Tag: family

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I wanted to ride to work today, but I was running just behind enough that I didn’t have time to get a bike out. I just want a four-car garage. It can be a studio apartment if I can have enough parking.

Gary asked me to take a look at an issue in the bus shop first thing, so I chose to walk the block. It was super humid out, but could have been much worse. I’m not at all ready for summer heat. Greg ended up coming out to take a look as well, and we ultimately just left the laptop in Chris’s office for him to figure it out.

I spent the rest of the day fighting Minecraft. It took me a while to figure out licensing. Gary drove us to lunch for Taco Tuesday, and for some reason I ordered way too much food. Then the rest of the afternoon was finishing up licensing and starting to build the deployment. The only break from that was to unload a pallet of water bottles that I don’t drink.

At the end of the day, Eaddie called and wanted to know if Rick could pick her up and take her home. She couldn’t get in touch with Summer, and I was mostly just shocked and confused about who reached out. I wound up just throwing my hands in the air and letting her do whatever she wanted. I went home until Summer got to town, then met her at the Center for Eaddie’s band concert.

As I walked up to the building, Sarah was parked right in front of the building, immediately in my path. Once we got inside, we discovered the concert wouldn’t start for another half hour. Erica spotted us and came over to catch up. Then we saw Autumn and Rick in the auditorium as we found our seats. She was wandering around, loosely helping between sets.

After the show, Amber was there to get some pictures of Eaddie and Zane. Then Eaddie wanted to go out to eat with Rick. Autumn went home with Summer, since she’s grounded forever. I went home to decompress.

I’m just a guy that’s there.

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Nurse Normal in the Monoverse of Happiness

I slept pretty well after lacking so much the day before, and eased into the morning before showering and taking the girls to KFC to pick up a bucket of chicken to take to my parents’ house for Mother’s Day. We didn’t stick around for very long after we ate, since we had to make it to Little Rock for the movie. Mom didn’t want to go, so it was just the three of us.

We stopped in Conway to wash the car, and let Summer chat with the crew for a bit. I got some sweet tea over some pellet ice, and then we made it to The Promenade. We walked the length of the strip, but only stopped in Lululemon so Summer could spend her gift card. The number of women bringing their children into that store was absolutely alarming, but I guess I just don’t know what it’s like to live that kind of lifestyle.

From there, we headed to the theater super early. The seats were just about perfect, though not super comfortable. They were worn, and basically stuck tilted forward. I wish we would get a proper Dolby theater nearby. I wouldn’t mind the wear if it was my neighborhood theater, but for the drive and in that neighborhood, they should really have better. The movie was great though. I wish I didn’t have to take a restroom break near the end, but my eyes were floating. It was quite a bit darker than I had imagined, but maybe the MCU has just matured into something very different from where it started.

After the movie, we went across town to the Star of India. Eaddie was down to try all of the food, so we got the Chef’s Special and an appetizer sampler. We didn’t really need to order a third item, but I felt bad sharing everything, so we got Eaddie what ended up being a huge plate of rice as well. She’s not upset to have leftovers for lunch at school.

The drive home was uneventful, though there had been pretty regular traffic all day. We let Eaddie DJ the drive, which started out with George Michael too loud, followed mostly by modern boy bands. When we got home, the girls left to pick up Autumn and head to their house, and I touched base with a few mother friends. Overall, I think today was a success.

Mr. Weird, I don’t feel so good!

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Somewhere in Between Guilt and Guillotine

We woke up to some enlightenment, and had to make quick decisions for the day. I ate a couple donuts, and Summer made a couple egg and cheese biscuits from the leftovers. Eventually she left with Autumn for the gym, but ended up at her parents’ house first, to let them in on what the meddling teenager had conspired.

Eaddie and I made it to my house so I could shower, and then met Summer at the arts center for The Addams Family. It was neat to see the orchestra pit in use, though we couldn’t actually see any of the band. The play seemed to be done really well, though it was hard for me to hear most of the dialog. I didn’t realize there was an intermission, and thought they ended the play in a very odd way.

Afterward, the girls weren’t up for dinner, so I went to my parents’ house on my own. I thought about going back to the girls for the night, but ended up staying home to better prepare for another day that will almost inevitably go sideways.

Idiot.

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Slow Learners

I didn’t sleep great last night, in spite of how exhausted I was from the trials of the day. I woke up a little after eight and laid around in bed until Eaddie called to see if I would pick her up later in the day to take her out on the Grom. I took my time getting around, and eventually got a shower before stopping by McDonald’s to burn up some rewards points before they expired. Somehow, I think the Spicy McChicken ends up being the best value per point.

Summer had to work a bit today, and took Autumn with her. Eaddie was watching TV when I got to the house, so I ate my sandwich with some leftover fries from Popeye’s. Then we went back to my house to get the Grom. We rode to the high school, and even after it was her idea to ride, I still had to endure lots of griping from Eaddie for being out in the “heat” with an aching butt and hands. I pressed her on, though, and we made it to second gear along with a ride around the building out of my line of sight. As kids started showing up for the play at the arts center, Eaddie and I decided to pack it up and head home. She wanted to ride her bicycle to her father’s restaurant, so I just hung out at home until she got back.

Mom and Dad were grilling pork chops and shrimp, but Eaddie was tired and full from eating with her father, and wanted to nap after she got back to my house. I went outside to pick some mint, then ran to the Neighborhood Market for some lettuce before meeting Summer and Autumn at my parents’ house for dinner. Autumn seemed on good behavior, though she surprised us by giving Dad some selective information about our visit from DHS yesterday. After the girls left, I expanded upon what really happened.

Evidently Autumn talked Summer into letting her go to church with my dad in the morning. I thought she said she was going with her own father, so I didn’t think anything of it. Upon further reflection and learning more details myself, we decided not to let her go, and had a talk about consequences when I got to their house. She spent all evening in her room, watching shows and talking on Facebook Messenger on her school laptop. Summer still hasn’t learned how important thoroughness is when following through with punishments, but I let her sleep through her headache. We’ll talk about it in the morning.

Everything means everything.

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Return of the Whirlpool

I got a call from the Lowe’s truck drivers shortly after I woke up this morning, saying they were about 10 minutes away. That nearly got me in a dead-run to get everything cleared out and ready to go. It occurred to me that they are making a lot of assumptions every time they come out, and as a customer, I should be more upset about my experience. They walked the fridge out without having to do any door gymnastics, and even walked it past both of my grills after I moved the deck box. I guess they were less worried about damage coming out than they were going in.

Somehow, I still managed to make it to work on time, stopping at Oakland to take care of a backup battery issue, and then making a quick run through the rest of the work orders I had from the end of the week. It didn’t take terribly long, but did help the morning go by.

Gary was a little stressed with Zach, Greg, and Brody out for the day, and me out of my office first thing. I chatted with him briefly and did my best to ease his worries. We evidently had some more unexpected, sweeping changes that we weren’t informed about, which frustrated us as I had to troubleshoot an issue that we caused. There are a lot of wheels turning, and not all of them are aware of the others, though they’re all connected and affect each other. It makes for a disjointed team.

Lunch came quickly, and I just went home to some leftover Ridgewood barbecue. I ended up eating a bit too much and didn’t have time to go to Lowe’s to see about my refund, so I just went back to Oakland to finish up some stuff. The rest of the afternoon was relatively quiet, and Kyle was the only one I ever saw back in the shop.

As I left for the day, Eaddie called for a ride. I had to drop some things off at Oakland anyway. She was hungry, so we picked up some chicken strips from Dairy Queen for her, and then went back to my house to start Moon Knight. I absolutely hate the accents and how quiet the voices are, because it makes the dialog that much harder to understand. Otherwise it seems like it’s going to be a neat show, and unlike many of the others, they didn’t waste any time getting right into the action.

When we finished the episode, Eaddie rushed me to take her home. In turn, I made her wait in the car while I stopped at Lowe’s to resolve my return. The kid at customer service said it would take a day for them to process the return, but I was concerned about having made part of my purchase with gift cards. He insisted that I would “probably” get a call in the morning, but rather than risk it, I walked to the back to find someone. I never could find an employee that wasn’t busy, but I did find my refrigerator that had been marked down by $450 to be sold as-is. It was almost tempting to re-buy it at that price.

While I was back there, I saw the windowed version of the LG we were looking at. I didn’t love it either. The freezer seemed really small and narrow, and the shelves had nearly no adjustability. I think one shelf in the fridge side had a choice of two levels, but the rest only had the existing molded mount points. I’m pretty sure I couldn’t even fit a frozen pizza in the freezer anywhere unless I left an entire shelf out, which would make for one super tall shelf. I may end up spending quite a bit more money for something much nicer by the time this is all over.

Back at the front, I explained that my refrigerator was already on the floor ready to sell, so he called a manager up to process the refund and I was on my way. When we got to the house, Eaddie went to her room to practice her flute, and I went outside to dig out the lawn mower. I probably spent about an hour trying to get the thing started, and eventually did with the help of some starter fluid, but it wouldn’t stay running for long. I’m inclined to think it’s the leftover fuel, but I can’t get any of the girls to run the mower often or long enough to keep that stuff flowing through it.

Summer got home super late. I thought I might stay over, especially since she arrived with some apparent energy left. Ultimately she ate and went straight to bed, so I headed back home. I took another crack at charging the Grom battery after stopping it last night when I heard it sizzling. Hopefully the lower amperage will keep things from exploding.

People actually lived for ages without refrigeration, so maybe I can just make it to Black Friday for a better deal.

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Typical Two Hour Visit

Summer and I got up this morning and decided on a whim to go have breakfast at Denny’s since Autumn was working. Eaddie didn’t want to go because she was supposed to go with her father, but after a while he showed up there without her. The restaurant was packed, but there was still no reason any of the service should have taken as long as it did. Every single time I’ve been there, it’s been painfully clear that the place is simply mismanaged. My guess is that if the owners would invest in one good store manager, they could probably turn the whole thing around. Autumn seems to enjoy working there, so I can’t see it being entirely due to staffing issues.

Ronda and Steven were there as well, and stopped by our table to chat briefly on their way out. We were in the restaurant for at least a couple hours, through the rush, and into a pretty quiet time in the early afternoon. The kitchen never got any faster, but after that long, I’d had enough eggs. It’s sad to say that I’m very rarely out of that place in less than an hour and a half, and I simply can’t imagine how they could possibly take that long to scramble eggs.

I dropped Summer off at home to clean house, and then went back to my house. Eaddie was up in bed, but said she never received a call from her father as he had said. I heated up my leftover spaghetti and meatballs, which she enjoyed while we watched the last episode of Stranger Things. We’re super excited for the next season in a few weeks.

I tried getting Eaddie to go out on the Grom for a bit, which she was up for at first, but after some television decided she’d rather be lazy and spent most of the afternoon in her room on her phone. I probably should have forced her outside, but I was still feeling heavy and sleepy from breakfast myself.

Eventually Autumn came by to get Eaddie after staying an hour late at work. She wanted to chat about her day and about some 27 year old she’s crushing on out there. Eaddie just rolled her eyes and pleaded to be taken home while I did my best to briefly explain, without being too negative, that she should probably aim higher.

The rest of the night went by quietly, and was just as dull as most of the afternoon. I made an effort to charge the R1 and Grom batteries, so hopefully they can both come out to play soon.

I can tell you all about guys that hang out with girls 10 years their junior.

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Garth eVader

I tried to sleep as much as possible last night so today wouldn’t drag on. I made it out of the house in time to get Eaddie and meet Dad at the train depot to see Summer cross the finish line for her half marathon at right around two and a half hours. Ben and Sarah were there, and snuck up behind me while we were waiting in line to take Summer’s picture in front of their big inflatable. From there, we split back up because Summer needed a shower and Eaddie wanted to go ride her bike in the nice weather.

Once Summer was cleaned up from her morning race, I got gas and picked her up for a quick bite to eat at Zaxby’s before heading to Fayetteville. That was when I learned that she didn’t actually have any tickets because every purchase she tried to make had fallen through. She was on her phone the whole time trying to arrange for new tickets.

When we finished eating, we picked Eaddie up from her friend’s house and came back to my place. I tried to help Summer pay for some tickets, but it just didn’t work out. I started feeling sketchy about all of the different failed payment attempts, and it was getting late fast. We ultimately decided to just stay home. We let Eaddie go back out on her bike while we watched some TV to relax a while.

Eventually we were hungry enough to have a nice meal. Eaddie still wasn’t hungry, so Summer and I drove across town to see if the boys at Ridgewood Brothers had any scraps left. Grant gave us their last half pound of beef and some banana pudding, and we caught up really briefly as they finished cleaning up. I’m super excited for them to build their new place and get out of the trailer.

After running around town dodging prom-goers, we ultimately ended up at La Villa for some reward pasta for Summer. Then we picked up Eaddie’s bike from her father’s restaurant so they could go out to eat together. Summer and I watched an episode of Middleditch and Schwartz improv, which had me absolutely rolling. Then when Eaddie got home, Summer went to bed and we stayed up late watching Stranger Things.

We nearly finished the season, but Eaddie gave up just before we started the last episode. It’s just as well though, because I’d rather not have to wait for the next season to start. I’ll be curious to see if they really try to make it scary.

Flayed

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Cartagain Weather

Thomas was out this morning, so Gary lead the team meeting with an intro for everyone to our new ticket system. The highlight of the morning was Brody calling out that Gary likely had more important tickets to work on than building out an unnecessary new system. Zach split everyone up for projects, but the big one for the day was cleaning up all the old carts we got from Bentonville so the group we hired can come wire up all the new chargers.

I went upstairs with Gary to troubleshoot a printer issue in the computer lab, but he had to bail early for a meeting. I came out of nowhere with an unexpected fix involving the shared account they were using in the lab, and made my way downstairs to help with the carts.

Brody suggested Mulan’s for lunch after much debate, so he took took Zach, Gary, and Josh. I rode the Shadow to work, so I rode separately through some pretty stupid traffic. I took a different approach to my plating, with most of my rice being in the sushi. I still ate a lot, but I wasn’t completely miserable by the time we left.

I spent most of the afternoon working in my office until everyone came back to the shop to rest from their own work. I was the last one out, and decided to swing by Oakland to see if Eaddie needed a ride. She and Zane were walking to her father’s restaurant to eat, so I got gas and headed home until she needed a ride.

Summer was headed home from Conway about the time Eaddie and I started watching an episode of Stranger Things. Then they left to get ready for a 5k that Summer registered the girls for. Eaddie was worried about homework and stayed home, but Autumn ran. I ended up meeting Summer at the finish line, and we were proud to see her finish strong.

I came home to try and rest up for a super long day tomorrow, but had trouble getting to bed. Hopefully I don’t drag tomorrow night, because I already feel like a bad boyfriend for not wanting to go.

Friends take work. You’re not going to spontaneously summon a crowd.

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Return to Sender

I made it in to work a little early again today, and was soon asked to cover the phones while the leads had their meeting. The phone didn’t ring a single time, so it was mostly just babysitting for an hour. It was all around pretty uneventful all day. The morning went by quickly, and we found ourselves at Taco John’s for Taco Tuesday. I ate cheaply again, and it felt pretty good.

Sometime in the afternoon, Thomas wandered to the back and set up a video conference with someone about our ticket reporting system. Evidently he’s been asked for data that hasn’t been collected in Web Help Desk, so we’re looking at spending some more money for something a little prettier.

The end of the day dragged on a bit, but eventually I made it home. I got things ready to stay with Summer in Conway, but had to stop at Lowe’s on my way out of town. I scheduled the pickup of the dreadful Whirlpool refrigerator and talked to a couple of guys about our top picks for its replacement. They required payment for the new one up front, and said the refund of the old one had to come back to me in store credit. I opted instead to just wait for the refund before ordering the replacement, so I’ll have to move a bunch of food up to Summer’s place until the new one shows up.

The drive to Conway was quick, without too much traffic. I stopped in Morrilton for some beer, and then hopped onto Discord to chat with Mitch again until I got to Splash. Summer was busy, so I grabbed some popcorn and headed to the hotel to check in.

After unloading, I went across the street to Walmart to kill some time. Easter candy was half off, and I found a few deals on clearance. I had been assuming we would go out for dinner, but Summer got to the hotel super late and just went straight to bed. I considered going home to sleep in my own bed, because I didn’t like the idea of taking off so much unexpectedly for that plus the fridge pickup, but with the promise of lunch in Conway, I decided to stay.

What book are you even reading???

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Not My Favorite Uncle

I got up this morning and headed home to finish up my taxes before cleaning up for a late Easter lunch. With the way my short-term trades were calculated, I got to pay for the gains I made without taking into account my unrealized losses that nullified them. I thought I might do some additional research to make sure it was all correct, but in the end I trusted the system.

Dad had lunch ready just a few minutes earlier than he expected, which was a departure from running late. Bác Vân and Doug were already there, and Summer and Eaddie arrived just seconds before I did. Autumn had to work, and Julie is still ignoring us all. Lunch was good, but we didn’t stick around for very long. Eaddie still had homework, and I still actually had to submit and pay my taxes.

As soon as Autumn got home from work, I helped her file her own taxes. She didn’t earn enough for it to be required, but by filing she’ll get a refund of what her employer held out of her checks. For some reason the social security and such weren’t refunded, which made me question whether she should have paid in the year before when the school district paid her as a contractor. I don’t get why we can’t just receive a statement telling us what we owe every year instead of propping up a ridiculous industry. That, or a high sales tax seem like great ways to fix this.

Summer had a headache and climbed into bed well before sunset, and the girls were off in their own rooms to avoid any human contact. I left, but ended up stopping at Walmart for a bit before making it home. My lava lamp went out at work, and the retro dorm theme just isn’t the same without it.

As I pulled into my driveway, Michael called to chat some more about crypto taxes. I’m into it in theory, but I worry he’s reading too much into the tea leaves. I didn’t accomplish anything else like I had hoped, but with any luck I’ll sleep through the night before work in the morning.

It’s buoy bells.