen the two of them for a couple years, however.

It was her, and she eventually came over to sit with us. She shared that Dennis was visiting his brothers down in Florida but that they still come in often as well as frequenting Barley’s, but mostly on Saturday’s, which would explain why we never see them.  She was drinking a regular IPA and complained about them being out of the Bodhi.  Now I really felt indebted to Jamie since she brought me one just a few minutes prior.

As we talked, Mindy somehow spilled her 3^rd glass of wine on the girl sitting next to her. I could tell by her body language, that she wasn’t too pleased with Mindy. J  We chatted with her and her party for a little bit, mostly about skiing. I drank ice water for the next 30-40 minutes before we paid our tab and headed for home. And by the time we left, I had next to no buzz.

At home, Mindy was quick to head to bed. I was still hungry after eating only half an entrée. I reheated and ate a leftover cheese burger while also checking in on work. Things remained quiet. Off to bed before midnight.

Kicking off 43

Happy 43rd Craig! Oops, I meant 49th - sorry

Well, I didn’t wake-up until 535am but that was still plenty early enough to do everything I needed/wanted to accomplish. I wasn’t as psyched as I might otherwise be on a Friday since I would be on-call over the weekend. But, it comes with the territory and due to a couple trades I made, I hadn’t been on call for the past 8 weeks.

After a quick glance toward the sky I was quickly engaged in sit-ups and push-ups. It was clear overhead and the temperature hovering near freezing. The forecast was calling for the 60’s and possible thunderstorms later in the day. The weekend was expected to be significantly cooler than the past couple days.

Soon, I was engaged in meditation. That went about well as I could expect. It was already 615am, so I figured I’d better wake Mindy before stretching. I headed upstairs with some coffee. Once Mindy was up I headed back downstairs where I stretched then left for my run. The temperature right at 32 degrees, I wore full winter attire.

For all intents and purposes, it was already daybreak immediately out the door. The completely clear sky helped that along. I ran the full 4.1 miles without issue and was back at home around 710am. I started Mindy’s Pilot then walked the pug. Eiknarf took her time taking care of business.

Mindy made cheesy scrambled eggs, something she hasn’t done for quite some time. They were extra good. Eiknarf liked them too. Mindy left for school near 730am after reminding the kids to bus home as normal. Once Mindy was gone, I asked the kids to make sure and have their dad take them shopping over the weekend to buy their momma a birthday present.  I also suggested they make her a birthday card. They were both very agreeable to the task, Bella a bit more excited about it than Jacob.

It was Friday, so I wore jeans again. Downstairs, I finished putting together a lunch before the kids and I headed to the bus stop. Chrissy was out with the girls and confirmed that they would meet us at Barley’s later that evening for Mindy’s birthday celebration. Said their kids would be there, too. That’s fine. The bus arrived a few minutes early again, or about 812am. I hurried on back home where I made last minute preparations for my work day and then quickly unloaded the dishwasher. It was a Rachel cleaning day, so I didn’t want to leave any dishes on the counter.  I left for work near 825am.

Arrived at the office near 840am, and it was a good ten minutes later before I was all settled in and logged on. There were a number of urgent escalations I needed to contend with throughout the day, but also plenty of time to dedicate to preparing monthly reports as well as other proactive tasks. I heard thunder rumbling through midday. I was a little surprised when I looked down the hall and out the window seeing very heavy rain. Where had our morning sunshine gone?

The curiosity killing me, I checked MRMs webcams just to see their remaining snow pack. They were closed for the day, which was no surprise, and their snow pack, while still present, not holding up very well. Barring any unforeseen snow storms hammering us here in CMH, I don’t have any plans to ski MRM anymore this season, but I still like

 to watch how quickly they lose snow pack.

Through the afternoon, we got lots of rain and lightning, but all in all, Ohio was spared from the nasty storms that plagued Iowa, Indiana hours in front of us. Those poor folks were hit with numerous tornados from the same storm system. The office hallways were markedly quiet for the entirety of the afternoon. A lot of folks on my floor seem to cut out early on Friday’s.

I stuck around until 515pm, the last 45 minutes or so spent on the new time reporting tool.  It was still pouring rain when I left the building, but nowhere near as hard as it would be a little bit later. I made a stop at the Hilliard Kroger to pick-up some birthday flowers for Mindy. I picked up two bouquets, one, a dozen pink roses, the other a variety, including green mums and tiger lilies. As I made my way to back to the car, it was pouring rain crazy hard and the sky almost black.

I phoned Mindy once I was safely on the road. She was just about to nap in the recliner. She shared that the kids were already off with their daddy for the weekend. We talked for just a couple minutes. I headed in through the garage and placed the two bouquets of flowers on the island. I went to visit Mindy in the living room where we talked for about five minutes. Said she wanted to be at Barley’s near 7pm since she told others to be there by 730pm. Still before 6pm, that left plenty of time to take care of the few menial chores I needed to complete. In addition to chores, I fired up my laptop too. Wanted to be ready for my weekend on-call.

The time went fast. Mindy walked Eiknarf just before we left for Barley’s. And by the time we headed out of the house the rain had thankfully all but stopped. Arrived at Barley’s just after 7pm and a got a spot close to the door. For the first in recent memory, the lot wasn’t full to capacity on a Friday.

Mindy invited a number folks to join us at Barley’s to celebrate her 43^rd birthday, but there were just a handful of folks that made it in to help celebrate. Scott & Linda Pansing were there as was Calvin. Darwin & Connie stopped in for a while too. I don’t know if Connie’s ever been there before. That was nice of her to join us. A little bit later that evening Bob I, Rick C. and Grandpa Tom and Steve showed up. Not sure if she knew about the gathering or not, but former server and now friend, Tina stopped in briefly too.

Connie left around 9pm I’m guessing. She left Darwin behind to party with the rest of us. Mindy had three or four stouts throughout the evening. Somebody wanted to buy her shots but I suggested they not. Didn’t want her to suffer Saturday. J  We stayed pretty late, but I’m not sure just how late. I felt fine even after 3 or 4 beers across the entire evening. Dropped Darwin at home I know before midnight.

Mindy sent the neighbors a text asking why they didn’t show. Kenny only replied – drama. After a short time in the house we headed for bed.

Thursday Night Family Night

Up on time again. Wow, that’s like three days in a row. I felt pretty good again too. Was quickly downstairs for exercise, but not before gazing out towards the sky. Another star filled morning. Did 50 sit-ups then 20 curls with 15lb dumbbells. Headed to the PC with coffee. By then it was 545am.

Spent 20 minutes online, but beyond checking the weather forecast did nothing too memorable. Moved on to meditation after a quick read of the Daily OM. Completed  meditation and stretching back to back just ahead of delivering Mindy’s coffee. I wasn’t out the door for my run before 630am but it was just a minute or two after. I was doing good on time. I checked the temperature right before heading off on my run. It was 38 degrees. I was dressed in full winter garb.

I ran the full 4.1 miles under daylight skies for most of the run. It didn’t dawn on me right away, but it was March 01 - the month of spring. Winter’s opportunity for bitter cold likely behind us until December. In fact, the ten day forecast has us above freezing every single day and with several in the 50s and 60s.

Inside after my run, I fetched Eiknarf’s leash and a Kroger bag from the pantry. Apparently we’ve already gone through 100 of those doggie bags Lindsey bought for us. We took our usual route but only went to the first corner. She took care of business much quicker than she had previous days this week. I was glad about that.

Mindy had my eggs ready in the microwave – a plain omelet. It was good. There was a small omelet left in the pan for Eiknarf, too. She's so spoiled. I asked Bella to see that her bowl was filled before she sat down for breakfast. Off to the shower shortly after 730am.

Figuring I'd spend the majority of my day holed up in my office, and then the fact that my boss was out of town in Cleveland, I decided to make it a t-shirt and jean day. I was downstairs with the kids by 756am. Like most other days, I finished packing my lunch before we headed out to the bus stop.

It was a sunny morning but much cooler than Wednesday. Wasn't expected to make it out of the upper 40s. The kids and I wore fleece jackets. Met Chrissy at the bus stop for the first time in a while. Kenny's been doing the deed for the past 8 or 9 days. Chrissy shared that he took Jake to an ortho appointment that morning. Chrissy asked what time to be at Mindy's b-day event at Barley's on Friday. I offered 7-730pm. The bus was early again, perhaps a new trend?

Back at home, I played around with Sherwin-Williams online paint simulator tool for a few minutes before taking off for work still trying the find the perfect color to paint our stucco. We're also planning to paint our hallway and possibly the livingroom sometime soon. That'll happen well before the outside. Left for work around 830am.

Arrived at the office near 845am parking in my usual spot. Noticed my boss' car across the way. I figured he must've rode with another up to Cleveland. Because it was the first of the month, I got busy right away pulling February's monthly report data. No reason to procrastinate. Once I had most of my data sources in hand I began the arduous but often fun process of number crunching. It must've been late morning when my boss popped in my office to chat. What are you doing here, I asked. Thought you were in Cleveland. He never did say what happened to his plans. Instead, he asked for my help sourcing an online tool, and one I wasn't too familiar with. I cringed at the thought, but accepted the challenge. I wasn't too happy about it for a couple reasons. One, I'd have to figure out how to make it happen, which would eat lots of time, and two, I was already knee deep in monthly reports. But ...

In addition to what I planned to work on all day, I had a few issues pop up for the guy I was covering for all week. Next week, once things are back to normal, work should be like a walk in the park. As is usually the case, a day chalked full of action goes by in the blink of an eye. And Thursday was no exception. I didn't get out of the office until it was closing in on 6pm.

I called Mindy in route to home. We talked about our day and then about dinner. I asked how the kids were doing, this, as Bella pointed out earlier in the week, family night when no one has to be anywhere other than home. It was after 6pm by the time I pulled in the driveway.

Mindy fried burgers on the stove and boiled corn on the cob that she picked up in the Kroger produce department. I wasn't real excited about the corn on the cob, but Bella sure was. The last time we tried prepackaged corn on the cob it was horrible, though as Mindy shared, that batch was previously frozen. Dinner was ready near 615pm. My burger was real tasty, though a bit greasy, but most fried burgers are. Jacob passed on a burger; he's never been a big burger fan. Instead, he ate leftover chicken and pasta from Wednesday.

Since we used mostly disposable china (paper plates), dinner clean-up was a snap. But I still had to hand wash the frying pan and the pot used to boil the corn. Speaking of the corn, it wasn't too bad. Bella insisted I try a bite of one of the two ears she ate.

It was already after 7pm when dinner was completely put away and the kitchen finally back to normal. Afterwards, Mindy and I walked over to Pat & Lisa's to drop off the baby gifts for Jamie. Lisa was out of town for work. It was only Pat & Max. We visited for about 45 minutes, meeting their new cat for the first time. It's a very unusual (exotic) looking kitty. Looks like a leopard. We left for home soon after a Kirby salesman knocked at their door.

Back at the house, it was already near 8pm. I spent a little time on my PC fooling around with photos while Mindy & the kids tuned into Idol. It was come to Jesus night on  American Idol when 25 would be whittled down to 12 or 13. Mindy and the kids were abuzz about it all evening. I joined the family already tuned in around 820pm. This year the guys are far better than the girls - not even close. And most of the girls are, let's just say, girthy!

Idol played out for 2 hours, which is a lot of time to dedicate to watching TV. However, it was family night, and was nice to relax in the family room with the family. Mindy checked the Friday forecast from her Droid. Once again, expecting a high near 70 but with a chance of strong storms. The kids were quick to ask about wearing shorts. No! Meanwhile, Mindy was much looking forward to her birthday weekend. 10pm was upon us fast. Soon it was time to head to bed. Everyone was in bed by 1005pm and I was fairly quick to fall asleep.