A Mother's Day

pictures #1 & 2: priceless Mother's Day gifts from the kids
picture #3: pink Gebera Daisy

I heard Olivia fussing. A glance toward the clock revealed that it was only 5am. But given how she was the evening before, her sleeping until 5am was pretty darn good. I got up and made a bottle before going back upstairs to fetch her. She was hungry and woofed down the bottle quickly. She seemed in far better spirits and after finishing it off. She began her notorious cooing. Mindy must have heard her stirring and came to the balcony to tell me I should take her back to bed even though she was seemingly wide awake. I took her advice and carried her back up to bed. She went down with little to no trouble. Hmmm? I went back to bed and slept until 8am.

Mindy was already up and having made coffee and fed the little ones (Jacob, Bella, and Lil’ Rocky). Olivia was still sleeping. I exercised and then walked Ykraps even though the kids reported walking him out back. I checked in with work while enjoying my morning coffee. Mindy asked if I was going to church. I declined. She asked only that I not run until she was gone. That way she would have help readying all the kids. Truth is, I didn’t think that she would be taking all of them. I agreed to assist.

While Mindy showered, Olivia began to stir and fuss. But it was little wonder. It was 9am. I went up and got her out of her bed and brought her down for breakfast. She ate an entire bowl of cereal then about half a jar of fruit. She was in a pleasant mood. It seems the meds did the trick!

I placed Mindy’s other Mother’s Day gifts on the island while she showered. She opened them soon after she came back down. She seemed to like them. Mindy left for church around 10:10am with all four kids. I dressed for a run in fresh running clothes and hit the door. I was gone for about 35 minutes. It was lovely run in cool temps. I’ll bet it wasn’t but about 53 degrees when I left. It was a bit warmer once I was back, however.

Back home I quickly made myself a bacon and cheese sandwich with Thursday morning’s leftover bacon. After woofing it down, I changed into yard clothes and began my long list of chores. The first thing I did was check the tires on the boat trailer and fill the bearing buddies with fresh grease. Next, I planted the two flats of Alyssum that I bought from a team member at work. I planted two more Coleus plants under the willow tree, too.

After my planting was complete I got out my extension ladder and took to trimming the dead wood out of the weeping willow tree out back, and there was plenty of it to be trimmed. It always looks like so much more on the ground. Mindy arrived home while I was trimming away. She had called while I was checking in with work and let me know that she was bringing Chipotle home for lunch. Despite not being too hungry, I told her to get me one too. I took a short break to eat before hauling all the tree trimmings to the compost pile.

After cleaning up the yard I watered in the freshly planted flowers. I had plenty more watering needing done but time was slipping away. I needed to shower for dinner at Gloria’s. It was already 3pm. After my quick shower we left for Gloria’s. We dropped the boat off at the storage on the way. We arrived at Gloria’s at 4pm sharp. I had two 5 gallon pails filled with top soil that I garnered from my compost heap. I brought it specifically to fill some fairly large holes in her backyard. I did that even before going in the house. After filling the holes I got out my sprayer and Diazinon and sprayed the foundation for ants. After completing that job I washed up and grabbed myself a soda. While I toiled with my two tasks, Craig and Jeff were already there & busy taking care of other yard chores.

Soon everyone was present (I think there were 15 of us). We enjoyed a Lasagna dinner. Mindy brought the salad. We were celebrating a birthday for someone, so after dinner we sang and ate cake. Let them eat cake!!! I had the lemon cheese cake. It was to die for delicious. I snuck a bite or two of Bella’s Strawberry flan cake, too. We didn’t stay too long after dinner. It was already 7pm. Mindy wanted to get the kids home and in the tub. We left shortly after 7pm.

Once home Jacob and I took Ykraps on his evening walk. Jacob decided mid-walk to return home. I kept going. When I got back home Mindy met me out front to report Bella having a bit of a meltdown. Mindy sent her to her room, and rightfully so. Apparently she hit her momma after being coaxed into the house against her will from the back yard. Mindy asked that I talk to her. I did. I don’t like any type of disrespect from children and especially hitting or talking back. I must admit, Bella is rarely aggressive. On the other hand, she has a temper and can be very loud! When I visited her in her room she was remorseful and admitted making a big mistake. She promised not to do it again. Because of her acting up, she missed out on an otherwise promised second dessert. Instead, she got to go directly to bed. I tucked in both kids then returned out of doors to soak all of my plantings – mature and new. Before going in, I placed the oscillating sprinkler on the front lawn to water the grass and flowers all at once.

After getting settled, Mindy and I sat on the deck and enjoyed drink before heading to bed around 10pm. It was a beautiful spring evening.

Boating, Babies, Burgers, & Beer

I didn’t sleep too well through the night. I heard Olivia up several times though the night fussing, too. Just the same, I got out of bed and got going by 7:30am. The kids were already up helping Ashley with Olivia. I took to the living room to complete my exercises. Mindy asked to sleep in for an undefined amount of time.
I got the kids squared away with their food requests and had coffee brewing too. Ykraps and I headed out the door by 7:50am. It was another gorgeous morning. The forecast called for sun & clouds with highs approaching 80. Right now it was nothing but blue skies and 55 degrees.

I enjoyed some coffee and got my laptop fired up. I spent the next hour or so focused on cleaning up a couple work related matters. I readied and left for my run while Mindy continued sleeping. I enjoyed my morning run. I listened to music for the first time in a long while.

I was home by 10am. Ashley was already preparing to head home and Mindy was up and in shower. Mindy was taking Ashley home and then heading to the grocery with Bella. Jacob and I would be heading to pick-up the boat from the storage. After mindy left I continued doing some work related stuff before heading out. We were back with the boat by 11am. While there, I met the owner in the warehouse. I showed him the damage to my trailer taillight. He was very apologetic and agreed to pay for the repair. That made me happy.

We headed home with the boat. We got busy right away. Jacob was excited to be helping with the boat. I had forgotten how clean it was before storing it. It didn’t need much cleaning at all. But I still wanted to wax it so I would wash the exterior anyway. We hooked up the battery and tried starting her. Not only wouldn’t she start, she wouldn’t even allow the horn to beep. The battery was DEAD. I am not sure how old this battery is as it’s been in it since I bought it back from Tommy. I had been figuring on needing a new battery. Last year I charged it at Dad’s and it worked fine all season long.

I decided to wait for Mindy to come home and try jumping it before committing to buying a battery. In the meantime, I unpacked Mindy’s fountain and set it up on the deck. It looked awesome! Mindy arrived home around noon. By now it felt like 80 degrees and despite calling for clouds and sun, the sky was completely blue. After carrying in the groceries I put the minivan into position to jump start the boat. It fired right up! I let it run for about thirty minutes. While the boat ran, I went across the street to visit with neighbor Carl. He just put in a fountain for his wife. I was admiring his handy work.

After returning home, my dad pulled up out front. He stayed about thirty minutes visiting the family. He talked about his recent bout of arthritis and how it’s gotten so much worse of late. He’s got a doctor’s appointment slated for Monday. I asked about his ability to watch our house and tend to Ykraps while we’re out. He said he would. He left after not long after. I got busy washing the boat.

Jacob helped wash the boat. He was even willing to do the underside, which required crawling under the boat on his back. He was a big help, although he sprayed me with the hose a couple of times. As the afternoon sun continued heating things up, Jacob and Bella played with the hose out front while I began waxing the boat. I made a couple of rules: no going into the street, no spraying me or the boat, and asked that they keep the water in the yard so not to waste it. Before applying the wax, I decided to try super gluing the broken taillight until I can get a new one. That seemed to go OK but had to let it set for a while to see if it would hold. It took about two hours to wax the boat. Mindy commented a couple of times how nice it was looking. She was inside preparing the house for guests. Our friends Teri & Scott were expected some time after 3pm along with their son Massamo. They arrived just as I was applying wax to the outboard under carriage. I finished up the waxing after a quick greeting. They soon headed in & onto the deck for some relaxation while I finished up.

It was about 4:00pm by the time I went inside. I checked in with work and then headed off for a much needed shower. I stunk! The shower was refreshing. After returning downstairs I sat at my PC and took care of another hour’s worth of work related matters (comes with the territory). Ashley and Brittany dropped the kids (Olivia and Lil’ Rocky) around 4:40pm. The kids were spending the night while they go to the Funny Bone Comedy Club.

Everyone came in around 5pm. I poured myself a Honey Raspberry Ale. Mindy bought me another six pack while at Giant Eagle today. It went down smoothly! I fired up the grill next. Just as I was putting the meat on the grill, Scott had to depart for his dental gathering where he would be meeting his new intern. Mindy planned to give Teri and Massamo a ride home later. The food was delicious – burgers and hot dogs. Mindy whipped up a nice garden salad, too.

After dinner I took Ykraps on his evening walk. For this he was grateful. Olivia was very fussy again this evening. It was painfully obvious that she was not feeling well. We figured she was cutting teeth or had gas. What ever she did, she just couldn’t get comfy for any length of time at all. Mindy gave her some gas drops while she had a bottle. That seemed to help a little. Still, she returned to her fussy ways ten minutes later. Come 7pm, Mindy left to take Massamo and Teri home. She took Bella along too. Jacob & Lil’ Rocky played kick ball at the neighbors. Olivia I held in my arms. I put her in the pap-paw hold that always has put her to sleep. She quieted for short bursts but each time returned to her fussy ways. Carrying around was taking its toll on my back. She fussed until Mindy returned and gave her some infant Ibuprofen that she and Teri picked up along the way.

Fifteen minutes after taking the medicine and having a bottle she seemed to turn the proverbial corner. We finally put her to bed at 9:30pm, and she went right to sleep. We stayed up for another hour. I had another beer and a Jack and Coke. A smidge after 10:30pm we headed to bed both of us weary from a long hard working day.

Fountain of youth

It was another gorgeous day in the neighborhood. There isn’t any rain in the forecast until possibly next Tuesday or Wednesday. And truth be told, we really need it. The lawns are already showing signs of stress like we typically see in July. We’re not too accustomed to a war m & dry May.

After Mindy and the kids departed for work and school, I grabbed the Mother’s Day cards from the BM’er trunk. I signed each except for the one from Jacob & Bella. I dropped Mom’s in the mail box and raised the red flag. I was hopeful that it would make there on Saturday but wasn’t counting on it. I packaged Mindy’s coffee mug and DVD in a nice gift bag and stashed in the basement for safe keeping.

Even though it was perfect BM’er day, I drove the Trooper because I planned to stop at Lowe’s on the way home to buy Mindy that fountain we liked. We looked at them at the Anderson’s a few weeks ago and then stumbled upon one we both agreed was the coolest one we’d seen at Lowe’s a week or two later.

Work was busy like most Friday’s. I was extra focused today, however, because I would be carrying the burden of on-call through the weekend. I left for my run at the usual 12:45pm. It was another very nice run on a fairly hot & sunny day. Mindy called to let me know that the results of Jacob’s MRI were normal. She was relieved. Mindy’s brother, Jacob’s pediatrician, recommended changing his allergy medicine in hopes of remedying the headaches. Mindy was heading to pick-up the kids then Ashley and Olivia.

The afternoon went fast and before I knew it was after 5pm and time to head home. Like planned, I stopped at Lowe’s to get Mindy the Rock fountain. They only had one left. Two weeks ago they had about five. I snapped it up. I also brought home two flats of Alyssum that I bought from a young lady that reports to me.

I hadn’t seen Ashley & Olivia since Jacob’s birthday party. It was good to see them there. Olivia cried as soon as she saw me. Uh-oh, I thought. She’s forgotten me. She seemed extra cranky unlike her usual happy-go lucky self. The kids played outside while Mindy took a shower before heading to Barley’s I snuck a quick nap. After my nap I gave the flowers another drink. They were thirsty looking.

After Mindy returned from her shower I showed her the fountain in the Trooper. It was too big to wrap and to obvious to hide. She seemed excited about having it. I put it in the garage for the time being. We left for Barley’s at 7:30pm – a bit earlier than usual. We already knew that Bob and Mary Ann wouldn’t be there. They were heading home for the weekend. To our surprise, we met up with Jeremy & Courtney who hadn’t been in in a while. Tim & Mark were there too. Lee organized a Clipper’s game outing for next Saturday evening and passed out tickets. We’re planning to go.

We talked with Rebecca for awhile . I see her almost every morning on her way to work. She lives along the golf course in Muirfield. She invited us up on Tournament Friday to party and watch golf. We hung at Barley’s until about 10:15pm. We were home even before 10:30pm. We called it an early night and went to bed. I had big Saturday plans!

MRI

By now, it's all but a blur.

This was a big day for Jacoby. He had an MRI scheduled for late afternoon. He’s been having headaches everyday and his behavior a bit unusual. He’s been much more aggressive, and often times mean. Not leaving anything to chance, his pediatrician recommended an MRI to rule out anything physiologically wrong between his ears. He was understandably a little worried about the pending test, and he wouldn’t be allowed to have anything but water after 10am. Mindy softened the event by making his favorites for breakfast. She made blueberry muffins and maple bacon. In fact, we all enjoyed some of that. Mindy was nervous about the test too. I reminded her that it was entirely precautionary.

I drove the BM’er to work on yet another absolutely gorgeous spring day. The temperature was expected to top out around 85 degrees. The day had all the makings of a July summer day.

After my run I drove to Target to pick-up a few Mother’s Day cards for Mindy & my mother. I also picked up a couple of gifts for Mindy. I left the cards and gifts in the trunk expecting to get them out Friday morning after Mindy leaves for work.

Mindy contacted me around 4:20pm to let me know that the MRI was complete, and just how cooperative Jacob was. They didn’t even have to sedate him, which is rare. Most children and even plenty of adults need sedation to handle the MRI chamber. To celebrate the event, Mindy chose to take Jacob to dinner at the restaurant of his choosing. He, of course, chose Red Lobster. I agreed to meet them there as soon as I could.

I met them there at 5:35pm. Jacob had a double order of scampi. Mindy & I ordered the Ultimate Feast (shrimp, lobster tail, and crab legs) I paid a little extra for Alaskan King Crab versus snow crab. Remembering where we were, thus keeping expectations in check, everything was good. Jacob rode home with me in the BM’er.

I walked Ykraps who was more than ready to go outside. After walking him I began watering the flowers – front and back. They need extra watering the first couple weeks. I took a break and went in to tuck in the kids who were already in bed. Mindy headed to bed around 8:30pm leaving me to myself for a couple of hours. I used the time to play guitar on the deck, read, and blog. I headed to bed at 10:20pm.

Hmmmm... Golf, Work, or Sex?

I was up just after 5:30am after a rather comfy night’s sleep. It was Wednesday, the middle of the week; the day that traditionally marks the down slide into the weekend. Speaking of which, Mindy surprised me a couple weeks ago when she expressed her disdain for this day. I can’t exactly recall her reasoning.

I finished my exercises then soon headed outdoors with Ykraps. It was a glorious morning for a walk. We took our time. This was trash day and that’s a big thing for our family. If we miss a week, we’re in trouble. Mindy & the kids generate a bag full each day.

I made coffee for the two of us when I returned. Mindy was already up and in the shower when I delivered. I got no tip! On to food prep. I couldn’t remember if Mindy declined lunch today or not. For whatever reason I thought that she might’ve. I double checked. She DID want a lunch! After our lunches were packed, I made an omelet. We split it 60/40 as we most often do.

Mindy & the kids departed around 7:20am. I left for the shower. I remembered to grab a pair of shorts and a t-shirt for the tentative Wednesday "Bob" golf league, although playing wasn’t by any means a sure thing yet. I just figured it better to be prepared. Because of this, I drove the Trooper on an otherwise ideal BM’er day. The high was expected to reach close to 85 degrees under mostly sunny skies. We are having an absolutely gorgeous spring save for the first two weeks of April. In fact, this might be the nicest I can ever recall.

Work was busy (I know I say that often). We had a staff meeting this AM. It ended just before lunch time. I left for my run around 12:45pm. It was hard to peel myself away as my time and effort was in high demand. It was already 85 degrees according to the weather bug. I ran without a shirt. It was gorgeous! Because of no shirt, I didn’t do the MP3 player because it irritates my chest and underarm where it rubs for 40 minutes. Ouch! After my run I returned to my office to eat. I had an email from Bob I. regarding golf league. We were on! I was excited! I soon left for yet another afternoon meeting that went up until 3:30pm. I checked with my boss about leaving early for golf. I left at 445pm.

Traffic was a bear. It took all of 35 minutes to get to The Links at Groveport. The Bob’s were already there and ready. I changed into my golf attire and paid up quickly. I was ready to go in short order. Once again I didn’t score well. And once again the first two holes we played set the tone. However, I recovered nicely on holes 4, 5, 6, & 7 with a bogie, birdie, par, a bogie. I was on a roll! But sadly, holes 8 & 9 ate my lunch. The good news is that I think i found my groove. My swing is back! I hit four or five rock solid drives that traveled anyhwere about 240-270 yards (my max). More importantly, they were in the fairway. What tripped me up today more than anything else was the rough around the greens. It was hard to get up & down.

We finished at 8pm but like last week, we went back to hole number 9 to play it again just for fun. We finished for good around 8:20pm. I left for home just before 8:30pm. I finally reached Mindy via cell about half way home. She ignored my first call. When I got home Bella was out of bed waiting my arrival. I entered through the front door even though out of habit I raised the garage door. The first thing I did was get some food. I was starving. I made two pork roast burritos. They were out of this world delicious. While I indulged my hunger, Mindy tuned into Idol elimination night. As I predicted, Lakisha got bumped. Down to three. We stayed up until 10pm. It was still very steamy when we headed to bed. In hindsight, we probably should’ve turned on the A/C. I woke suddenly at 1130pm after hearing the doorbell ring. I snuck to the window to see who it was. It was a young girl with a Chihuahua. She left just as I was going to ask what she wanted through the bedroom window. Back in bed, Mindy asked what the devil I was doing. I explained and went back to sleep. Mindy found that alarming and was frightened. I woke suddenly once again, only this time without any prompting. It occurred to me that I should check the garage door. I pulled myself out of bed and went down to check. Sure enough, our garage door was raised. I put it down and headed back to bed. I vaguely remembered raising it but going in through the front door. It turns out our late night visitor was probably trying to forewarn us. God bless her!

Gushing over the summery weather

I didn’t get up until 5:50am. I was very tired even after a good night’s sleep. Not sleeping well Sunday night probably caught up with me. I felt a bit rushed to catch up with the clock. Those that know me must certainly realize that I hate to feel rushed. I decided to take it as it came, and spent the rest of my early morning hours going through the usual paces with little worry. I decided, too, that I would drive the BM’er to work. The forecast was definitely BM’er weather – sunny and in the low 80’s. Wow! I packed lunches and made breakfast. We had an enjoyable morning feast together. After the family left I showered and readied myself for work. I moved the Trooper onto the street to make way for backing out the BM’er. It was a fabulous drive into work. Work was a little frantic but when isn’t this time of year. I worked hard. Run time came quickly. According to the weather bug is was 85 degrees in Hilliard already. I ran without a shirt as the sun was shining and the temps warm. It felt ideal. It was like summer minus the humidity. After lunch I spent a lot of time working two major issues. They ate up the rest of my day. I left for home around 5:15pm. As I pulled into the subdivision Mindy and Jacob were walking Ykraps. Jacob flagged me down to give him a ride in the BM’er. We cruised around two blocks but soon returned home. Mindy already had dinner on the table. We were having hot wings. This time they were more traditional. They were very, very good. After dinner and clean-up we headed out of doors to play in the yard. Once again, Jacob and Makayla came over (the neighbor kids). I planted a few leftover flowers in some bare spots and made a new pot. I started the front lawn sprinkler too for the first time. The lawn is already showing signs of stress since we’ve had such warm weather and relatively light rain. By watering the lawn I would catch the front flowers too. We played until bath time or 7:30pm. While the kids were bathed I played on the PC. I tucked them in before getting too involved in anything. Mindy and I watched Idol from about 8:15pm on. There are only four contestants left, and all are pretty darn good. After Idol I fell asleep on purpose watching House. Mindy woke me up at its conclusion to head to bed.

I'd Sooner be Golfing

I didn’t sleep too well through the night waking a few different times. At one point, probably close to 3am, I got up and went down stairs to take an anti-inflammatory to alleviate some of the stiffness from the day’s planting activities. I felt wide awake, at least temporarily. I headed back to bed sometime before 4am and slept soundly until 530am. By then, I felt like sleeping longer, but didn’t. Once I was downstairs engaged in exercise, I shook the sleepies. It was another beautiful morning. We’ve certainly had many of late. I bitch when it’s miserable so I need to praise when it’s nice. Thank you! Ykraps and I enjoyed our walk. We were back at 6:04am – a minute earlier than goal. I made coffee and delivered Mindy’s while she remained sleeping. She woke just as I was sneaking away. Back downstairs I grabbed my own coffee and sat at the PC for short bit of time reading the Daily Om and checking the weather forecast – sunny and warm for the next three days. At 6:30am I got busy making food, both breakfast and lunch. Although hit would’ve been a perfect day to drive the BM’er, I left for work around 7:50am driving the Trooper. Just as I was readying to leave Mindy phoned expressing frustration over leaving her lesson plans at home. I sucked it up and drove them to her in Grovetucky. That placed me at work at 8:35am – late. Work was viciously busy. The weather was superb and my afternoon run went very well. It was almost 80 degrees and sunny. The kids were with there father like most Monday evenings, but they weren’t gone that long. In fact, they were home shortly after I arrived. I was beat and felt like I needed a nap. I had lawn chores on my agenda, so I didn’t rest for long. Rather than nap I got up, changed, and headed out to the yard. I did my usual routine, finishing up around 7:30pm. I watered the flowers after going in to tuck in the kids. That was a nice way to cap the evening. Mindy and I retired to bed early.

Planting Day II: A Thrilling Sequel

I leaped to my feet at 7:40am eager to get the day moving. As far as I could see out the half-moon window, the skies were crystal clear. I made a pot of coffee and choked down a vitamin before engaging myself in exercise. By 8:05am I was finished and out the door with Ykraps. It was windy and much cooler than I expected. The temperatures I figured had to be in the 40’s. The sun was warm but the breeze chilly. A check of the forecast revealed a high of only 68 degrees for later in the day.

I could hear Mindy milling around upstairs around 8:30am. She joined me downstairs minutes later. I dressed and left for a run just after 9am. I ran along Trabue & Hague Av. I listened to music the entire way for the first time in a long while. The run went extremely fast. When I returned from my run I took a closer look at my Sweetgum tree in the front landscape. It’s been slow to leaf out this spring and I am worried that it might be toast. I’ve noticed several other Sweetgums in our subdivision are in similar shape. On closer inspection, the tree’s budded fine but most of the buds haven’t bloomed. I wondered if the extreme warmth in mid/late March followed by several nights in the low 20’s might have did it in. Not to mention the early October hail storm that deleafed most of my trees prematurely.

Moving on, I changed after my run, but didn’t bother showering. I saw no need given that I would be getting sweaty and dirty all over again. Instead, I just wiped off the sweat, threw on some old clothes, and left for the nursery. Mindy left at the same time for Kohl’s to shop for a swim suit. My travels took me to Wal-Mart first. And I was very pleased to see that they had all the fillers I wanted (spikes, Vinca, and Coleous) for a 1/3 less that Strader’s. I bought another perennial and a large bag of potting soil, too. The check-out line was ten deep, maybe more. I decided to go to the inside check-outs, and besides, Mindy asked me to get a cucumber and pineapple also. I had no idea where she intended to plant those. J Sadly, Wal-Mart had one measly pineapple and it was bruised. I opted out of it. The inside check-out was only three deep. It still took a good twenty minutes, but that’s Wally’s!
Before heading home I decided to succumb to my hunger and buy some fast food. I thought about some chips and salsa form El Vaquero but opted instead for Burger King. That’s two times in three days. Ouch! I was very hungry and knew that I wouldn’t take the time to prepare something once home. I woofed down fries, burger and drink on my trip home, and it hit the spot.

I carried my entire day’s plating’s around to the deck. It took about eight trips. There was quite a bit. The first thing I did was pot the two Hibiscus. That was easy. Next, I did the four hanging baskets which required transfer to my decorative baskets. Two of the wire baskets required adding additional Sphagum Moss as a liner. That took an hour or more. I moved on to the many large and small pots that I typically display. That took some doing too. I finished the pots around 3:45pm. By then the kids were home form their weekend with dad. Jacob surprised me and asked to go hike in the woods. Being amused at his eagerness and sense of adventure, I dropped what I was doing and took him on a hike. We walked back through the thick under brush along the pond and ultimately ended up at the waterfall/damn supporting the pond. And like never before, we followed the creek after the damn for a few hundred yards. We turned around when the only way to forge further forward would have been to walk the creek itself.

We were gone for about an hour, and it was a good time. I’m really glad we went. When we got back home I decided to wash the Trooper. Mindy asked how long that would take since she wanted to have an early dinner. I thought it would take about 45 minutes. I was incorrect. It took about 1.5 hours. I cleaned it inside and out. In fact, I’ve never cleaned the rear storage area save for an occasional vacuuming or quick sweep with a whisk broom. It sparkled when I finished.

I was hungry, and so were Mindy and the kids. I lit & preheated the grill while I simultaneously watered the flowers. We had brats, dogs, and baked beans. They were very good. After clean-up, Mindy scrubbed the kids clean in the tub. Meanwhile, I did even more watering. Around 8:30pm Mindy called it a night and went upstairs to bed. I stayed up until 10pm reading and then napping in the big chair.

Planting Day

It was 7:15am and I was eager to be out of bed. But for whatever the reason, I was dreaming of waking with a headache. It's not that I wanted one - certainly not! Lucky for me, the headache never materialized. Mindy asked that I let her sleep until 8:15am. I quietly went about making coffee and exercising. It was 7:45am when I returned from my morning walk with Ykraps. I spent the next 30 minutes sipping coffee and working on my blog. The weather seemed nicer than forecasted. For that I was grateful given that this was “Planting Day”, the day each year when I thrust my hands into the soil burying beautiful flowers throughout my landscape.

It was already in the upper 50’s and it was marginally sunny. The forecast called for clouds and upper 60’s with a slight chance of rain. It didn’t look like it, though. I woke Mindy at 8:20am. She was meeting her friend Teri at 9:30am at First Watch for breakfast. I left for my run while she readied for the go.

I ran within the subdivision. When I returned, Mindy, as expected, was already gone. Excited about the prospects of planting, I somewhat hurriedly whipped up a shredded pork burrito for my breakfast, and then dressed in my yard shorts and a t-shirt before beginning the planting.

I planted the Wave petunia’s in the front flower beds first. I had four flats but even before I was done I could see that I needed more. The temperature shot up and it was fairly humid too. It certainly was warmer than the upper 60’s. It felt almost summery. Mindy returned from her morning out sometime around 1pm. I let her know that I needed to make a return to DeMonye’s. She chose not to go along. I still had some perennials and deck plants to sink but didn’t want to move on to them until the front beds were complete.

As I drove out east I could see that it was most likely raining out eat. The sky was very dark. And once I arrived at DeMonye’s it was sprinkling. Still, back west it was hazy and sunny. I bought another four flats of Wave petunias. All totaled, I’ve spent $160 just on petunias alone. I bought a flat of geraniums while there, too. By the time I left Demonye’s it was raining hard. But just west of downtown the sky was clear and the pavement dry. I was glad that the rain was seemingly past us. Back home I got right back on the planting. Just as I did a breeze kicked up and the clouds began moving in. Unlike most weather, we had clouds moving in from the northeast, and along with the clouds there were significantly cooler temps. Soon it began raining on me. But I didn’t let it detour me form my goal. It didn’t really rain too hard. Rather, it was just a slight inconvenience.

After planting 6.5 flats out front, I moved to the back. I planted a combination of perennials, geraniums, and petunia’s around the two major deck beds. Now I viewed the rain as friendly as it helped water in the new flowers. And besides, the lawn was just beginning to show signs of needing rain. After the major beds were done I cleaned up for the day. I would spend Sunday doing all the deck pots and hanging baskets. For this, however, I still needed some specific flowers. I asked Mindy if she felt like heading out shopping for flowers. She was busy napping while I showered. She agreed to go along. We figured we might get some dinner while out, too.
Around 3:30pm we headed out to Lowes, Home Depot, and then Strader’s. We bought two hibiscus, four hanging baskets, and about eighteen dahlias, tuberous begonias, and gerbera daisies at Strader’s. We spent another small fortune, but I am obsessed with having lots of colorful flowers to express my love of summer. We still needed to get some planter fillers such as spikes and vinca. I refused to pay $3 a piece knowing that I could get them cheaper elsewhere. I’d set out early Sunday morning to get those at Wal-Mart.

We stopped at our favorite Greek restaurant, The Big Fat Greek Cuisina, on our way home to buy a couple gyros to-go. I woofed down my gyro with the last of my Barley’s Hoptopus. And since it was Cinco de Mayo, I whipped up a blender of Margaritas. We drank the entire blender full and then did a couple of buttery nipple shots. By then it was 9:30pm. We fired up the hot tub and enjoyed a good soaking. We lasted about twenty minutes in there. We headed to be after the hot tub.

Verbose

I was up at 5:35am – just before the coffee maker beeped to alert us of ready coffee. Never a bad way to wake! I happily tucked my toes under the lip of the sofa and effortlessly whipped out 55 sit-ups. After a short breather, I dropped like a soldier and did 50 push-ups, once again with little effort. I rested only briefly before engaging 25lb dumbbells for a set of 40 curls. It’s how I start each morning. Somehow, after it’s done, I feel ready to face whatever challenge the day has to offer.

Ykraps was waiting patiently by the front door as he often does. He seems to take his queue from my set of curls. I’ve tried to complete them almost in silence wondering how he senses such activity. Somehow, regardless of how sneaky I am, I can hear him draw to attention once I begin – even if I take an unusually long break between push-ups and curls. Sadly, these are the type of things I contemplate between 5:30 & 6:00am each morning.

Our walk was pleasant. I can’t help but notice with each passing day the shroud of darkness that usually protects us from viewing is slowly evaporating into summer’s early dawn. But for me, that’s good news! I am a summer kinda guy. Our walk ended at the specified time of 6:05am. I proceeded to make coffee and deliver Mindy’s bedside. I sensed that Mindy was a bit irritated with me for being a poor listener/communicator the night before. Just the same, I sat her coffee on the night stand and gave her a peck on the cheek and went about the rest of my morning routine.

Packing our lunches was easy. I needed to pack only nuts and fruit. Mindy was taking some leftover pork roast and I was hoping to go to lunch with work buddies – perhaps Chipotles. I made our usual bacon and cheese omelet along with cut fruit for breakfast. The kids we in good moods making our family time all the more pleasant. They departed around 7:20am. For whatever reason, Mindy still seemed a little steamed. She waved good bye with only one finger. I shrugged it off and headed to the shower. After ll, it was Friday!

After a quick, I slipped into my favorite jeans and black t-shirt. I was ready for the day. I opted once again to not drive the BM’er thinking all along that I might want the Trooper so that I could make a stop at Straders. I arrived at work at 8:03am. The flood gates opened quickly. My morning was filled with oodles of activity. I worked very, very hard. My lunch plans went south when my buddy informed me that he was working from home. I didn’t mind so much. Instead of lunching with the guys, I decided to go to Strader’s after my run. I purposefully left for my run about fifteen minutes early to facilitate that idea.

My run was pleasant. The temps hovered around 74 degrees. Couldn’t have been nicer. I listened to CD #4 of Beyond Belief. I returned from my run a new man. After a fast shower I jumped in the Trooper and dashed off to Strader’s – a visit each year I look forward as much as Xmas. Along the way I returned a call to my mom who was calling from the New Albany Surgical Center. She asked why I hadn’t yet visited. I thought that she was going home today after a brief overnight stay. But she countered otherwise. They insisted she stay again tonight even though her surgery was a success. Something about her blood oxygen levels being low. I let her know that I would most likely stop up tonight.

I was shocked to find Strader’s packed to fences. The lines at check-out were 20 patrons long. Still, I perused the aisles checking out their offerings. Mindy had already decided that we were going to Demonye’s greenhouse after work to get Wave Petunia’s, but still I thought that I might get a couple Hibiscus this afternoon.
I just browsed. There stock looked healthy, but they had nothing that took my breath away. I left after ten minutes of browsing. After checking in with work I cruised further up the street to Burger King for a combo meal. I ate while driving back to the office. I found myself back at my desk by 2:20pm. We were busy for the rest of the day.

I wrapped up my involvement in several issues the best I could and departed for home at 5:10pm. Mindy was busy readying for our quick departure while I commuted home. She had already stopped to pick-up flowers for my mom while she was out getting a book about publishing books. She’s inspired to be a successful writer of children’s books. She informed me that our neighbor, David, stopped over and gifted us after learning of our recent marriage. He gifted us Barley’s gift certificates and a bottle of champagne. Too cool! How’d they know we love Barley’s, we wondered.

When I got home I immediately hung my running clothes out on the deck in the sun so that they’d be dry come Saturday morning. I then leashed up Ykraps for our evening walk. Mindy was still getting ready for our evening out. When we returned she was ready just as we planned. We grabbed the flowers for mom, the camera, and set out for the night.

Our first destination was Demonye’s, which is located off of I-670 and Cassady Ave out by the airport – about half way to the New Albany Surgical Center. We were pleased to find Demonye’s sparsely populated. We grabbed a nursery cart and set out to find their Wave Petunia’s. We found them quickly although they were very pricey. They were $45 per flat of ten. Ouch! I wanted them so we carted four flats. I was certain, however, that they had to have a vaster selection as there were only about ten flats where I found these. I asked a worker where I might perennials and perhaps more Wave Petunia’s. She directed us outside the greenhouse.

We found some what we sought. Outside they had flats of 18 (though slightly smaller) for $20. That was far more reasonable. We exchanged our pricey lot for these. Next, we perused the perennials looking for some flowering varieties to complement our existing landscape. We found about five that we liked and loaded them onto the cart. All told, we spent about $140. Not too bad at all. We left Demonye’s after about an hour of shopping destined now for New Albany and to visit mom. We thought that we’d be cute and not take I-270, but instead take Rt. 62 up through Gahanna exchanging the concrete expressway for a more serene country like drive. A good idea – right? Well, we almost immediately ran into heavy traffic in Gahanna, and then a detour on 62 that took us down roads we wee unfamiliar with. We felt lost save for the Trooper’s compass. Finally, after back tracking for 20 minutes, we found our way to New Albany and the Surgical Center. New Albany makes one wonder what the hell these people do to afford such luxurious living. It’s a part of town that I haven’t frequented to very often. There are some estates that make Bexley look like the slums.

We arrived at the Surgical Center around 7:40pm and found our way to mom’s room fairly easily. She was asleep. We watched over her for a few before I tapped my foot against the tile floor to wake her. We visited with mom for about 30 minutes. She shared the usual gossip and told of dad visiting each day and helping her out. They seem to be natural pair, although it seems a bit awkward to me. Just before departing, mom told us that she just bought a new car. I was in disbelief. Why, I thought, would my mother by a new car when her income versus expenses is so apparently out of whack? She bought an SUV (Jeep Liberty). But, then again, that’s my mom - always spending beyond her means.

We left the Surgical Center destined for Barley’s. It was about 8:20pm when we hit the road. We had learned our lesson. We would take 161 to I-270 and then to I-670 West. They are still working on 161 apparently turning it into a freeway, at least in the New Albany area. The area has been under construction/transformation for more than two years. And it appears as thought they have another year’s worth of work yet to do.

We arrived at Barley’s making exceptional time. We were there by 8:42pm. The lot was somewhat surprisingly not crowded. We got a parking spot close to the door. There were even seats available and waiting at the bar. We greeted our friends, Bob, Mary Ann, Tim, Mark, Steve, Dan, Paul, and others. Lee soon served us what we craved. I had one of their new Left Coast Pale Ale’s, and Mindy had a glass of wine. We ordered food during the drinking of my first beer. I ordered a Cuban and Mindy this salad thing. We ordered a side of sauerkraut balls too. We watched Reds and Indians games (they weren’t playing each other). They both went to extra inning ands both ended up losing. Crap!

My second beer was a Hoptopus. We hung out until after 10:30pm. I had one more beer before leaving. I had a Double Dog Dare IPA – perhaps my new favorite! We headed home after making tentative plans to host a Saturday evening cookout on our deck. When we got home I poured yet another beer and fired up the hot tub. We spent about 20 minutes soaking and chatting. We opted out of swim suits. After all, we weren’t swimming anyhow. We headed to bed just after midnight. I guess I fell asleep first.

Boating anyone

Up once again ahead of schedule. I was milling about by 5:25am and preparing to do my morning calisthenics. I sped through sets of sit-ups, push-ups, and curls. Soon, Ykraps and I were strolling Newell Dr. in the somewhat cool morning air. The sky, however, was clear and the promise of another beautiful spring day waited in the wings.

Like a couple other days this week, we were back early enough for me to relax, coffee, and meditate even before delivering Mindy’s coffee. Soon I was on to food prep. I made a batch of tuna fish for the both of us and chose to make fried eggs for breakfast.

Mindy and the kids departed around their usual time and I headed for the shower. I could’ve drive the BM’er but opted instead for the Trooper. No real good reason why I didn’t drive it. I guess I just wasn’t thinking about it. I left the house after playing some guitar – about 7:50am. I arrived at work around 8:05am.

Work was busy. We had a lot going on. I still took time to enjoy a cup of coffee with some buddies before launching into a full assault on the day. Lunch time came quickly and like always, I headed to the gym. It was about 73 degrees at run time, and another, beautiful sunny day. The temperature was once again a little warm for my long sleeved running shirts but it’s all I have save for bare skin.

I listened to Beyond Belief CD #2. I’m beginning to memorize it. I’ll need to revert back to music before long. After my run I showered and dressed. I stopped by the boss’s office along my way back. He reminded me of our 2pm meeting. I scurried off and grabbed my lunch and water and headed directly there. The meeting went until after 3:30pm. The remainder of the afternoon went briskly too. I left the office for home at 5:15pm. Because I saw that 270 was backed up to a stand still, I took Old Dublin Rd home. It was then that I remembered I wanted/intended to pay my boat storage fee today. Lucky for me, I was practically driving right by the place.

It’s always nice to pull in there after a long winter to see my boat once again. The manager was power washing their new rental RV fleet as I pulled up. I asked about pricing for those. The pricing varies depending on days, mileage and other criteria, but it’s not too ridiculous. I paid for six months of storage and went in to check on my boat. There she was, still intact waiting for me to look her over. I noticed almost right away that one of the trailer tail lights was dangling from the rear. It pissed me off that someone knocked it off, whether it the owner moving boats around and said nothing to me. That’s a $20 fix.

I left without saying anything to him. I headed home. I arrived home just before 6pm. We walked Ykraps as a family. Dinner was ready in the Crock Pot. We had pork roast. I ate a lot. I ate so much that I got really sleepy after. Jacob really wanted to play some wiffle ball but I needed a nap. He, Mindy and Bella went out to play while I took a brief nap on the family room floor. I woke just as Jacob came inside hell bent on waking me to play. I laid there for a while trying to muster the energy to rise and join them outdoors. It was a beautiful evening.





Once I was up and out in the evening air I was able to quickly shake the lethargy. We playe wiffle & kickball for another fifteen minutes. Jacob & Makayla came over and joined in the fun too. Around 8pm Mindy called for a halt to play and got the kids inside and ready for bed. After the tuck & read Mindy and I toyed with hot tubbing but never did. We went to bed around 9:30pm. We talked until I fell asleep.

A Matter of Perspective

Up at 5:25am. I’m getting pretty good about capturing more “Jimmy-time” by getting up a few minutes earlier. It makes a big difference. I finished exercising and walking Ykraps even before 5:45am. I spent these next quiet moments before daylight dawned enjoying coffee and meditating. It was very tranquil. I needed it!

I reminded myself that despite what goes on around me I remain in complete control of myself. I am free! I can’t control others, but what I can control is how I respond. I choose to stay positive and happy.

As dawn broke it was yet another sunny morning, which was fitting given my upbeat and positive outlook. I made tuna salad for lunch, but didn’t need to prepare Mindy one. She had not eaten her Tuesday lunch. I made fried eggs for breakfast along with the usual cut fruit. We enjoyed our breakfast together. Both of the kids had fuzzy doughnuts.

Mindy and the kids left a few minutes behind schedule. I was off to shower as soon as they departed. I gave thought to driving the BM’er but in the end opted out. I hadn’t a real good reason. I arrived at work at 8:05am. I wasn’t long into my day when Bob I. emailed asking if I wanted to golf after work. That sounded awesome. I really needed a diversion from work and the routine of the week. I responded favorably and drove home after my run to get my clubs and a change of clothes. I responded to Bob that I would be joining him provided Mindy didn’t care. After all, I had talked with her the other night about getting out one night a week to golf on “Bob league”.

I worked hard – very hard – up until 4:50pm. It was a challenging day in part because both of my peers were out. I left for golf ten minutes early to get a jump on traffic. I called Bob along my way to make sure he knew that I was coming. He was about ten minutes in front of me. I called Mindy again too. She had talked about dining with a friend but ended up just going home and doing chores and relaxing. I arrived at Groveport Country Club just after 5:30pm. Bob was ready with the cart. Within five minutes we were at the first tee.

My golf game was far better than it was Sunday, just as I expected. I still didn’t score very well by any measure but my contact and swing were coming around. We played 11 holes before being kindly asked to leave. Apparently our fees only covered nine holes. Still, the ranger was friendly about it. I am glad Bob offered the time away. It did me some good to get away for a spell. I helped solve a work related problem on my way home. I pulled in the drive around 8:30pm. The kids were already in bed, and Mindy had a big cheese burger all ready for me. That was awfully nice!

While I poked around on the PC, Mindy watched Idol. I joined her after a few minutes to catch the dual elimination round. Chris and Phil got the boot. Both of us were neither surprised or disappointed. The remaining four _should_ be the remaining four.

After Idol we called it a day and headed off to bed. I was beat from a tough day at work, a five mile run, and a round of golf.

Meeting Jacob & Makayla

I was up by 5:40am on what appeared to be another absolutely gorgeous morning. We slept with the windows open and the ceiling fan spinning. I exercised, walked Ykraps, and made coffee all before 6:10am. It wasn’t too long before I was head long into daily food prep.

The remainder of my morning routine went like most others. The sunrise was spectacular. This first day of May would be much like a summer day. I left for work around 7:50am and arrive no later than 8:05am. And like most other days, I was intently busy right up until my afternoon run. It was 83 degrees when I left out the door. It was so warm that I scrapped the shirt for the first time all year. My MP3 player carrier left a rub mark against my tender skin, but all in all it was a fantastic run!

The afternoon went fast, too. I worked very hard. I left the office at 5:15pm. I was frustrated and again shared my dilemma with Mindy. She alerted me to the fact that we were having Renee over for dinner. We were going to grill burgers and chicken. I walked Ykraps alone.

I changed into some comfy evening clothes before doing much else. I saw that Jacob was out back playing so I went out to catch up with him. He really wanted to fish but his mother refused since he would need supervision and she expected dinner would be ready soon, and because I had to cook. While the grill heated up, Jacob and I played kickball out back. The rolling contour of the yard makes kickball quite the adventure, especially trying to keep the ball out of the pond. Renee showed up while we played.

Soon it was time to cook. I cooked four burgers and four chicken breasts. They all grilled up real nice. We chose to eat on the deck. It was still about 83 degrees and there was a a moderate breeze. Very comfy!

After dinner I played more kickball with the kids. The neighbor’s kids, Jacob and Makayla, came over to join in. Bella played with Makayla and Jacob played with Jacob. Mindy & Renee came out after cleaning up the dinner mess. We stayed outdoors until approximately 7:30pm. We all went in when Renee left for home. She had a date planned with Jay Richardson, the fourth round draft pick of the Oakland Raiders.

After Mindy got the kids in bed, I spent some time updating my blog for the first time in a while. She watched Idol. We went to bed before 10pm.

A New Week

I made a conscious effort to wake just prior to 5:30am in part to help facilitate my need for some additional time to enjoy peace and tranquility. I was successful in my quest. I rolled out of bed at 5:25am and made my way downstairs to happily being my work week. Before heading downstairs, however, I couldn’t help but notice the intensely bright moon shining in our bedroom window, a foreshadowing of the clear dawn ahead.

I finished my exercises then located Ykraps to set out on our morning walk. I was frustrated to catch a glimpse of the children scurrying about upstairs already, especially since I had risen early to garner more peaceful time alone. For whatever reason, the kids are waking earlier of late.

Because we were back from our walk well before 6am, I didn’t bother making Mindy her coffee just yet. Instead, I spent time in quiet, contemplative meditation. Come a little after 610am I followed through with coffee just like normal. Already, dawn was breaking out. I could tell it was going to be beautiful day. I snapped a couple pictures of the sky just before the sun made an appearance.

While making lunch I realized that I still had Friday’s resting in the fridge at work. I only prepared some nuts & a salad to complement what I knew was already there. For breakfast I warmed Sunday’s leftover eggs, not wanting them to go to waste. There was easily enough for two.

Mindy and the children left at their usual 7:20am. I paid monthly bills then dashed off to shower and dress. I left the house for work around 7:55am & arrived shortly after 8am.
The work day was typical of a Monday, and of the season. We were busy. We had a follow-up staff meeting scheduled for 1:30pm that forced me to run about 30 minutes earlier than usual. I left for my run at 12:15pm.

It was an absolutely gorgeous run day. And truth be told, I was a bit over dressed with a long sleeved wicking shirt, but it’s all I had. I worked up a good sweat because of it. It must have been close to 80 degrees during my run. Our afternoon meeting went almost 2.5 hours. I couldn’t believe where the day had gone. I spent another hour or so at the office and then left for home around 515pm.

I was in a adversarial mood at days end. I told Mindy all about it once home as we walked Ykraps together. It was then that she told me that one of the neighbors complained about us allowing Ykraps to pee on her lawn. Please! If she’s not careful, I’ll be the one peeing on her lawn. That just shows you how edgy I was.

We spent some time on the deck again this evening as the weather was very beautiful. We went to be before 10pm.

Golf, Mulch, & English Roast

I was up at 6:30am sharp just as I had planned. Bob would be over at 9am to pick me up for a round of golf in Marysville. Working backwards I knew I needed 2.5 hours to comfortably accomplish everything on my agenda leading up to golf. I had to exercise, coffee, run, gather & clean my clubs, shower and dress, and then eat. I finished all I had to do and was ready to go by 8:50am. Do I know my stuff, or what!

Along our way to the golf course I shared the perils of my Saturday with Bob. He, in turn, shared his. He and Mary Ann attended the much ballyhooed Mini-Ale Fest at Barley’s. I would have liked to go but couldn’t see leaving a precious yard work day on the table. Still, it sounded as though it was a good time.

We arrived at Rolling Meadows Golf Club around 9:30am. Our tee-time was 9:50am. I hadn’t golfed since early last summer and my game showed it. It appeared as though I had forgotten how to play. I had a nine and ten respectively on the first two holes. I improved marginally but never quite found my timing or my groove. The good news was that I shot par of three of the four par three’s which is often counter to my game. Typically I’ll par the par fives and then shoot poorly on the par threes. I think it’s fair to say that my long game is further out of whack.

Despite the poor showing I had a good time. The weather was superb, although a tad chilly at the outset, but by the fifth or sixth hole it was well into the 70’s and sunny. We had a nice time and made very good time. We played 21 holes (we played hole #16 twice and #17 three times) in just about 4 hours.

Bob dropped me at home around 2:30pm. He came in long enough to say hello to the wife and kids, but headed home shortly after. He wasn’t gone five minutes and I was preparing to pick-up a load of mulch at Ohio Mulch. I still had Dad’s trailer and my spring plan calls for planting flowers May 5th. To do so requires that I have mulch down prior. That realistically left Sunday afternoon as my only real opportunity. I took advantage of the pleasant weather and left to get the mulch after confirming their hours of operation via the phone. Unlike most weekends at the Roberts Rd Ohio Mulch outlet, there was next to no crowd. I bought two cubic yards of finely shredded Absolute Black, tarped it over, and headed home.

While I was picking up mulch, the kids and Mindy had turned the driveway into their canvas. They used sidewalk chalk and paint. Later, in between loads of mulch, Jacob would convince Bella to paint the garage door, too. And if that wasn’t enough, he had the nerve to tell on her soon after. Let’s just say that that netted Jacoby some trouble. We’ll leave it at that.

Once back home the entire family offered a hand – Mindy, Jacob, and Bella. We did the entire yard together. I didn’t mulch the four major flower beds that already have a thick topping of Com-Til. They’ll be totally flowered out anyhow. And besides, the Com-Til serves as both soil enrichment and mulch. We worked as team unloading the larger trailer into the tractor yard trailer and then spreading amongst the beds. We finished again around 6:30pm. After four showers we gathered for dinner. Mindy wisely made English roast in the Crock Pot, so our dinner cooked all the while we worked in the yard.

We ate dinner around 7pm. It hit the spot. Soon after dinner Mindy chased the kids to bed and returned downstairs where we chatted for a bit out on the deck. It was another fabulous spring evening. Word has it that we’re in for some really nice weather through the upcoming week, too. We went to bed around 9:30pm. We hoped to catch Family Guy but it just ended. Fox alters their line-up often.

Two Flat Tires

By most accounts, I was up early for a Saturday. I was up and down stairs making coffee by 7:30am. Unfortunately, the kids were already up and making plenty of noise. It was mostly cloudy as the forecasters had predicted. I was still holding out hope for an early clearing despite a forecast that said it wouldn’t happen until overnight.

I pushed through my workout and walked Ykraps. Despite the gray skies, the temperature was very mild. The kids requested some food before Mindy got up. I did my best to meet their demanding requests. I dressed in my smelly running clothes and left for my run around 8:30am. I listened to CD #4 of Beyond Belief once more, starting well before where I had previously left off. I ran along Trabue Rd and then down Hague Ave acutely attuned to the flow of traffic.

I was home a little after 9am. Mindy had a scrumptious breakfast of maple bacon and scrambled eggs ready for consumption. After I woofed down my food I quickly readied for my trip to get Com-Til. Mindy took care of the kitchen.

Getting Com-Til required a stop by my dad’s to get his 4X8’ trailer. Before dad’s I stopped and fueled my rig at the nearby DM gas station. I pulled around back and hooked it up. Dad wasn’t home. I finally left his lug wrench for him that I borrowed in January to fix one of Ashley’s flat tires. Just before pulling away I kicked the tires to make sure they had air. They seemed a little mushy so I thought that I might put some air in them if I passed a station with air pumps. I never did. I arrived at the Com-Til plant a little after 10am and proceeded to have my truck and trailer weighed empty. They charge by the ton. I was quickly directed to the load area where a gentleman on a huge front loader filled the trailer lickity-split. As I pulled towards the scales I looked at the trailer in the side-view mirrors only to see two completely flat tires. What the hell am I gonna do, I thought! I pulled immediately to the side and went into the office where they could already see via a large window the entertainment I had just provided. They told me a story of a guy locking his keys in the truck last week, hoping that would provide a little comfort. Misery loves company, I guess! They also told me that they’d leave the gates unlocked ‘til 3pm even though the plant closes officially at 12noon.

I tried reaching my dad for help many times via his cell and his home number but to no avail. I decided to head towards home hoping he’d be there when I arrived. Incidentally, I left the trailer there. Dad was no where to be found and his garage was locked. I headed on home discouraged with no resolution or plan. After sulking to Mindy I decided I would go buy a jack and jack stands at Sears and then try fixing it alone. In the meantime, I tried reaching dad a couple more times. At Sears I ran into the baby sitters husband who’s really retired but works Saturday morning’s, still. He convinced me that buying this jack/jack-stand combo for $29.99 was too good to pass up. It wasn’t as beefy as the $100 set I wanted but the price out weighed the slight advantage. I bought it. I needed and wanted to have a good jack around anyhow.

Back to the Com-Til plant. The work proved a bit more challenging than I first thought for a couple of reasons. First, the trailer, once disconnected from the Trooper, was tipped upward making getting the jack under the trailer that much more difficult. After struggling with it for a bout 45 minutes I finally got both tires off and left the trailer resting on the two jack stands. I left looking for a tire repair place. At about the same time I finally reached my dad at home. As luck would have it, he advised that I was just yards away form where he bought the trailer and he was sure they could fix the tires. When I looked up, sure enough, I could see Rock’s Trailer’s just ahead on Route 104. It was 1:15pm. The sign at the gat e said we close at 1pm on Sat.. Damn! I got out and walked back anyhow since the gate wasn’t locked. A fella, dog, and friend were walking around looking to be closing up shop. He asked how he might help me. I shared my hard luck story and he happily offered to try and fix/fill the tires with air. But after couple of tries he realized his equipment wasn’t up to the task of mount what amounted to a brand new tire on a wheel. He referred me to the new Tire Discounter’s right around the corner on Stringtown Rd. I took his advice and headed directly there. My dad and I talked about hi coming down to give some help, but I told him to wait until I was assured that I could get the tires fixed.

The folks at Tire Discounter’s were awesome. After struggling for a few, they were able to fill both tires. They insisted that I not pay for their services. Totally cool! Soon I was back at the Com-Til plant working on installing the repaired tires. It was about 2:00pm. Dad arrived to help put the second one on. By 2:15pm I was finally ready to check out and head home. The one worker that stuck around while I toiled with the truck and trailer came out s I was on the scale and told me that the load of Com-Til was on the house given all the troubles I had. He and the Tire Discounter folks made my day. Dad followed me home.

Once at home, Mindy had a cold Coke ready for me and a cold ice water ready for dad. Dad requested a Pepsi instead, reporting his blood sugar noticeably low. After short visit and reminding me that I should have checked the tires since I use it more than anyone else, he departed for home. We invited him to Sunday dinner but he refused.

After Dad left I got busy spreading Com-Til in the beds. I got out my tractor and yard trailer and started spreading. I worked until the trailer was empty filling all of the beds I planned with the one load. It went further than I had thought. I finished up around 6:30pm and headed directly to the shower to wash away the pungent odor and dirt. While I finished up Mindy drove to Barley’s to have two jugs filled with our favorite beers – Russian Imperial Stout for her and the new Hoptopus for me.

Mindy made hot dogs for dinner. After the kids were in bed we sat on the deck under a clear sky enjoying the lovely temps while sipping a beer or two. I was very, very tired. Out west the sky darkened abruptly and lightening flashed. A check of the radar revealed a thin line of storms moving swiftly through the area. We headed in and to bed as the rain came down moderately heavy. I told Mindy to never tell anyone that we went to bed at 9pm on a Saturday night. :)

Although we didn't go...

I woke before 5:30am eager to begin my Friday. The work week, I noted, had gone about as fast as one could ever expect. And if the weather gods were correct, nicer, warm weather is on tap through the weekend. However, today was expected to be gray and a bit cooler than Thursday.

I did all of my usual morning prep stuff including walking the dog, making coffee, lunch, and breakfast. In the back of my mind I remembered that my buddy Jay and I discussed doing lunch today. I’d have my packed lunch on hand in case it went south.

One at work I circled the wagons and assessed the days immediate needs. It was a very busy Friday. I confirmed lunch plans with Ken and Jay and planned the rest of my morning accordingly. I left for a run at 11:30am to accommodate a 12:30pm lunch. I stayed pretty close to plan despite the busyness. I listened to CD #4 of Beyond Belief during my run. I’ll most likely wrap up the entire series on Saturday’s run, and that includes listening to a couple of sections twice.

Jay and Ken were waiting hungrily upon my return from the run. We left right away. As we departed the decision was made to visit the Olive Garden. There was a ten minute wait for seating. They were very busy. Once we were seated we all order the same thing - Soup & Salad. The soup was delicious – some sausage potato concoction. We were there just over an hour given our unusually long wait for a table.

I was back at my desk around 2:15pm to finish out my day. There were many things left to be done before leaving for the weekend, and things got a little dicey as they often do on Friday afternoons. I didn’t get out of the office until 5:30pm.

I arrived home a short time later, again listening to some of Beyond Belief, CD #4. The kids were happy that we were staying home tonight and for some reason, both Mindy and I were more tired than usual. The kids had their dinner and were in bed before 8pm. I ordered a Minelli’s pizza for us and left to pick it up a short time later.

While enjoying some pizza, Bella pointed out that she couldn’t sleep. Mindy granted permission for her to join us, but she didn’t last all that long. After one piece of pizza and a short conversation, she was back in bed. We didn’t stay up that long either. While and after eating pizza, I enjoyed two Columbus Pale Ales and sipped some raspberry vodka.

We went to bed shortly after 10pm. I needed a good night’s sleep to help heal my weary legs and help prepare me for a weekend of grueling yard work.