Lovely Day for Golf - Droid 2

The sound of Mindy's shower along with the bright bathroom lighting woke me somewhere near 645am. I was able to dose on and off but eventually gave up and headed downstairs near 715am. There, I started my exercise routine and got a cup of coffee. By then, Mindy was already prepping to leave. Mindy left for school around 730am while the kids and I finished preparing for our day. I played on the PC until it was time to leave for the bus stop. The weather was gorgeous - 56 degrees and sunny. The day's forecast - 80 something with clear blue skies - perfect for golf. Kenny was at the bus stop with the girls. We firmed up golf plans while awaiting the bus. Figured we'd leave around 1030am and play Phoenix Golf Links. Tom C. would most likely be joining us too. After the kids were safely on the bus, I headed back home to ready for a run. I wore a sleeveless running shirt. The sunshine was really warm. I ran just three miles in an effort to conserve some energy for golf. Back at home by 9am, I called Tom C. and the golf course. Tom was in, and the course said no tee-time necessary. Come on out! Cool! We planned to meet there just before 11am to take advantage of their early rates - $25 with cart. Kenny agreed to drive. Good thing, the Trooper needed gas. I didn't feel like stopping for fuel. I woofed down a pork burrito just before leaving the house. I also took a Dexilant after feeling that incessant gnawing sensation emanating from my upper stomach. Kenny was waiting in the driveway. We arrived at Phoenix early- 10:25am. Kenny insisted on picking up the green fees for all three of us. Tom got the last round. Speaking of Tom, he wasn't yet there. I called his cell. Still a good 15 minutes out. We headed to the putting green, which is far removed from the clubhouse. We chipped and putted for 15 minutes or more. Finally, Tom arrived and we headed to the first tee box. As he often does, Tom insisted we play the blue tees. I went first and hit a solid drive right down the middle . Tom shanked one hard left - almost parallel to the tee box. He hit another. Kenny went right of center but long. Somehow or another, I ended up struggling down the fairway taking a 9. Not a good way to start, although I didn't let it worry me much - too nice and I wasn't working! Like always, I had some good holes and then some bad. We played under cloudless skies all afternoon. The conditions reminded me of September. We finished around 245pm. I tried calling Mindy but went to VM. She asked me to call to confirm my ability to pluck the kids from the bus near 4pm. Kenny & I both wanted to cut our lawns once at home. Since fertilizing a couple weeks ago, it's needing cut every 4-5 days again. Plus, getting it cut on Thursday evening would free me for the weekend. That sounded appealing. I fooled around on the PC until the kids and Mindy were home from school. I headed out to the cut the lawn while Mindy went to pick-up her new Droid 2 case that Fed Ex tried to deliver earlier. Not sure why they wouldn't just leave it. She planned to order pizza for dinner, and shared that my dad would be joining us. I decided to skip whacking and edging. That alone knocked 20-25 minutes off the job. I was finished before 530pm. After finishing the lawn, and before Mindy got back and before Dad arrived, I watered the flowers out back. While watering, the water supply splitter exploded. I had to bypass it on the fly. At the same time, Kenny stopped over to let me know that he got Chrissy's blessing to golf with us on Saturday. We'd be playing the Player's Club at Foxfire. While waiting on the dad and the pizzas, I decided to activate Mindy's new Droid 2. I had to head out front as the center of our house is a deadzone. I passed Dad as I headed quickly out the door. It took a few tries to activate but I got it done. The Domino's guy showed up while I was outside. I snapped Mindy's new purple case on the phone just before sitting down for pizza. I was determined to have Mindy go through the painstaking configuration process on her own, that way she'd get to know her new phone intimately. And besides, the phone has a guided tutorial. We ate the less than delicious Domino's pizza. The toppings were scant, maybe one or two small pieces of sausage and a single pepper ring on each slice. Even worse, it appeared they cut back on the pepperoni just to make room for the other toppings. During dinner we chatted about the day: school, work, and my golf game. Dad, meanwhile, elaborated further on last week's discussion, his final internment. Apparently he's given it deeper consideration since we last spoke. Shared details with Mindy and I, such as where he's to be buried (beside Sheila) and a tree that is to be planted next to both. Said he recently paid for the actual excavation and fill of his grave. Said he wants a particular style vault, but I'll need to ask the name again. Also shared that he wants his service at Shoedinger's in Westgate. As dinner wound down, Mindy took over the operation of her new phone. Within ten seconds she handed it back with all the commands now appearing in Spanish. Good grief! I fiddled with it blindly for 15 minutes before excusing myself from the dinner table so I could get online and search the support doc for assistance. In less than 60 seconds I found simple instructions detailing how to switch languages. Wouldn't it be funny if it were that simple for us humans? As Dad departed, we headed out to walk Frankie and play with the kids, who were out front skate boarding and riding bikes. At the bridge, we struck up conversation with Carol, our across the street neighbor. Been walking lots. Talked about aches and pains and ways to cure - stretching. Talked dogs too. Her daughter and son-in-law got a new puppy, a bull dog, at roughly the same time we got Frankie. Said their puppy weighs 30+ lbs already. As Carol headed home, neighbor Mike bicycled down. His kids, Emily & Evan, were over playing with Jacob and Bella. We talked with Mike for at least 30 minutes. Before we knew it, Mike was giving Jacob's Rip Stick a whirl. He did pretty good. Mike also explained why he didn't golf with us earlier - played hockey at the Chiller. While Mindy & Mike talked, I walked Frankie. She pooped and peed. It was 8-830pm, and time to head inside for the night, this being a school night. I turned the TV to the Thursday night preseason game - Colts vs Packers. I watched well into the 3rd quarter. By then Mindy and the kids were long off to bed.