Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts
By Alyce Wilson
August 29, 2007 - Up and Down Day
Una sniffs mushrooms on our walk
On Sunday, my sister wanted to get on the road early, so I woke up on my own around 7. I pushed open her door and asked when she was planning on getting up.
She had set an alarm, so The Gryphon and I just talked quietly until her alarm went off and she woke up.
When my sister was up, I made her some coffee and we talked over breakfast. Then The Gryphon and I helped her pack up her car to head home.
The Gryphon had an appointment with his groomsmen at 1 to go to Men's Warehouse and confirm their measurements for their tuxedos. This was something the store had advised, since they'd ordered them several months earlier. I guess there can be big changes in that time.
As he told me later, none of them actually changed, which is good.
While he was out, I took our doggie, Una, for a walk. While I was walking, I got a phone call from my sister, saying that her windshield had been damaged while it was parked in our street. There was a six-inch crack, and it looked like something had hit it near the windshield wipers. Immediately, I thought of the kids who play in the street, which they've been doing more frequently recently.
This news really bummed me out. I felt bad for my sister; this was the second time something happened to her car while she was visiting me. The first time happened when I was living in another place. Someone broke off her antenna, apparently on purpose. At least this particular case seemed to be an accident.
After hearing this particular case, I resolved that, from now on, at least until the kids go back to school or it is too bitterly cold to play outside, I'll park in our garage around back. I'd gotten lazy and been parking out front, just because it was easier than unlocking the garage each time I wanted to go out. Ah, well. At least I have that option!
Since my sister doesn't have much money, I offered to help her with the deductible, once she figures out what the expense will be. Of course, with the wedding coming up, it sucks to have an unexpected expense, for either one of us. After all, my sister has paid for her dress, accessories, makeup and hair products, and will also spring for a hotel room.
I took the opportunity while The Gryphon was out to play some Dance Dance Revolution, my exercise of choice for about the last year or so. During this session, though, I landed on my right ankle wrong, which didn't heal overnight, so yesterday and today I've been wearing an Ace ankle support, which seems to help.
Instead of DDR, I'm going back to what I used to do: kickboxing and cross-training tapes by Denise Austin. The moves are more predictable, and it's easier to avoid putting extra stress on my ankle.
When The Gryphon got back, I vented to him about my sister's car, which made me feel better. We hung out a little bit, looking at web sites for ideas for groomsmen gifts, then went out for dinner.
On the way, we stopped at K-Mart because The Gryphon was trying to find a tape measure with centimeters on it. We couldn't find one in their very limited sewing area, so we walked over to the tools section.
We passed a family, consisting of a mother and a couple daughters, who were crying, talking to store staff. Turns out they were looking for a little boy wearing a red shirt, who was missing. I felt really bad for them but figured the store personnel would help.
As we were looking through the tools, a little boy breezed by wearing a red shirt. At first I thought he was with a man who was walking slowly down the aisle behind him, but then I realized the man wasn't even looking at him. The boy continued running down the next aisle.
By this point, an older boy of about 11 had also noticed the little boy, and I asked him if he knew him. He said no. "Is he the missing boy?" he asked me.
I asked the little boy, "Are you looking for your mommy?" He nodded. "She's this way," I said, and the 11-year-old and I walked him in the direction we'd last seen the crying mother.
Soon, we were joined by another woman, who asked me, "Is that the missing boy?" I told her I thought so. She knew the little boy's name and asked him if that was his name. He nodded.
The three of us escorted him to his mother and, as we drew close, we asked, "Is this your son?" She was overwhelmed with tears, clutching her chest, and the little boy ran up to her. She sunk to her knees and hugged him tight. When she finally got her breath, she called out to us, "Thank you! Thank you!"
So even though The Gryphon and I didn't find a tape measure, we found something better.
I wasn't sure what I was in the mood for, in terms of dinner, so we decided to try a Chinese buffet not far from us that The Gryphon had eaten at before. The buffet offered sushi along with typical Chinese fare. The sushi, however, was utterly forgettable. It was mostly vegetable or crabstick and wasn't terribly good. The Chinese entrees, however, were very tasty, and they did offer some healthier options, such as chicken and broccoli.
So if we're in the mood for a Chinese buffet and don't care whether it has good sushi, we can go there. After all, it's close.
Then we drove home, and The Gryphon went off to his weekly meeting of PAGE (Philadelphia Area Gaming Enthusiasts). I did some yoga, took a nice hot bath to soak away some of my stress, and then went through Wild Violet submissions.
I've promised the summer issue would come out soon, and I think that if I really buckle down, I can get a pared down issue out in the first week of September. After all, it's still technically summer until September 23!
More on Alyce's wedding planning:
Moral:
Sometimes you don't find what you're looking for, but what someone else
is, instead.
Copyright
2006 by Alyce Wilson
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