“Remoted” – Workday 91 /Day 123 (Friday)

At 5:30 this morning, when Canine Overlord Moose awakened me to perform the first of my many door opening duties for the day, it was just beginning to rain lightly. We returned to the still-warm bed for “30 more minutes.” The clouds, gloom, and rain made for perfect sleeping weather for both human and Overlord, and his highness granted me closer to 60 more minutes of delicious sleep. 

Front door water feature!

When we got up for the day, it was raining quite heavily, and by 7:00 the gutter over the front door was releasing a sheet of water just like a fancy water wall feature in a restaurant or building lobby. It’s possible to stand on the top step and have a free personal power washing. This is the price (or reward?) for not yet finding a handyman to look at the gutters. It’s been dry for a while, so it hasn’t been an issue or even a thought.

After the rain stopped and the sun appeared, I swore I could hear the grass growing and by morning it will likely need mowing. It’s been a couple weeks, so overall, I’ve gotten off easy, but the reckoning is near.

The recently replaced cell phone is being weird and if Mercury retrograde hadn’t ended several days ago I’d swear we were still in the thick of it. The ringer is at maximum volume during the day on the slim chance a call comes in, and even though it sits on my desk or in my hand,  I’ve missed three calls in fewer than 24 hours.

It was 45 minutes after the call when I noticed the indicator for today’s missed call. It was the dentist office, and the message said my crown is expected to arrive at the office just in time for my Saturday morning appointment. Or not. We’ll see. I called back, but the office was already closed for the day. It wouldn’t be such an annoyance if the dentist wasn’t an hour away and my car didn't still need a tweak from the work last week.

The action-packed Saturday morning plan involves driving an hour to Mom’s and leaving the car to be looked at, taking Mom’s car to backtrack 20 minutes to the dentist, then back to Mom’s. Shortly after, it will be a 20 minute trip to my sister’s house. Later in the day, it will be the ride home. 

Butter pecan ice cream with
maple syrup and kettle chips.

The logistics are starting to feel like a military operation and will require being up as early as a regular work day. The entire maneuver was built around the dentist appointment. The message from the office said to call before I head there in the morning. If not for the stupid phone ringer I could have had an actual conversation and just rescheduled. This tooth situation, ongoing since February 14 and already involving three appointments, is really getting on my nerves. 

The overblown aggravation of it all resulted in a blatant disregard for the plentiful healthy food options available and seeking refuge in unwise dietary choices. Supper was butter pecan ice cream with maple syrup and kettle cooked sea salt potato chips. Black licorice followed, along with the mildest pangs of regret.