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To Space Again!

Summer had to go in to interview someone this morning, then came home after the gym. I got up and had some of my Long John Silver’s out of the air fryer, and it was just about perfect. Then I didn’t waste much time getting ready for another movie in the afternoon. I had really been wanting to see Project Hail Mary in IMAX, but it was already off of every large screen thanks to the new Mario movie we saw yesterday. I settled for a recliner in the second row at the UEC, and Summer finally got her overpriced popcorn after we rushed past concessions yesterday.

We left Muad’Dib at home again, but he seemed to do fine. I wasn’t even sure where Eaddie went, but she was gone all day. I’m nearly ready to kick all of her crap out of her room because she can’t keep things off of the floor.

The movie was fantastic, but slightly longer than I could survive without a bathroom break. When we got back to the house, I found a bootleg stream and caught myself up on the couple minutes I lost, and the pacing was slow enough that I really hadn’t missed anything. It was still wonderful in every way though.

Summer wanted me to grill some brats when we got back to the house, so I did that, and warmed up the leftover cabbage and peas she made. Dinner was great, and then of course she was straight to bed. It had been wet all day, so I didn’t take Muad’Dib out for a late run. We all just settled in for the night.

I can’t imagine explaining “sleep” to someone who had never heard of it. Hey, I’m going to fall unconscious and hallucinate for a while. By the way, I spend a third of my time doing this. And if I can’t do it for a while, I go insane and eventually die. No need for concern.

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Side Quests

Summer had to work this morning, so I slept in a while, then got up for some leftover corned beef for brunch. Eaddie left for school and I got cleaned up for a trip to Conway with Summer to pick up some stuff for work. I had gotten tickets to see The Super Mario Galaxy Movie so it wouldn’t be a whole trip just for work. I really wanted to see Project Hail Mary, but the release of Mario knocked it out of every single larger theater.

I lost track of time and we got out the door way later than I planned, but we made it just in time to walk straight back and sit down at the end of the trailers. A family with at least one kid was sat right next to our seats in an otherwise mostly empty auditorium, but I sat down and shared an armrest on principle because I had reserved our seats ahead. It wasn’t completely unbearable.

I thought the movie was fun, but the 3D didn’t really do much for it, which was a surprise. After that, we went to Splash to pick up Summer’s stuff. I asked for the key to the manual wash and was able to give the Model 3 one of the best washes it has ever had. I had forgotten how vibrant the paint was.

By the time I finished, we were both super hungry, so we made our way downtown and ended up at the Rogue Roundabout. Summer didn’t have her ID for some reason, so our server said she would have to call over the manager. I didn’t recognize him, but he learned where we were from and said he was born and raised there, having graduated high school a year after me. I asked his name and learned he was the same Chris I had driven to the emergency room after stepping on broken glass at Cole’s bachelor party camp trip some fifteen years ago. I still had photos, and even had his number saved in my phone.

After that, we had several drinks before our food came out an hour and a half later. Everything tasted great – it was just incredibly, frustratingly slow. We caught Chris outside as we left, and I shared a couple pictures. Then we started toward home. Summer had previously said no to Long John Silver’s when we were thinking of where to eat, which put the bug in my brain that I should pick some up for later.

We went through the drive-through where I ordered a family mean, and was subsequently parked to wait for our food. I ended up going inside and had a great conversation with another customer that came in after me. We chatted intermittently with the guy who took my order, since he was busy running around behind the counter. He gave both of us free drinks for waiting so long, and then I remembered their delicious strawberry lemonade. The restaurant always looks super dated and worn down, but has never been what I would consider dirty. The staff has always been super friendly, and the food has always been fresh. I wish them success, because I miss the one in town.

I eventually got my food and we headed home, snacking on clam strips as it started to pour down rain. We made it home where Muad’Dib had apparently been left alone for several hours. He ran up to me like he thought I had gone forever. I had asked Eaddie about being home, but I guess I wasn’t specific enough because she had been gone to Tech for several hours before we made it back. Everything was intact though, so maybe he’ll be okay to be left alone a little more frequently.

First goes the body, then goes the bones. Then all that’s left is dust.

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PEAS AND CHOPS

I had my last pork chop sandwich on the way in this morning, but also brought a whole bag of sugar snap peas to eat before they went bad. I actually managed to munch through about two thirds or maybe even three quarters of the bag by the end of the day. They were good, and they felt really guilt-free.

I managed to stay relatively focused on Intune stuff in the morning before we went to Wendy’s for a free Baconator with points. I had some chips when we got back to the office, and the afternoon brought some other projects.

Summer got home early and planned to cook the other bag of peas and a whole head of cabbage to eat with the remaining pork chops. That only took a few minutes while I cleaned up, and then we ate.

Flies are coming back around, and I was able to catch four of them to feed to the spider. He ate one right away, but the others were buzzing in his cage all night. I took Muad’Dib for a pretty slow run to see my parents, but then cut him short on the way back because he just wasn’t moving fast enough.

Summer was long in bed by the time we got back. I found that one of my baby catfish had died, but I guess it shouldn’t be a surprise since the tank has been so neglected. After that, I finished the evening working on a bunch of reviews until I couldn’t stay up any longer.

The warden threw a party in the county jail!

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‘Cause if You Like It, but You’re Afraid of Early Release Bugs, Then You Shoulda Put an Update Ring on It

More pork chop sandwiches this morning. I had an okay day tinkering with some more Intune compliance stuff, then had an anxiety attack before a late lunch. It was a good, but windy day to sit outside Taco Bell, and then the afternoon was less painfully long.

Summer had a late meeting, so we got to the house and then immediately left for a run. Muad’Dib just casually trotted along the whole way, and it’s not even hot yet. We saw Dad before he left for church, and then got home and ate some leftovers. A bunch more had gone bad, so I threw that stuff out and took out the recycling just as Summer got there.

We spent some time outside cleaning up the driveway in preparation for some rain. I got Summer up on the roof to blow out the gutters as it got dark, and then she showered and went to bed. I cleaned up some more, then followed suit.

Whoa-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh.

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Crunching Time

I had another pork chop sandwich this morning, and also brought leftover chicken for lunch. All of the food is going bad faster than I can eat it, and still, no one comes to my aid. Things have been heating up, on top of the stress from generally losing time. Everything feels like it’s just going faster and faster, except for the afternoons which feel like an eternity stuck in a chair.

The drive home wasn’t any better, since I was stuck for miles behind people refusing to drive above the speed limit as they passed other, even slower people. Luckily we got to town just in time to grab a frozen treat at Taco Bell before therapy. I had my poem assignment done and felt pretty okay about it, though it didn’t really seem to have a purpose for our own personal needs. We had a decent session though, and hopefully Summer has finally seen that her job has created a lot of the stress we’ve both been fighting.

After therapy, I stopped by Stoby’s for a birthday discount on some cheese dip, which we shared at home before heading to Point Remove to try and use my expiring discount there as well. I rode the Onewheel, and she followed in the Model Y for a while, but then left us at Phoenix. Muad’Dib did fantastic though, and we got a ton of smiles as we rolled into the bar.

We shared some wings and drinks and had a good time. Muad’Dib got lots of pets, and then we ran into more trouble when we closed our tab. For the second time, we were unable to use my $40 bonus card. The bartender tried to make it right by giving us her 50% discount, but didn’t realize my card was a dollar amount. She thought she was giving us an additional 10% off, but in fact, it was only about half of my card’s value.

I drove us home, then took Muad’Dib for a run to my parents’ house because he wanted to see Grandpaw. He was at church, so we visited with Mom briefly before heading back to the house. I unpacked some Vine stuff, and then it was a rush to get to bed.

Tax season shouldn’t be so stressful.

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Eat Late, Even Great

I had a little trouble sleeping, but felt okay when I got up. I ate half of my pork chop sandwich on the way in, then Teisha helped me set up my speakers in the conference room just to test things out. We got everything working, so it should be perfect for the company picnic. I finished my sandwich a little later as I tinkered some more with Intune, and did a little more break-fix throughout the day.

We went to Taco Bell super late and had a pretty light meal. Muad’Dib did great, but otherwise slept for nearly the whole day. We even left pretty late because I took an unrelated call after having a potential cyber threat scare. Everything should be okay though.

Dad had been over to the old house to mess with the Grom, so I stopped by to see what I could find. It wasn’t a new lithium battery like I thought, but I did find a pigtail to attach for easier charging. Summer was in the shower when we got home, so I cleaned up and decompressed for a while. I had a quick anxiety attack before I got up to take Muad’Dib out for a late run.

We made pretty decent time, and I inadvertently let Muad’Dib jump into the creek, so I knew he’d need a bath. We visited my parents and then made it back to the house for a really good bath. I was proud of how he behaved, and then he stood with me in the kitchen as I ate some leftovers. I got a bit frustrated that we had so much food left and nobody but me seemed to be touching it.

Summer had been in bed since I left the house, but at least she was awake for a while. I did a little more cleaning up and tried to get to bed on time.

Take the shot!

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Together We Can Take the Long Way Home

Eaddie beat us all up and into the shower this morning, which was great. We all managed to get ready and left right at checkout time. The kids actually left a little before us so they could get lunch downtown. I thought my parents had already left, so we headed toward Rogers for lunch, but then discovered they were still back at the hotel. Summer and I got to the Supercharger and walked around with Muad’Dib for 20 minutes or so, then put him back in the car and walked to Việt Buffet.

My parents arrived with perfect timing just shortly after we walked up, and we had a great lunch. I’m worried they won’t last long because of how many people were on staff and how empty the restaurant was, but all of the food was great. It’s a long drive even for a day trip, and there’s not much else up there to do that we can’t find closer.

Mom and Dad left a little before us, and then we still had to walk back to the car, but we got home just behind them. I took Muad’Dib on a run since we hadn’t been through the neighborhood in a couple months, and I could tell he was tired from an adventurous weekend. We visited my parents briefly, then made it home to unpack and clean up.

Eaddie had a sorority thing in the evening, so took a moment to decompress, and then I had to load up my loudspeakers to take to work for the upcoming picnic. I’m excited to actually get to use them properly, especially with all the new accessories I’ve been picking up.

Summer passed out early, and even Eaddie got home and went to bed before I finally got there. It was a fun and exhausting weekend, but man, what a year.

Better than watching Geller bending silver spoons

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Makin’ Our Way Downtown

Summer and I got out for breakfast alone this morning because the kids didn’t want to get up. We drove across town to a place called The Squatch, where we had a breakfast burrito, biscuits and gravy, and avocado toast. The toast was probably the best of them. None of it was bad, but none of it was great either. It was a cute place though.

Afterward, we made our way back to the hotel and I ran around with Muad’Dib a bit. Evidently there was some kind of a footrace going on across the street, because we saw a few runners and could hear the commotion. We eventually got everyone out to go downtown and walk around, dropping the Model 3 off to charge at the top of the hill before taking Eli’s truck to park down the hill. I mostly stayed out of the shops with Muad’Dib, but it was really nice outside. As lunchtime approached, we ended up eating at New Delhi Cafe where they had a fusion of Indian and American. Eli and I split a burger and a curry chicken wrap. Eaddie had some butter chicken, and Summer had a huge fillet of fried fish and chips. Everything was really good, but I think the fish was probably my favorite bite.

We made it back for the afternoon show, which was much better than the last. We all had a good time before going back to the room to rest a bit. I ran around with Muad’Dib some more, and the others spent some time at the clubhouse playing mini golf and pool.

Dinner time eventually came around and the four of us met my parents, Uncle Rick, and Ginny at Red’s Pizzeria. Their four-generation sourdough pizza crust was great, and then we picked up my car on the way back for the evening show.

Everyone had a great time, but even Muad’Dib was exhausted by the end of it. We made it back to the room and started settling down for bed. Of course the Harry Potter marathon was finishing up, so I had trouble as my eyes kept wandering over to the TV, but I finally got to bed after midnight.

fifteen

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Cavalcade of Home Movies

Summer worked this morning, so I slept in a little while before having a quick breakfast. Summer made it home and cleaned up, and then I gave Muad’Dib a bath. Eli came over, and eventually left with Eaddie for Eureka Springs ahead of us. Summer and I finally got things packed up and left, stopping in Ozark for some food and a Supercharge.

We got to the Inn of the Ozarks with enough time to check in and decompress a bit before dinner. I needed to charge, so we dropped my car off at the trolley stop and had Eli pick us up to meet my parents, Uncle Rick, and Ginny at La Familia for dinner. Muad’Dib had to sit on the porch and wait for us, but he did great.

After dinner, we got back just in time for the evening tribute show. There were more people in the audience than I had ever seen, which was a shame because the tribute show was less magic and more of a talk-show style tribute with a surprising amount of home movies on a projector. It seemed like half the audience left halfway through that.

I rode around the parking lot with Muad’Dib before finally making it back to the room for the evening. The first couple Harry Potter movies played before everyone started to pass out.

It’s knot juggling.

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Wheely Bad Service

I took a toasted pork chop sandwich for breakfast, and a heated lunch box with some chicken, sweet potato, and broccoli for lunch today. In spite of all the frustration, I was excited to get my Onewheel back in the morning. Teisha called when it showed up, and I loaded it into the car. The entire day was spent at the office wrapping up some of my understanding of Autopilot, so now I’m ready to actually build out some stuff around that and properly manage our devices.

My heated lunch box worked perfectly, and my meal was piping hot. Afterward, we took a break for some cake for Janice’s birthday. The afternoon went by fairly quickly after that, and we made our way home through heavy traffic.

Summer was in the tub, and Eaddie was leaving to play pickleball at Old Post, so I decided to take Muad’Dib out there to ride around. We never did find the kids, but we had a good time making a big loop around the park before coming back to the house.

As for the Onewheel; Future Motion did their usual shit job. It started with insufficient packaging because they didn’t replace the top egg carton inside the retail package, which I absolutely shipped to them. The Onewheel itself was completely covered in some kind of dust or powder that just blew off, so it had clearly been sitting out somewhere for a while. They replaced my Maghandle for some reason, and gave me a super shitty torn-up one with a really bad rubber grip. The plastics on the bottom corners also had huge chunks hanging off like they had curbed it multiple times. They rode it hard for 27 miles, which I’m not surprised wasn’t enough for them to reproduce my motor disengage issue. They did give me someone else’s used TFL valve stem cap though.

When we got back to the house, Summer and I ate some more leftovers. I saw another possum on camera under the house, so I had to investigate that. I have no idea how they’re getting in, because I walked the entire perimeter of the house and couldn’t find any holes apart from the small one at the top of the house under the eave of the roof.

Summer went to bed and Eaddie got home early and disappeared into her room. That left me to my own chores for the night before an even earlier bedtime than when I actually have to work the next day.

#FFM