Summeruponus

My plan was to work from home. And with that decision I was able to sleep in until 650am without too much damage to my well-established morning routine. Outside, it was plenty sunny again and presumably warm. I could see that the irrigation ran a bit earlier by design. Haven't readjusted the watering schedule since setting it to every other day a couple weeks back. As such, I've lost track of which days it does and doesn't water.

I completed sit-ups, push-ups, and windmills then headed to my office with coffee. There I powered up my laptop and played on my personal computer. In all, I spent about half an hour plating around and setting up for work. I headed to the family room for meditation and a stretch near 750am. I dressed for a run shortly after 8am and then was promptly out the door.

Though really warm, I ran the full 4.1 miles without issue. I let my mind wonder pondering the fact that this was the first day of summer and the 172nd day of the year. It was a really good run. It was about 845am when I got back home. The first thing I did was pour more coffee and water and then settled down in front of my laptop and got busy with work.

Mindy wasn't up for a while yet. Think it was near 10am when she finally came downstairs. Said she slept a whole lot better than she has since coming home from S.C. She slept soundly for about 11 hours! She asked if I'd already run and walked the pug. Yes and yes. Like a lot of mornings, we spent a little time enjoying each other's company and coffee from the deck. I headed back to work after 10-15 minutes.

The rest of the morning flew by. Before I knew it was after 1230pm. By then Mindy & Bella left to run errands, including a stop at Mindy's school to look through her files to see if she might've stowed our '07 tax return there. As for the rest of their plan, I wasn't really sure what they were doing. I didn't see Jacob all morning or afternoon. It wasn't until much later that I went to his bedroom to check and see if he might still be asleep. Nope. He was gone, too. I only guessed he might be with Mindy and Bella and I just missed it.

Like a lot of Friday's, I headed out to cut the lawn near 1pm. It was hot, already about 90 degrees under completely sunny skies. Thankfully, though, the humidity wasn't as high as it could've been. Just the same, I opted to mow the lawn shirtless. I was a little frustrated when I realized that I was dangerously low on mower gas. I really didn't want to go fill-up my 5 gallon container. Turns out, I had enough to get the job done. I did the tractor piece first and a consequence, cut far more with it than usual. Between the two, the push and ride, I finished the cutting in about 45 minutes.

After toweling off the sweat I heated a piece of Wal-Mart sub in the oven while reengaging with work. Stayed busy through the rest of the afternoon leading up to a 4pm conference call. Jacob came in the back door around 3pm. Said he'd been down at Evan's for most of the day. Mindy &Bella got home just before my 4pm call was slated to start. I reminded them of the approaching call. Meanwhile, Bella was very excited to show off her just pierced ears. This was a big day for Bella. Not only did she get her ears pierced, but she got her first training bras too. Our little girl is quickly becoming a woman. :) Didn't finish up with work until after 530pm.

Jimaken showed up to pick-up the kids around 540pm. He shared that a new brew-pub is going in in Grandview at the corner of Olentangy and 3rd Ave, which at one point was a bank. Mindy and I planned to go to Barley’s after they left. I headed up for a shower around 6pm. Mindy sent a broadcast Barley’s invite to our peeps. We left for Barley’s around 630pm.

Pretty decent crowd. As expected, we had to park in the back 40. I spotted a couple familiar faces at the first corner of the bar. I stopped there to chat with Kent while Mindy walked on to talk with others. Ordered a ZIPA, Barley’s new zesty IPA. Not much different than Centennial to my taster. Good though.

While hanging out talking with Kent, a gentleman sitting at the barside table just behind me shared that I looked familiar. I echoed the same sentiments. It was Craig Coe, an old Valleyview Viking peer. He was actually a couple years older than me and was an assistant coach for the junior team that I that I played on. I always liked Craig and often wondered what ever came of him. We chatted for a few. He’s now a grandfather, step father, etc. Career-wise, I believe he said he was an electrical contractor. I remembered his father, too. He helped coach as well. Very animated. Craig shared that he passed away 35 years prior. Yikes! I wanted to introduce Mindy but she was busy talking with others.

A fella named Don walked by. I asked how his buddy Al’s doing. He pointed around the bar. There he sat. I walked over to say hello. Last he and I talked, he had just learned that his daughter was pregnant. He was distraught. Happily, he and his wife are handling it far better now, though he’s still very concerned with how his daughter and her beau will handle being parents.

While still chatting with Al, friends Ben & Ryan showed up. Haven’t hung with the two of them at Barley’s for a really long time, though we attended their crawfish boil a few weeks back. Good to hang out with them. Not long after Ben & Ryan showed up, Doug & Jamie (A.K.A. Doomie) came in. Jamie looks great. Said Doug has her running. They used to be Barley’s regulars but we haven’t seen the two of them in for months. We later learned that they had been boycotting the place after falling ill after a visit on wing night.

We hung out for couple more hours, Mindy I sharing a pita and hummus plate. Doug & Jamie left around 9pm. We made plans with Ben & Ryan to head back to our place. Must’ve got there around 1015p. I sent a text to Darwin as soon as we got home. He was still at work but scheduled to get off at 11pm. Invited him to stop by on his way home.

Mindy & Ryan took up refuge in the living room. Ben and I hung in the kitchen and plowed through several beers. Darwin showed up around 1130pm with a six-pack of his own. Sometime after midnight Ryan fell asleep in one of the recliners. Mindy covered her then joined us in the kitchen. Mindy lasted maybe another 30 minutes before heading up to bed around 1am. Darwin, Ben and I stayed up even later listening to some tunes, having some beers, and telling all sorts of lies. 

Before I knew it, it was 230am. We offered the guest room to Ben &Ryan, but they opted to drive home. Of course Ryan drove and said she was fine after sleeping for about 2.5 hours. Darwin hung out long enough to finish his beer. Thinking it was 245am when he departed – walked home. By then, I was crazy sleepy. I collapsed in bed around 3am. Boom boom, out go the lights!

Last Day of Spring a Real Gem

I woke around 5am but didn't get up and out of bed until almost 630am. And that was after snuggling with Mindy for a while. Downstairs, I completed Thursday calisthenics, which didn't include push-ups. The coffee had long since finished brewing. I poured a cup then headed to my PC. Nothing but clear skies overhead with a forecasted high of 84 degrees. Supposed to be similar on Friday only warmer. Appears we're getting more summer-like weather and perhaps even a pattern switch. Time will tell.

Played around online until 715am. Headed to the family room for meditation and a stretch. I'm digging the quiet house, which is something I haven't had dating back to the prior summer, or before Jacob started getting up for school around 6am. By the time I finished both meditation and stretching and then got out the door for a run, it was already 735am. Time flies. By then the sun was well above the roof tops, but still only about 60 degrees with low humidity. Felt really nice. I ran the full 4.1 miles without any problems.

The house remained still & quiet upon my return. I quickly started preparing breakfast and lunch. Opted for fried eggs. Set Eiknarf's egg aside since she remained cooped up in Bella's room, and I wasn't in a hurry to change that. Enjoyed my breakfast of eggs, toast and watermelon. The rest of the 'fresh' fruit had that spoiled hint about it. Still have one of the lemon poppy seed muffins Mindy got me for Father's Day. Not sure when I'll eat it. But I know I better eat it soon. One of the kids already ate the other.

I headed for a shower near 830am and at the same time took Mindy some coffee. After my shower she said she was going to remain in bed. Still not sleeping well. It was a perfect day to drive the BM'er. I was working in Hilliard and the weather forecast absolutely perfect. I moved the Accord to the curb to make room for the BM'er. At the same time, Mindy came downstairs to join me after all. We walked the pug together. Mindy brought coffee along.

We spent a few minutes on the deck before I wished her well. The night before she promised to spend some time looking for our misplaced '07 tax return. I didn't bother to remind her, but hoped she wouldn't forget. I left for the office near 850am. It was a slow trek north on Wilson to Roberts due to all the construction, but at least it wasn't at a standstill. I arrived at the office near 920am. Gorgeous morning!!

Once settled I walked over to my boss's office to say hello and catch-up. He was on a conference call. Just smiled and waved. He stopped by my office a few minutes later where we spent about 5-10 minutes catching up on things. Spent most of the day on a product issue that I've been working on for the past month or so. It's been both challenging and interesting, so the time literally flies by. As such, I didn't get a chance to escape for a lunch break. Instead, I worked straight through, not seeing the light of day again until 550pm. Hardly seemed possible walking out the office doors that it was already evening.

Because I drove the BM'er, I didn't bother calling Mindy on the drive home, though I sent her text around 520pm letting her know that I was still at the office. Got home around 610-615pm. Sounded like another fun day for the kids. Mindy took all the kids that overnighted to Coldstone's for ice cream. Counting our own, that amounted to seven kids. Bella fished again too. I could see one of our fishing poles was in pieces on the deck table. No doubt a byproduct of Bella's fishing stories. :)

Mindy shared that niece Lynn-Lynn was joining us for dinner and cutting the children's hair. She also shared that she was grilling pork chops for dinner. Said she looked for our '07 tax return but no luck. Looked everywhere, including in previous and subsequent year's tax return folders. Nothing. She did, however, find the envelope that the accountant sent us copied of our tax return in. My guess was she needed to make copies for some reason but hen never put it back where it belonged. Before dinner was ready, I searched several storage tubs, both those where I might expect to find it, but then also some completely unexpected. No luck. I even grabbed a few back-up CDs that included all of our docs and files from that era The irony is its the only year we used an accountant to file our taxes as opposed to using Turbo Tax.

Dinner was served around 645pm. Lynn-Lynn wasn't there yet. We went ahead and started eating. She showed up 5 minutes into dinner. Mindy grilled chicken for Lynn, Jacob and Bella, none of which care for pork. Took me a few minutes to realize that we weren't eating the same thing. I would've been very worried had Mindy not been eating pork too. :) Lynn, Mindy and the kids headed out onto the deck for haircuts after dinner while I stayed inside handling kitchen clean-up duties. I spent another 30 minutes or so looking for the '07 tax return, but still no joy. More so that I, Mindy feels certain that it'll eventually turn up. The thing is, we need to find it by early next week.

Lynn left for home around 745pm. Afterwards, Mindy and I got changed into comfy lounging clothes. Mindy then suggested we watch The Life of Pi. Sounded good to me. It was 830pm by the time we got the movie started. Jacob watched it with us from the beginning. Bella was busy in her room and then in the shower. Despite being grounded from screens, Mindy let her join us about 30-45 minutes in. The movie was a little heaving for Bella. More than once she talked about how it was scaring her. I began to get sleepy about 80 minutes in. Fell asleep just as darkness fell over the mystical island Pi happens upon. I didn't wake until the movie was over and Mindy & Jacob were discussing its meaning.

Though I was physically awake, I was still mentally asleep. I struggled to fill my water glass, pee, then head to bed. In fact, I think I was asleep again even before Mindy joined me minutes later. Good night moon!

Perfecty Perfect

I was up and out of bed at 550am. And while the sun had yet to pierce the horizon, I was very excited to see nothing but clear skies overhead. We slept with all the windows opened, so the house was quite cool. Outside, it was only 57 degrees. I did calisthenics (sit-ups, push-ups, and windmills) then poured coffee and headed to my PC. Finally, a weather forecast built for me. Sunny and 80 on Wednesday, and then the promise of more sunshine and warmer temps heading into the weekend.

Played around online for an inordinate amount of time. I didn’t walk away for meditation and a stretch until almost 7am. Meditation and stretching went well. Dressed for a run at 725am. Went with a fresh running shirt. Immediately out the door I was a little chilly, especially whenever a house blocked the rising sun. I was wearing a bright orange shirt. A couple walkers/runners commented about it and how visible I was.

I ran the full 4.1 miles. I drug our emptied trash can back to its resting place before heading inside. In the kitchen I immediately switched gears to food prep. Made a plain omelet for breakfast and threw together my lunch. Mindy had freshly cut veggies already waiting in the fridge.

It was near 835am when I headed up for a shower taking Mindy’s coffee along too. Once again, Mindy reported feeling poorly slept. Despite all that, she still got up to spend a little time together before I needed to leave for work. We walked the pug and then enjoyed a little coffee from the deck. I left for work near 9am. Had I been working in Hilliard I would’ve deemed it a BM’er day, but as it was, I was working across town in New Albany so I opted to drive the Accord.

Pretty easy drive. My boss called my bberry just as I was parking. Wanted to know if I planned to join the weekly customer call. Uh, no. What call? There wasn’t one on my calendar. He and the customer’s director were on one. Funny thing is, one of the director’s team members cancelled it. Oh boy! That took some explaining.

Had an incredibly busy day. Didn’t get a chance to take a real lunch break, though did eat my packed food from my desk. Ended up at the office until 545pm. Spent the last part of my day chatting with the customer’s director of Ops. Good chat. Great guy!

Called Ashley who texted me earlier about her wrecked car. Apparently the body shop called her to let her know they found another $1K worth of damage. I encouraged her to call State Farm and insist that it be totaled. I also reiterated that she might want to seek legal help. So far the damage is more than $8K.

Called Mindy next. We talked for several minutes as I made my way around 270. She shared how her day unfolded. Said she had a house full of kids all day, as many as eight. Also continued with her organization efforts. Cleaned out the entry way closet. Needed me to go through some things. Ugh! She also shared that she went to the grocery store and grilled burgers for dinner.

I arrived home around 630pm. Sitting on the island was an envelope from the city. At first I assumed it our water bill, but on closer inspection it said something like city tax department. That piqued my interest. I opened it right away. It was a notice from CMH that they want to audit my tax returns from 2007-2012. Said I may have had income that was taxable by the city of CMH that they didn’t get proceeds from. Not sure what triggered the audit but guessed it the money I had to report in both ‘l1 & ’12 that was assigned to NYC since I worked there for 2.5 weeks. Oh boy! The letter is written to make one feel criminal. I wasn’t too happy about it. What’s worse, we’ve misplaced a given year’s tax return. I think it is ’07. This should be interesting. I’ll keep everyone posted. I have nothing to hide nor did I knowingly cheat. At least I have that going for me.

We were eating from the deck for the first time all season. If there ever was a perfect evening for it, this was it. Not a cloud in the sky all day long and temperature close to 80 with very low humidity. Mindy, Jacob and I enjoyed burgers while Bella had a hot dog and corn on the cob. She hardly ate any of the hot dog. Instead, she spent most of dinner complaining that her eye itched and hurt. I eventually found her some artificial tears eye drops and later an ice cube and paper towel. Once her eye calmed down she ran off with friends. Jacob was off to play, too. Mindy asked about a bike ride. I agreed to go on one after clean-up. I told her earlier that she needs to exercise vigorously and perhaps eliminate coffee to help with her recent sleep deficit.

Clean-up was complete by 715pm, if not a little sooner. Before taking off on a bike ride, I changed into comfy lounging attire. Mindy was sure I would fall asleep, but I didn’t. We left on a bike around 745pm. As usual, we stopped by the McVey’s after seeing both Darwin & Connie sitting in the front yard watching their boys play on their bikes.

We talked for a while out front, and later Darwin took us around back to see the pergola he recently constructed. Nice work, Darwin! Shared that he’s finally getting transferred from the Polaris Home Depot to the Mill Run store but not until Jul-8. With all the time and gas money he’ll save, he sees it as a big raise. We talked with the McVey’s for a while. Connie still trying to talk us into an Outer Banks vacation.  Like so many others, she’s addicted. She’s been going almost every summer for years and years. She also invited us to join them at Red White & Boom down along the river front. Darwin apparently goes down early, early and gets a premium spot. We just may do that.

After about a 25-30 minute break, we continued on with our abbreviated bike ride. Once back home, Jacob and his friends asked if they could sleep-out in the tree house. I didn’t mind as long as I didn’t have to do anything. I laughed only because he’s tried this a couple other times past and came in on both occasions. At the same time that Jacob was arranging for their tree house sleep-out, Bella asked if all the island girls could stay at our house. Well, actually, she initially she asked if she could stay at Makayla’s. Mindy immediately said no to that since Chrissy leaves the girls home alone with Jake in the AM so she can go to work. Mindy did agree to having all the girls stay at our place after conferring with Chrissy.

Now about 9pm, Mindy and I tuned the family room TV to Big Bang. We’re addicts! Mid-episode, Mindy headed out back to make sure the boys were getting settled in the tree house. Came back 5-10 minutes later sharing that she had to shoo away a wasp that had all four boys in a panic.  Bella and company got the bright idea that they were gonna sleep on the deck. But Mindy quickly nixed that notion too. Wasn’t going to give the kids even a chance at a civil war. 

In a moment of weakness, I made myself a Jack & Coke. We watched a total of 3 episodes of Big Bang, all of them funny. We didn’t head for bed until 1030pm. I think Mindy was taking my advice and trying to stay up a little later hoping that might help cure her inability to fall asleep. I didn’t fall immediately asleep but pretty darn close. I’m sure I was out before 1045pm.

Big Fish Story

I woke initially at 445am. Prior to that I slept like a rock. After that I woke every 5-10 minutes until I finally rolled out of bed for good at 545am. I was disappointed to find cloudy skies overhead. Definitely he defining feature for the past 3+ weeks. It was warm, though, already about 70 degrees.

I prepped coffee then completed Tuesday calisthenics. Headed to my PC with coffee in hand near 6am. Ummm good! Spent a good while playing around online. Other than having fun, can’t say that I accomplished much. Meh!

By the time I peeled the mouse from the clutches of my right hand and headed to the family room to meditate it was just after 7am. Meditation and stretching went well. Left for a run near 725am. The sky looked threatening directly to the west but a bit brighter further away. It was like that for the duration of my run, but never once was there enough of a break to allow the sun to shine through.

Home near 8am, I quickly got busy making breakfast and packing my lunch. Opted for fried eggs, toast, juice and fruit. I even enjoyed some of the cut up watermelon Mindy had in the fridge. Delivered Mindy’s coffee bedside on my way to the shower. She hardly budged, but did manage the energy to share that she didn’t sleep that well again. That’s been her mantra of late. She’s struggling to fall asleep.

This time she didn’t bother getting up to join me downstairs. Man, she really must’ve been sleepy. I spent a few more minutes enjoying coffee and preparing an envelope for my WV speeding ticket. I planned to stop at a bank branch on my way to the office to get a certified check. Get this, they don’t accept personal checks or credit cards.

Left for work at 850am. I was hopeful that my path to work would be clearer than the morning prior. This time traffic heading north on Wilson to Roberts was only moderate. Made it to the bank in all of about 10 minutes. There were two customers in front of me, and both took a while. It appeared that both were doing business deposits.

Finally my turn. I asked for a certified check for the exact amount. Wasn’t sure if they’d need the payee information or not. Yep, she finally asked. I gave her the info then volunteered why. She rolled her eyes then shared her most recent speeding ticket story too. As much as I feel that mine was unjust, I was just happy to be putting it behind me. But sending what amounts to $200 into the abyss is difficult. Could do so many things with that money.

However, before mailing it off, I wanted to make a photo copy of the ticket. Figured I would mail it at lunch or on my way home. I headed into work arriving near 920am. Hadn’t seen my boss for about 10 days. After getting booted up and taking care of my lunch and water, I headed to his office for a brief visit. Unfortunately, he was on a call. I waved and walked on. He pinged me a few minutes later asking me to stop by. We talked for about 30 minutes. He reminded me that we had a call scheduled for 2pm with a peer in N.C. We both had forgotten some of the details since it had been almost two weeks since the call was arranged. It quickly came back.

Near 1245pm I headed to Home Depot to pick-up a new toilet valve for the guest bath. It didn’t take even a day for it to start acting up again. While there, I checked out their bath vanities, still gathering ideas for our basement finishing project. I found the replacement valve easy enough. Decided to buy a new flexible water inlet line for the toilet, too. I darn near bought a new dehumidifier as well, but decided I would get one at a later date. We definitely will need one for the basement.

I wasn’t gone that long, and kicked myself for not bringing my speeding ticket because I could’ve mailed it at lunch. Shoot! Oh well, I’d just have to remember to stop by the post office on my drive home later. I was back at the office with plenty of time to spare before our 2pm call. Before then I ate my veggies, cheese, and tuna. The call was brief.

Joined another lengthier call at 4pm. Ended up at the office until 550pm. And even then I knew I’d have to work a little from home later that evening. Is what it is. By the time I left the office the cloudy skies were a thing of the past. It was sunny and seemingly a bit drier and cooler. Called Mindy, who shared how her day went with the kids, including G.D. Olivia. Said the day went well. Had to take Olivia to Target to get new flip-flops after the neighbor’s dog at the pair she wore to our house. Oops! She also shared that Bella did a great job keeping Olivia entertained. Said they fished and played all day long.
Jacob didn’t get picked up from his overnight with a friend until about 1pm. She didn’t share what was for dinner.

At home near 610pm, dinner was just about ready. We were having inferno chicken, salad, and macaroni. Everything looked delicious. Bella excitedly shared her fishing stories. Sounded like they had a lot of fun. Caught two fish, Of course the bigger of the two got away. ;) Dinner was as good as it looked. It marked the first week night sit down dinner the four of us have had together for about two weeks.

Jacob headed off to play with friends after dinner. Emily & Makayla came over to our house to play with Bella. They disappeared into Bella’s room not to be heard from for quite a while. Once dinner clean-up was complete, Mindy and I headed out on the deck for some R & R. It was noticeably cooler than it was just an hour earlier. We spent about 20 minutes together before I headed in to change into comfy lounging clothes and also to take care of that work I needed to get done. Mindy was sad that I needed to end our deck time. I knew if I waited that I might get too sleepy.

As expected, I spent about an hour taking care of business. Around 830pm Mindy and I tuned into Big Bang Theory in the family room. That’s always good for some laughs. Mindy headed up to Bella’s room just after 9pm to have Bella and friends wrap up their play time. Mindy and I headed up for bed just after 930pm. I heard Bella giving Mindy a hard time about something. I later learned that she wanted to go outside and play with the rest of her friends. She cited it being summer and then added that she wished we were more like the other parents that let their kids stay out late.

Mindy and I watched a little more Big Bang from bed. We welcomed Bella in for a little snuggle time even though she’s grounded from screens for two weeks. It didn’t take long for me to fall asleep. I was out before the 930pm episode was over.

Knife Wielding Boy

 

Bliss!

I slept reasonably well but woke fairly early - somewhere around 5am - with intentions to sleep in until 6am. I fought hard to get back to sleep up until about 540am. I didn’t wake again until 620am. Figures! I wasn’t too worried. I started coffee then exercised completing sit-ups, push-ups, and windmills. By then coffee was ready. I was really happy to see clear skies. Still can’t seem to string together a run of sunny days. Hopefully they’ll be coming soon.

Despite sleeping later than desired, I opted not to rush. Instead, I methodically went about my morning routine. In turn, I didn’t get out the door for my run until almost 730am. I ran the full 4.1 miles with little effort. Can tell a big difference having taken Naproxen almost daily for the past week. And even thought I was taking it to combat the temporary crown, it was helping with neck and shoulder stiffness too.

Our recycling can was emptied by the time I got back home. I moved to the top of the driveway. It was 810am. I started breakfast and packed my lunch. Enjoyed two fried eggs along with some OJ and fruit. Finished breakfast then delivered Mindy’s coffee. Bella let Eiknarf out of her room about the same time. I left the pug follow me into our room. I wasn’t about to stop my momentum to walk her right then.

Mindy agreed to get up and out of bed and have some coffee with me. We walked the pug, too. Mindy said she didn’t sleep well once again. Having a lot of trouble falling asleep. I didn’t want to hang around too long. I left for the office near 9am. Like most work days in Hilliard, I headed north on Wilson towards the Roberts Rd. 270 ramp. Traffic was at a complete standstill all the way back to Trabue. Uh-oh! Thinking fast, I opted to turn right onto Trabue thinking I would take the back way. Nope! Forgot that Trabue was closed at the railroad tracks. Crap! Plan C was to take Hague south to Fisher then jump on 70/270 at Wilson. Nope! Two CMH police cruisers had it temporarily barricaded off. Great! I celled Mindy to share my frustration. Three strikes! You’re out! Instead of playing around in traffic, I decided to head right back home and work from there. Mindy found it somewhat comical.

The kids were still in bed asleep while I got set-up for my work day. I wasn’t working too long when Mindy invited me to join her on the deck. I really couldn’t. I needed to stay busy. Right out of the shoot I needed to join a planned 10am call. Someone sent me an escalation via email too. Damn! My blood pressure was soaring and I’d only just gotten started. I have to admit, I let my frustration out on one of the call participants who also happened to be the culprit of the email escalation. I wasn’t rude but very, very direct and bitchy. Another peer on the same call pinged me later to share that she’d never heard me so frustrated. Yeah, I wished I hadn’t been so emotional. Oh well.

After my call, went to the kitchen for more coffee. Mindy gave me the look after hearing me on that call. She was surprised too. Joined yet another call at 11am. That call went much better – longer though. The kids were up by then, but not much of a problem for me and my conference calls. I did ask that they leave the deck door cracked open to prevent the security chime from sounding each and every time someone went in and out.

I was very busy until almost 1pm. About that same time, Mindy agreed to run Jacob and some of his friends to the Spindler soccer fields for an unorganized practice. Rocky was initially going to go but Jacob rallied against such a move citing his pronesss for whining. He had a good point, and frankly, I worried that Jacob might bully him anyway. Either he or Mindy talked him out of it. He ran off to see if he could find Evan instead.

Around 1pm, I took lunch and headed out to the yard to put down my 2nd application of fertilizer. It was hot and steamy. Broke into a sweat almost instantaneously. It took nor more than 20 minutes. I found it odd that Rocky came running out wanting badly to help me just about the time I was finishing up. He asked if I knew where the garden gloves went that I let him borrow a few weeks ago. I assured that I didn’t know and told him too that I was all but done. He ran off to the garage to look for them anyway.

While putting the spreader away, Rocky came running out again asking if he could keep and play with some ‘extra’ keys he found. ??? What extra keys? Minutes later when I headed inside through the garage I found him in a panic and the keys to my tool box swinging from the chest lock. I asked if those were the keys he was referring to. Yes. There began a series of lies which really ticked me off. I gave him numerous chances to tell me the truth before sending him inside for a 30 minute time out. Tried to tell me he found the keys lying in the garage when they’ve been in the stand-up tool chest lock for more than five years. When asked how then he knew where they went he had no reply.

His time out was being served in one of the living room recliners just behind my work center. Once he knew I meant business and after about 10 minutes of the time out, he finally confessed to lying. I turned and had a good heart to heart with him about the damage lying does. And in this case for no apparent reason. I would not have cared had he simply told me the truth.

Bella and Makayla called for my help in the kitchen to assist in making grape Koolaid. I gave them a quick lesson on how to make perfect Koolaid. Prior attempts have produced some horrible results.  I had them add the sugar and flavor packet to no more than a pint of water before adding the rest of the water. They seemed to enjoy the process. As soon as the Koolaid was made, Bella said she needed to talk to me privately. Uh-oh! She pulled me aside to share that Rocky was chasing she and Makayla around while I was outside fertilizing with a steak knife. What????? I calmly headed back to my office chair then turned to ask rocky about this huge problem. Suddenly the lying about my tool chest keys seemed petty. He denied it at first but then said that both the girls were chasing him with one too. Oh boy!

I asked that he sit tight while I went for just one of the girls who were enjoying their Koolaid from the deck. Had Makayla come in first and then asked Rocky to share what he told me in front of her. His story changed abruptly to only Bella – not Makayla. But Makayla adamantly denied that she or Bella even touched a knife. I then went for Bella.

Same drill. I asked Rocky to share what he just told me. Bella calmly listened but then shared the full details. Rocky kept invading their space in her room and eventually the girls swatted him away with some scarves they tied together. And somewhere along the line they showed him a plastic fork. He in turn went to the kitchen and grabbed the steak knife from the counter that I used earlier to slice cheese. He then proceeded to chase them up the stairs with it. He knew I was pissed. I thanked the girls then sent them off to play.

I let him steep in his sorrow for a while without saying a word. After a few minutes he asked if I would talk to him. I only shared that what he had done was a crime and that I was thinking of calling the police to let them deal with him. He flipped out. Lots of tears and pleading ensued. He asked if I still loved him. I told him I did but that didn’t change the fact that he committed a crime and that if the police got involved that he might even get hauled away to ‘juvie’. He was notably frightened and pleaded with me to let him apologize to Bella. He begged and hugged her sharing how much he loved her and that he would never do anything like that gain. Sad really. I chose to let him stew on it for a while longer sharing that I would consult with Mindy once she returned home which was supposed to be anytime.

When Mindy came in I had Rocky share his story with Mindy. Like me, she was appalled. He pleaded with Mindy not to call the police and let them take him away. More than once he asked if his mother would always love him. Mindy opted to play the kinder, good cop role, but not before having Bella come in and share the whole story beginning to end without leaving out any details however insignificant.

Rocky agreed with Bella’s story then pleaded more for leniency. Rocky was in tears again and for the first time ever that I can recall put together a very clear action plan along with citing exactly what he had done wrong. He went as far as sharing that he would never disappoint Mindy or I ever again. You’ll see, he said. He then went and hugged Bella again while also apologizing. I think and hope we scared him straight. With Lindsey he always seems to get his way and the last word. He shared with us the story of the boy who cried wolf. He clearly understands the ill effects of lying. We assured him the proof is in his behavior moving forward. Mindy eventually put his mind at ease and shared that we weren’t going to call the police. I only added that if I ever see anything closely resembling knife wielding that I will spank him silly and that he won’t be welcome in our home.

Now about 4pm, it wasn’t but a few minutes later that Lindsey called to share that she was on her way to pick up Rocky. In the meantime, we let Rocky, Bella and Makayla head out front to fish from the bridge. Of course they were all on their best behavior. Before Lindsey even got in the door, Rocky apparently already briefed his mother about the ordeal. Of course he left out many of the details. Mindy made sure that Lindsey got the full scoop, for whatever good that’ll do. My honest opinion is that she’s not equipped to raise well-behaved boys, especially a challenging one like Rocky. Mindy and I seem to make significant progress in major behavioral areas whenever we have him away from his mother.

Soon after Lindsey and Rocky left, Mindy left to fetch Jacob and his peeps from the soccer field, but not before Bella asked if she could go with Makayla to Emily’s baseball game. Yes. I spent the rest of my time working. Worked until 530pm or shortly after Mindy and Jacob’s return.

We were having leftover subs for dinner. I suggested a garden salad too. Haven’t had one of those for a while. Mindy thought that sounded good. Mindy made arrangements to have Olivia overnight and planned to watch her on Tuesday. Apparently her summer babysitter fell through the cracks. Sadly, Stephen’s mom. To paraphrase Mindy, Ashley rarely asks us for anything. Stephen dropped Olivia a little earlier than we expected, but we didn’t mind. In fact, I was tickled to have her. Stephen stuck around for a few minutes, too.

After dinner, Olivia and I headed out back to play on the tree swing. At the same time, Mindy & Jacob left to fetch a prescription at CVS. Olivia and I played for 30 minutes or more and eventually made our way over to Chrissy’s yard where Olivia was playing with all the dogs, including Eiknarf. Chrissy eventually came out to see Olivia. Olivia loves Chrissy! We talked for a while, including the teen girls that were smoking in our yard the evening before. It was relevant because Chrissy’s son Jake was making out with one of them in our tree house. Mindy soon got back home and walked down to join the conversation. While we talked, Olivia swung in the tree hammock. All the kids love that thing.

We headed home shortly thereafter. Olivia and I headed out to water the front yard flowers. I watered all the backyard flowers earlier that afternoon. Olivia insisted on helping and as expected, squirted me with the hose every opportunity she got. We had a lot of fun, though I wasn’t too thrilled with her fits when I advised that it was time to wrap it up. I largely ignored her mini tantrum. Thankfully, it’s still fairly easy to move her attention elsewhere. We soon headed in. We all headed to bed fairly early, well before 10pm. Olivia was sleeping with Bella in her room. Didn't hear another peep.

Faja's Day

  

 

 

 

I slept just OK rolling out of bed and heading downstairs around 745am. I brewed some of the extra dark Starbucks Mindy picked up at Target a couple days prior. It wasn't very pretty outside, cloudy and 70 degrees. I played around online while enjoying some coffee. I heard rain striking against the skylights in the family room. Ugh! So far, late May and the first half of June have been cloudier and cooler than normal. Stringing two completely sunny days in row has been a real trick since mid May when we were in what seemed like the beginning of a warm dry spell.

Did a meditation and stretch from the family room. It started to rain again during my stretch routine. Decided not to wake Mindy until I was back from my run. Headed out around 9am. Happened upon Connie McVey out doing her walk/run. We talked briefly as we passed.

Back at the house I poured Mindy's coffee then delivered it bedside. She wished me a happy Father's Day before I headed back downstairs. I heard the shower running a short time later. We had a brunch reservation at CBC for 1130am. Figured we'd be leaving the house around 11am. I soon headed up for a shower of my own. While I got showered and dressed, Mindy got the kids going. Bella had a shower the night before. Jacob was in the shower the same time as me. No, not together.

We were all dressed and downstairs again by 1030am. Mindy and the kids honored me with cards & gifts. Bella got me a Best Dad trophy while Jacob got me a Cincinnati Reds jersey. Both very nice! Mindy gifted me a peach R.L. polo & a DVD - Life of Chocolate Pie. We left for CBC near 11am and arrived near 10-15 minutes later.

Not too many cars in the lot, 12 max. We were quickly ushered to a booth near the back. Mindy and I sat facing the entrance. Jamie was our server and promptly took drink orders. Mindy went with their spiciest bloody Mary while I opted for a Bodhi. The kids ordered OJ. We ordered food about 5-10 minutes later.

My breakfast order came with seemingly everything: two fried eggs, sausage, bacon, home fries, biscuits and gravy. It was delicious and beyond filling. Everybody else was pleased with their food, too. As predicted, the place started filling up shortly after our arrival, and by the time we left there wasn’t an open table to be seen. We tipped our server handsomely then headed for the Hilliard Wal-Mart to pick-up the 6’ sub Mindy ordered for our Father’s Day celebration.

Mindy insisted we all go inside. Jacob wasn’t too thrilled with the idea but complied just the same. They 6’ sub came sliced an on two somewhat heavy trays. I carried one while Jacob carried the other to the checkout register. Jacob almost dropped his a couple times. Wasn’t using the forklift technique that I demonstrated. Mindy wasn’t a happy camper.

Arrived home with our subs around 1pm. Mindy immediately went into party prep mode while I sheepishly ducked off to a living room recliner. I’m not used to eating that much and especially for breakfast. I was stuffed! Mindy told most guests to show around 3pm, but Tommy & Wally were set to arrive early due to an afternoon scheduling conflict.

As usual, Mindy’s party spread looked like too much food. But better too much rather than not enough. As expected, Tommy & Wally showed early. I’m guessing around 230pm. Ashley & Olivia soon followed, and a little later Lindsey and the boys. Dad showed up around 330pm. Kaileigh, Sienna, Trippy & Shelly showed around 4-430pm. We extended the invite to Courtney but she and Avery were a no show. Ashley tried to get Courtney to let her bring Avery but apparently that wasn’t in the cards.

All the food looked good, but unfortunately I was still so full from breakfast that I couldn’t enjoy any of it.  The subs looked especially good. You can say what you want about Wal-Mart - lord knows we do -but their subs are excellent. The weather wasn’t the best but the sky turned sunny as the after progressed. As such, many of the kids headed out to play in the back yards.

Brother Glenn called dad sometime during the afternoon. They talked for a really long time. Folks began leaving around 5pm. Dad, I think, was the last one to depart. He stuck around until almost 7pm. Mindy and I took care of clean-up soon after dad’s departure. Aside from the drinks table, had the house back to normal within 45 minutes. Rocky asked to stick around and play with Jacob. At some point Jacob asked if he could spend the night. We agreed, but unfortunately, Lindsey was already on her way to pick him up. She let him stay.

Mindy took the one-on-one time with Lindsey to discuss her story about losing her insurance money. As usual, she missed the bigger message. Who has a bank account but withdrawals cash to pay all their bills? Somebody who just doesn’t get it! We both took turns at trying to reason with her but largely to no avail.
Why is her lack of good money management my issue? It’s a sure bet that her CATV, cigarettes and tanning still get taken care of. The poverty persona. It turns my stomach!

Mindy & I walked the pug as much for us to unwind as it was for Eiknarf to relieve herself. We walked down to the neighbors, too, so we could present Kenny with a birthday card and gift. His birthday is Monday, the 17th but he’s working out of town all week. Said hello to Bill & Marylyn, Chrissy’s in-laws. We didn’t stay long. They were just getting ready to eat dinner.

Changed into comfy shorts and a t-shirt then lounged around for another hour before heading up to bed. During that hour I played around on Google Earth drilling down to the places I lived in Hutchison Island, Florida. Was able to drill all way down the actually apartment building and the trailer park on the beach. All still there some 35 years later.

I had to laugh at myself when I finally got a 2nd wind. Unfortunately that coincided with us heading to bed. I got up and headed back downstairs to do some writing until I felt the sleepies attacking one more.

Kids Homecoming

After four beers the night before, I slept a little longer than I normally would. Was up and out of bed around 745am. It was cooler than I expected - only 56 degrees - but the sky mostly clear. I started coffee then played around on the internet for the next hour or more. Left for a run around 915am. Wore my old Ray Ban's, shorts and a short sleeved wicking shirt. Ran just three miles. It was a good run, too, but then again most are.

Mindy was up shortly after my return home. We spent a little time on the deck enjoying coffee. Eiknarf joined us playing and pooping in the neighbors yard. :) Mindy had plans to run Father's Day errands again that afternoon. I asked if we could trade cars that way I could pick-up a couple/few bags of mulch for the new flower I cut along the western slop in the back where we planted three rose of sharon. I also planned a run to Lowes to get a new toilet valve for the first floor guest bath. The currently Korky valve isn't but a year old but already acting up. Mindy agreed.

Enjoyed some peanut butter toast and more internet before deciding to take a crack at the toilet valve ahead of going after a new one. Took no more than 10-15 minutes to drain the tank, remove the valve and inspect it. It was acting as if something was clogging it. After fooling around with it for a couple minutes i decided to reinstall it and see if perhaps freed whatever was sticking. Sure enough, worked like a charm 15 minutes later. Voila! Even though it seemed to be working fine, I wasn't ready to declare it completely fixed. I knew better. Figured we would give it a day or two.

With the toilet valve working again, I headed out to edge the new flower bed in preparation for mulch. I cut it back at least a full foot from the new miniature shrubs so not to risk accidentally chopping them up with the mower or the trimmer. Turning that spot into a bed with save me the trouble of mowing the severe slope. Took a little longer than expected. Might've spent a solid half hour fooling around with it.

We were expecting the kids home from the Outer Banks around 530am. They called earlier sharing that they were in Richmond, Va. The week apart went fast. Mindy left to run errands between noon and 1pm. She ended up taking the Pilot. I took a nap shortly after Mindy headed out. I was feeling like a I needed a nap, so I took some ice water, my book, and Mindy's purple polka-dotted reading glasses to the deck chaise lounger. Oh, I might not of mentioned that my cheap reading glasses got damaged in my back pack during our S.C. trip. Mindy shared that she bought them in the dollar aisle at Target.

After waking from a brief nap, I hemmed and hawed over making a run to Ohio Mulch for two or three bags of Absolute Black. Decided to do it if for no other reason to prevent a bunch of small tasks from backing up on me. Glad I did. Took just a couple minutes to get there. Bought three bags. At home I quickly carried them around the house to the new bed. used 2.5 bags. The bed not slopes towards the pond, it slopes towards the back too. I'll need to use stone to create a hard ridge to prevent the mulch from falling away with rain.

Mindy was home a short time later. Told me I was going to be real happy with all the beer she picked up at Giant Eagle Market District. They finally got a shipment of White Rajah in. She bought three six packs. Not only that, but she got some Founder's All Day IPA that I like too. Sweet. She said they didn't have any Chilean sea bass so she planned to make yet another run to the Whole Foods to see if they had some. If so, she was going to grill that for dinner.

This time while Mindy was away I took a shower and played guitar. She was back home near 5pm. She asked me to shuck the corn. I was tired, but mustered the energy to get it done. We both enjoyed a pint of Bodhi, the last of the growler we've had in the fridge for the past two weeks. It was still good as new. I guess the kids and Jimaken hit some unexpected traffic and figured to be a little later than originally planned. We were on watch. I had the camera ready for their return. Sometime near 6pm, I saw Jimaken's Murano pull up. I rushed out to get pictures.
Bella apparently had just recently woken and wasn't in any kind of mood to have her picture taken. Jacob, however, didn't seem to mind.

Jimaken stuck around long enough for the kids to give him his Father's Day card and gift. He left for home around 620pm. Bella was tanned, but nowhere near as dark as she's come home before. Jacob hardly got sun at all. They both must've did a better job with the sunscreen this year.

While the kids shared stories about their trip, Mindy grilled up a real nice dinner - Chilean sea bass, corn on the cob, rice, and bread. Dinner was ready around 645-7pm. Yum-yum! Love that Chilean sea bass. This batch from Whole Foods was far better than what we got from the Trabue seafood shop.

I ate a lot and as a result, was in food coma during clean-up. Managed to finish dinner and clean-up before 8pm. The clear sunny skies from earlier had given way to completely cloudy skies. And the Father's Day forecast didn't look too promising either. Expecting on and off rain showers all day long. Shux!

We watched some Big Bang Theory after dinner and chores. Mindy had Bella take a much needed shower. We asked how frequently she brushed her teeth. Her answer didn't surprise me at all. She said she brushed her teeth everytime she showered. OK, how many showers did you shower? Three times! Oh boy!

I was tired but also was craving a fruity drink. Opted for a vodka, Fresca and raspberry schnapps. That was really good. I fell asleep after downing about 3/4s of my drink. Mindy headed off to bed shortly after 9pm. I woke around 10pm and joined her in bed. She was still awake watching TV from bed.

Mt Carmel Coloring

 

 

Up just after 6am, I was quickly downstairs prepping morning coffee. Outside, it was clear and cool, only 59 degrees. Quite pleasant, really. I exercised then logged onto work via laptop. Double checked my calendar to see what calls and meetings I needed to join later. If my calendar was any kind of indicator, it was going to be a rather easy work day.

I enjoyed coffee, played on the internet, did a little work, and even spent a few minutes enjoying the morning sunshine from the deck before breaking away for meditation, a stretch, and finally a run. Took off on a run at 805am and ran the usual 4.1 miles. Nice run. Ideal summer morning.

Back at the house near 845am, poured another cup of coffee then walked the pug, who Mindy had just recently freed from our room. Mindy wasn't up until sometime after 9am. She poured coffee and headed immediately out on the deck. I joined her for a few minutes but needed to head back inside and get back to work.

Mindy had plans to run Father's Day errands that afternoon. I stayed busy with work all morning, but headed out to cut the lawn around 1230pm. It was quite beautiful, sunny and 73 degrees. While mowing the front lawn, Mindy headed off to run errands. I finished the mowing in about an hour then headed back inside to finish off my work day. I joined a conference call at 2pm which lasted about an hour. Mindy came in while I was on the call. She greeted me loudly not realizing I was on the phone using my bluetooth headset. By the time the call ended she was gone again. Headed off for yet another shopping spree.

I was attempting to wrap up my work day around 330pm when friend Ben stopped by for a brief visit. Actually, just before Ben walked up, a fat kid selling cleaning supplies was at the door. I had to shoo him away. Ben said he was in the neighborhood so he decided to stop by, Brought his laptop. Thought we might exchange some music. I appreciated the visit but needed to finish out my work day. He stayed for about 15 minutes.

After Ben departed, I finished off my work day by taking care of a few administrative tasks. Wrapped up around 420pm then headed out to put the finishing touches on the yard work. I trimmed, edged then blew. The lawn looked fabulous when I finished. It always feels good to get all the lawn work done on Friday versus having to squeeze it in over the weekend. I headed in for a much needed shower.

By the time Mindy got home, I was showered and dressed. We planned to visit Dad in the hospital again and then go to dinner. I suggested Barley's, but Mindy was pretty adamant that we go to CBC. I figured she'd say that and really didn't mind. We walked the pug together before leaving the house for Mt. Carmel around 6pm. Didn't take too long to get there, though we missed the West Broad exit off 70E busy talking. Had to take 315N then exit at Town St. Actually, that might be faster. Pretty much dumps you out within two blocks of the hospital. We parked in the same garage I parked in the day before and entered through the emergency room entrance again too.

We knew dad was moved out of the ICU until but didn't have the room number. We walked to the front desk to ask. When I gave his name I told it was Glenn O. Wright. Told 'em the O stood for ostrich. :) They laughed and quickly guided us to his room on floor 5, I believe.

Dad seemed caught off guard a little by our impromptu visit, but quickly warmed to our presence. Shortly after we arrived so did Uncle Kenny. We learned he was in the neighborhood attending a funeral for a longtime friend. He was quite chatty reminiscing about old times with his deceased pal. We'd been there for about 30 minutes when Tom and Charles showed up.

We stuck around for another 30 minutes or so. During that time a nurse stopped in to remove these large sticky pads fixated to dad's chest. Their removal become the source of some serious humor for everyone present. The nurse played along too. Mindy & I left shortly after Uncle Kenny. It sounded like Tom Charles were leaving soon too. They were heading to the Funny Bone. And if all went well, dad was set for release Saturday morning.

Mindy & left the hospital and made the short drive over the river and then south to CBC. We got one of the three up front parking spots. There was a decent crowd but not full. We took two stools at the corner of the bar next to Bruce, guy we often see both at CBC and Barley's. Kate & Vince were working the bar. Vince brought us two Bodhi's.

Struck up a conversation with Bruce. From looks alone, you might think that Bruce is homeless - wild unkempt hair, as well as an untamed beard and frumpy clothes. To paraphrase Bruce, he's just a hillbilly. However, one would be foolish to stop there. Bruce is a retired college physics professor and a whole lot of fun to talk with. He does, however, have a strong West Virginian bent about him. We enjoyed his stories. Not so surprising, he and Mindy seemed to share a common belief about educators.

Bruce left about an hour before us. Vince asked if he was bothering us. Not at all. Mindy eventually ordered dinner, the tuna special. I skipped dinner but did partake in half the risotto balls and bread. I even stole a bite of tuna while Mindy ran to the restroom. The owner, Doug was in with family and friends celebrating his wife's retirement. We introduced ourselves to his wife, who's also Jennifer's mother (can't recall her name). She seems really nice. A little later, we talked with Doug. He invited us to his family 4th of July celebration.

We left for home around 930-940pm. Just before we left, Mindy made a Father's Day brunch reservation for 1130am. Arrived home near 10pm, but we weren't done partying just yet. Instead, we grabbed a beer and walked over to visit Pat & Lisa who's deck lights we could see were still illuminated from our own yard (lights on means they're up and partying).

Pat & Lisa were sitting quietly enjoying each other's company but preparing to head to the airport to pick-up Alena who spent the last week or so in Arizona with her paternal grandparents. We hung out long enough to enjoy one beer together (one rum rink in Lisa's case). Pat shared bits and pieces from his long term battle with his immediate neighbor. Pat & Lisa needed to bolt for the airport. Mindy and I headed for home and to bed.

Chronology of a Heart Attack

 

Storm rolled through during the overnight. Woke once to the sound of distant thunder and rain. Didn't seem any worse than any other summer thunder storm.
Up for good near 6am.
Exercise: sit-ups, windmills, curls
Coffee & computer time - 30 minutes
Cloudy and warm - 67 degrees
meditation and stretch - 15 minutes
Dressed for run: shorts and fresh short sleeved shirt. Hit the road 730am. Ran 4.1 miles.
Home at 810am. Made a three egg plain omelet. Sectioned off a little for the pug, who was sleeping with Mindy.
Up for a shower at 835am. Took Mindy coffee.
I didn't need to be in New Albany until 10am,so I had time to spend with Mindy before leaving for work.
Mindy planned to finish Bella's room. If she could find the time, I asked that she weed the front flower beds. They're not bad but it's best to stay on top of them. Asked that she top the spent salvia too.
Left for New Albany at 910am. Easy cross town drive. Arrived on campus early - 930am.
Set up my laptop in the conference room we had reserved for our 10am meeting but was soon asked to vacate by those that had it booked for another 930a meeting. Sat just outside in hall working until 10am
A peer joined me at 955am. Didn't realize that he was onsite too. Talked through a solution design issue.
Meeting went well. Planned scheduled failover testing.
Met again with my peer afterwards. Headed to my 'Wednesday' office after. Already 1130am.
Customer contacts surprised to see me on site again. Told them sharing the love.
Left for a lunch break at 1245pm. Visited Lowes and Target.
Bought 9 volt batteries, 125' trimmer line, and two 3' bungees. At Target I picked up some poop sacks for Eiknarf, almonds, and a Father's Day card for Dad.
Got back to the office near 150pm.
Around 4pm I saw a call come in on my cell from brother Bob, but Ii was already on a work related call from my desk phone. As soon as the call was over I returned Bob's call. I suspected was wrong, possibly something had run afoul with Dad. Sure enough, my suspicion was confirmed. To paraphrase Bob, Dad experienced a minor heart attack and had to have two stints inserted on the left side of his heart. Currently in Mt Carmel Cardiac Intensive Care Unit MCICU. Wow!
He made it very clear that he was fine and that there was no apparent damage to his heart. Drive himself to the emergency room initially for a body rash. Decided to share that he was having mild chest pains too.
I wrapped up what I was doing at the office and left for Mt Carmel near 430pm.
I called Mindy as I made my way to my car. She was in the middle of weeding the flower bed just as I had asked her to do. I was careful how I worded the situation with dad. first sharing that he was fine, but then that he had a mild heart attack. She planned to shower and meet me at the hospital.
I called Tommy, my mom, and Glenn. Had to leave a VM for Glenn.
Made decent time taking 270S to 670W to 315S. Got off at the W. Broad St exit. Parked in one of two State St parking garages then entered Mt Carmel through the Emergency room entrance. Bob shared that dad was on floor 4 in the CICU. I found his wing easily. Had to ask what room he was in.
I was very surprised to find dad sitting up, talking on his cell phone, and eating a big meatloaf dinner. Looked great, full of color and seemingly energetic. He was talking with Pete & Vicky. His conversation continued with the two of them for another 5 minutes or so.
Dad did his best to share the details surrounding his heart dilemma. Didn't have all the facts but confirmed his triggers and the basic procedure used to install the two stints. One artery was nearly 100% blocked while the other about 75%. Said he felt good as new.
Mindy showed up a half hour later. We visited with Dad for about an hour. Tommy texted sharing that he was on his way to visit dad too.
Just when Mindy and I were about to leave we were advised that early evening visiting hours were over. They kindly asked that we depart. We decided to run over to 229 for dinner. Called Tommy to let him know that visiting hours wouldn't resume until 8pm. He said he was just pulling in at Mt Carmel. Invited him to meet us for dinner.
Got a good parking spot along Mound St and Bicentennial Park at a meter. Mindy parked a few cars lengths in front of me. No sign of Tommy. We decided to head inside and get a table. We were going to request an outdoor table overlooking the river and sunset but when we learned that our friend Zach was working the bar we opted to sit there with him.
Tommy soon joined us.
Tommy & I ordered CBC IPAs. Mindy ordered a Cabernet.
Ordered two appetizers: pretzel bread and Four snacks. Both were delicious.
Mindy was tending bar with Zach. She used to bartend at the Fish Market. Knows Bob and Mary Ann. She left about half way through our visit.
Ordered dinner. Mindy went with the special: chili crusted scallops. Tommy & I both ordered pizzas. He went with the Margherita. I went with the Bye-Bye American Pie (sausage, pepperoni, hot pepper rings).
Stuck with just the one beer.
Tried a bit of Mindy's scallops - mouth watering!
Our dinner visit was just over an hour. Zach brought our check. Applied a VIP discount to our bill - about 35% off. Totally cool!
We left a hefty cash tip.
We headed for home while Tommy presumably back to Mt Carmel to see dad.
Home near 9pm. Mindy and I soon headed to bed where we watched Big Bang Theory.

Derecho!

Up at 6am after restful sleep. Cloudy 72 degrees
Exercise: sit-ups, push-ups, windmills
Coffee & computer time - 25 minutes
meditation and stretch - 15 minutes
Dressed for run: shorts and fresh short sleeved shirt. Hit the road 705am. Ran 4.1 miles.
Back home at 745am. Fried three eggs. Eiknarf still in bed with Mindy. Set her egg aside. Packed lunch: nuts, cheese, fruit, carrots.
Off to the shower by 815am. Took Mindy coffee.
Mindy asked if I had time for coffee. Yes. She headed downstairs with me.
Mindy planned to deep clean Bella's room and then have lunch with her mom, and possibly at the casino.
Opted to join 930am conference from home before heading to customer site in New Albany.
Trouble logging into network - token issues. Majorly frustrating. Contacted HD. Resolved after 30 minutes of toil.
Call canceled. Ugh!
Left for New Albany at 920am. Cross town traffic not bad at all. Arrived near 945am.
11am monthly service review meeting canceled. Frustrated. All the work I did the week before to make sure presentation was completed before leaving on 4-day weekend was essentially for not. Could've stayed in SC for an extra day or two.
Didn't take a lunch break. Extremely busy. Juggling too many issues at once.
Left the office at 525pm frustrated and angry.
Called Mindy who shared that she spent most of the day deep cleaning Bella's room. Found all kinds of surprises.
She suggested we do dinner out. Together we decided on Barley's.
Arrived home near 6pm. Mindy was eager to show her progress in Bella's room.
Package arrived from Amazon. ???? Monkey Butt powder. Mindy guessed it was sent by David.
Left for Barleys near 630p.
Lot sparsely attended. Bar almost barren. Odd, especially for a Wednesday.
local media sensationalizing enormous midwestern storm expected to strike overnight - a derecho!
Janet tending bar. Ordered a cask conditioned Hopiate. Mindy had a White Rajah in a bottle.
Janet's mom stopped in. Sat next to us. Talked for a while.
Ordered dinner. Shared the special, a brisket burrito. Good!
2nd beer a Hoptopus.
Left for home near 8pm.
Lovely summery evening. Poured two Bodhi's from a growler we bought from CBC more than a week prior. Still fresh!
We sat on the deck listening to my iTunes collection via Bose sound dock.
Headed in near 930pm. Checked work email. Felt the need to follow-up on a problem I was working on earlier.
In bed before 10pm.
Couldn't sleep. Got up and got involved with work for a little more than an hour. Got that problem moving in the right direction.
Back to bed by 11pm.

Bufford T. Justice Reprised

 

I was up and in my running clothes by 615am. I gave Mindy a hug then headed out for my run. Anita was just getting started too, and going the same direction as me, which was the same path I ran Sunday and Monday. I was a tad disappointed that there were more clouds overhead, especially since the forecast was calling for sunny skies. It was plenty sticky, too. The run went even easier than it did the two days prior. Guess I was getting used to the rolling hills.

With the early start, I was back at the house still ahead of 7am. By then, David was up and had coffee brewing. I took Mindy a cup of coffee shortly thereafter. She pointed out that she didn’t sleep that well and wanted to sleep a while longer. Sure.

David, Anita and I hung out enjoying each other’s company for the next 90 minutes or so. Our plan was to leave for home somewhere close to 11am, though we didn’t have that etched in stone. The clouds finally began to thin near 9am and soon the skies were mostly sunny and steamy. The forecast was calling for a high near 90 and then a sultry 98 by Thursday.

Once Mindy was up and enjoying coffee and scrambled eggs, I headed in for another shower. I wanted to drive home fresh and clean. Was showered and packed for home by 930am. We spent the next 90 minutes tooling around the yard and dock taking in the lake house life style for just a while longer.

Shortly after loading the Accord for home, David suggested we pose for a group photograph from his front porch using a tripod and self-timer. That was fun! Anita presented Mindy with a gift just before we departed – a hand carved wooden abstract from her many trips to Africa. After hugs, a few tears, and promise to do it again soon we left for home.

The drive from the lake house to I-77 was a bit easier this time around. We figured out that Google GPS likes to take a far more complex route. Not entirely sure why. We seemed to be making excellent time. We’d gone about a 100 miles when we stopped at a McDonald’s for lunch. Our first choice was Wendy’s but it was closed for a remodel. We opted to go inside so we could make it a potty break too. We got our order to-go and ate in the car.

No traffic issues until we got into Virginia, and even then the slowdowns for construction were relatively brief. As usual, the flow of traffic was much faster than the posted speed limit, which is 70 mph for at least half the trip. I typically had the cruise control set for 73-74mph. We encountered a couple aggressive drivers, a semi carry heavy equipment and then crazy driver from Minnesota. He was by far the worst, weaving in and out of traffic at a high rate of speed. Made into West Virginia and the toll turn pike by midafternoon. I’d like I-77 through West Virginia to a roller coaster. Not too many straightaways. Lots of curves and a posted speed limited of 70 mph. I think it was just before or after the first toll booth when we got pulled over by West Virginia’s finest for speeding. I was only going with the flow and somewhere between 74-77 mph. I was insulted when Bufford T. Justice told me I was going 84 mph. No way in hell! I only shared that that was not true and that I had my cruise set to 74mph. He only said that cruise control doesn’t keep you at that speed. Really? What an ass! I wanted to argue, but also knew it would do no good. I took my lump, though inside I was pissed! He looked like a total redneck just itchin for some action.

After receiving my speeding citation I had no choice but to dial it down and stay within 1 mile mph of the posted speed limit. As we continued towards home through the rest of the West Virginia turnpike, I’m guessing we saw as many as a dozen more cops and most had cars pulled over presumably citing them for speeding as well. I thought I did a good job of letting it go for my own mental good, but after about an hour I began to contemplate the ordeal over and over in my head. It just pisses me off that you have no real recourse.

After another pee break and a stop for gas, we crossed over into Ohio near 6pm. It was apparent we weren’t going to match the 8 hour and 15 minute drive down. The drive across route 35 is gorgeous, and far better than taking 33. The weather looked phenomenal – sunny and 82 degrees. By the time we hit rt 23 I was thinking about suggesting a stop at CBC. Instead, I decided to ask Mindy her plans for picking up the dog. When she shared that she wanted to pick-up the pug on the way home I decided not to bother suggesting a stop at CBC.

We made it to her mom’s place by 745pm. Looked like clouds were moving in from the west just as we exited 270 at Georgesville. It was Gloria’s 79th birthday. We visited with her briefly before heading home with our dog. Mindy made plans to take her mom to lunch the following day as well as a visit to the casino. We finally arrived home around 820pm, and just like we do after most trips, we wasted no time packing and putting everything away. In fact, Mindy had laundry going 20 minutes later. I quickly surveyed the yard.

I sent David & Anita a note thanking them again and sharing that we made it home. Of course, I also shared that I got the speeding ticket, which was the lone downer of the whole trip.

It was difficult to fathom that the four day weekend was already over and the fact that I would be heading back to work the following morning but it was so. We skipped dinner altogether and headed for bed shortly before 10pm.

The Terrible Awful

Up around 7am again. Slept really good. Same as the day before. Slipped into my running clothes and was soon out the door. I’m pretty sure that Anita was already back from her 5 mile walk. It was cloudy with a little rain through the run’s entirety. I ran the same trail as the day before. Seemed even easier 2nd time around, though the comeback seemed longer than the run out. Once again, I was soaked head to toe thanks in part to the humidity and then the light rain.

Back at the house near 8am to enjoy coffee. David whipped up more scrambled eggs. Yum! Mindy slept in until almost 9am. I didn’t take her coffee hoping that might incent her to get up sooner. She gave me a little grief for failing to do so.

The rain eventually stopped and sunshine broke through. Mindy & Anita headed out on the lake in the matching blue kayaks. I’m guessing they were gone for about 45-60 minutes. Shortly after their return we loaded up the coolers and headed out on the lake. Having checked out the south damn on Sunday, this time we headed the opposite direction with plans to go all the way to the north damn. Along the way we took a couple jogs to go by the lot where David and family used to frequent when he was a kid. Until then, I didn’t know that he was familiar with Lake Wateree from his childhood.

Just as the weather forecasters predicted, the weather came in phases. There were periods of sunshine and scattered clouds but then equal periods of clouds and rain. At one point the skies turned dark enough to scare us enough to anchor under a bridge. We sat there protected from the rain for about an hour. And despite the less than desirable weather, we had a lot of fun. It didn’t hurt that we all had a few beverages. We got a close up view of those mud bird nests common under lake bridges. At one point Mindy put her face within a foot of one only to have a bird fly out and scare the beegeezies out of her.

Once the rain stopped and sky brightened, we pulled up anchor and headed towards the north damn. Along the way the storm clouds seemed to build up again in a hurry. Lucky for us, it never really turned into the rain we anticipated might hit us. We pulled along the shore for a pee break. There were several partial cat fish carcasses scattered about. Obviously, we were at a popular fishing spot just below the damn.

David pointed out our distant target as we made our way back towards the lake house. Not sure the time when we made it back home, but we all took a short nap. Having not showered since Saturday morning, I was more than ready. Finally got one around 6pm on Monday. Felt fantastic!

David planned to grill Ribeyes for dinner. Let the steaks come to room temperature before throwing them on the grill. In addition to the steaks, he grilled asparagus and zucchini too. Oh yeah, he threw a couple sweet potatoes and red skin taters on the grill as well. Dinner was delicious. I took only half a steak. Very tender. I was able to cut it in half with a butter knife.

More than once, Mindy shared how much fun she was having. She asked if there was any way I could work it out to where we could stay an extra day on the lake. As much as I wanted to, I really couldn’t. I needed to be home to do a monthly presentation on Wednesday.

Once again, David suggested a movie after dinner. This time it was, The Help, which was another good movie. I remember glancing over at David no more than 15 minute into the movie. He was sound asleep. He woke a bit later, however. Movie was over around 930pm.

The day’s rain storms finally moving out, all four of us stepped out on the deck overlooking the cove and lake. I was completely blown away by what we encountered, the sounds of the cove. Seemingly in unison, there were bull frogs croaking, tree frogs singing, and crickets creeking. I joked that the tree frogs were calling Mindy, Mindy, Mindy.  Sounded almost fake, or like a recorded soundtrack. In awe of what my ears presented me, I stayed out a few minutes longer than everyone else taking in the moment. Did a little star gazing, too. Inside and to bed by 1030pm.

Meeting Richard Parker

 

Up near 7am and soon in my running attire. David was already up. Not used to other early risers. He shared that Anita was already out doing her daily 5 mile walk. We talked on the back deck overlooking the lake for a couple minutes before I headed off on my 3.2 mile run (David had the mileage calculated to the stop sign at the end of their road and back). Perfect for a vacation/weekend run trail. He warned that there are lots of hills. I didn’t pay attention on our drive in the evening before.

Passed Anita out front. The sun was just poking up over the hills to the east but the air already sultry/ sticky. I paced myself for the undulating terrain and actually did better than I expected. The hills weren’t as daunting as I thought they might be, but still enough to make one long for level terrain. Ideal, really. By the turnaround I had to briefly duck off into the woods to pee. Wondered what kind of wildlife I might be stepping into. Yikes!

Made it back to the lake house in one piece. I was sweat soaked head to toe, but otherwise felt terrific. Couldn’t wait for a cup of coffee. David already had a pot brewed and was kind enough to pick-up some of our favorite creamer – caramel macchiato. Yum! They even picked up the sweetener we like, too. – Truvia.

Took a cup to Mindy who was still in bed. David soon whipped up scrambled eggs and bacon. Yum! Great to be vacation and get spoiled. Mindy was up by 830am and enjoyed some eggs of her own. After breakfast, David and I went for a spin on the jet skis. Not your mommas jet skis. I mean these babies scoot - 52mph scoot! By 9-930am we were already throwing together provisions for a day on the lake. I love the fact that David is a little OCD/ADHD. He eagerly organizes everything. Mindy & I helped however we could.

Good thing we got out early. We played on the lake until 1pm, and about the time we opted to head back to the house for lunch a few clouds were moving in. Those few clouds eventually turned into heavy rain showers. We ate our leftovers and napped. The sun came out again around 3-330pm. We headed back out for another boat ride. This time we were out for only about 90 minutes. Clouds moved in again.

Back at the lake house David threw a couple Digorno pizzas in the oven after adding a few toppings of his own. Pizza was fabulous. After dinner, David &Anita put in the DVD, Life of Pi, which apparently won a few academy awards. I had heard of it but knew nothing of the storyline.

Took a while for the movie to grab my full attention but once it did, I was all in. Great movie. The message in brief. There are many paths that lead to God. The result is the same. You choose the story you like best. Mindy &I don’t watch too many movies at all, maybe 3 or 4 in a year, and almost all on PPV. Still, I recommend it that you watch this one. To bed afterwards.