I stayed up late watching season 2 of Downton Abbey.
Shame on me.
Then Fern woke me up a 3 a.m. to let me know the food bowls were mostly empty (at least the ones she prefers) and she was about to keel over from starvation.
Gus woke up for the day at 5:10, which means that's when my day started, too.
He was pretty good this morning - he only opened a kitchen cupboard once, then was satisfied for a little while with the paper plate I gave him. (You can't ruin all the paper plates at once, honey. Only one at a time).
He found part of an empty box to chew and dragged the extra refrigerator water filter out from under the sink. It was still in its box, so I let him drag it around and chew on it while I chugged my first cup o' joe.
Hey, he only rang the bell twice after he ate this morning, which meant I only had to sit outside on the top step in the freezing cold for about 10 minutes.
I'll take what I can get.
Add in chasing a cat or two and that first hour and a half went pretty fast.
(No, I didn't chase them - he did).
By the time Melissa came down at 6:30 to get read for school Gus had crawled up on my lap for a little snooze.
Melissa fetched both her breakfast and my second cup of salvation, which I drained in record time.
Then I quickly pulled on a pair of jeans and my boots to scoot her off to school and Gus to daycare.
It is now, by the way, 7:15.
Gus couldn't wait to get in the door at daycare, nearly bowling over the owner in his excitement to see his friends.
"It sure is Monday," she sighed.
Hmm, maybe I'm not the only one to bore my dog?
Then home, taking care of Wally, feeding cats (again), breakfast.
I decide to skip the elliptical.
Yeah, that was a big mistake.
On a day like today, without that extra endorphin boost, I'm doomed.
Sarah heads off to class, I head off to a long, hot bath, which also serves to reinforce my fatigue.
I plan to watch another episode of Downton Abbey, but haven't quite left myself enough time before leaving to pick Melissa up. So I decide to waste my time online. I pay another $500 on a credit card, which gives me a temporary jolt of contentment. I refuse to worry about financial emergencies and enjoy looking at the lower balance.
I remember I told Melissa I'd help her research the "human predicament" for a paper she's writing. I realize that I, perhaps, am a natural-born existentialist. While I'd be the first to agree that life is absurd and its ultimate ending is death, I don't believe it is totally meaningless.
My life's meaning comes from the simple, everyday interactions I have with the people and the world around me; from loving and caring for my family and pets, to caring for those in need in my community, being a good steward of the earth, and simply appreciating the natural beauty all around me.
Whew. Heavy stuff for the sleep-deprived.
Once we're back home, I contemplate making a cake and some biscuits to use up the half gallon of whole milk that spoiled. Being that I'm having difficulty stringing words together coherently (I'm going to sit in the sunny shiningness, I declared, then mumbled something about the sun mocking me).
Melissa urges me not to. It is, after all, only the second day of the 14 days Michael is working in Chile. She knows how bad things can get.
I feel ridiculously guilty for not using up that milk, but I acquiesce to her clarity of judgment.
Right now I'm waiting for bread to rise. Once it's baked, I'm planning to dive right into bed for a delicious nap before picking Gus up.
Supper is easy tonight - garlic pasta, peas and homemade bread.
The girls and I will indulge in an episode or three of Desperate Housewives.
Then, if I'm lucky, I'll get in a couple chapters of a book before lights out.
If I'm smart, there'll be no Downton Abbey tonight.
If I'm truly lucky, the dog will sleep until 6 tomorrow.
I can smell the coffee already.
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