Shopping with the Master

I embraced the void today taking up a challenge certainly not for the weak of heart. I actually volunteered to go shopping with the acknowledged champion of Western Civilization in that effort, my Favorite Panamanian. What was I thinking, you would be correctly asking. This falls into the category that every now and then even a blind squirrel finds a nut. It was a confluence of the cosmos where I needed to go to the store and didn’t have the heart/courage to not invite her along. My descent into darkness began with the long delayed trip to the physical therapist to address the balky right foot. He suggested a place in Worcester, Sneakerama, where they could recommend an appropriate sneaker for the foot. I was also in search of bricks since my Favorite Panamanian, improbably, has decided we need to expand her vast garden complex. She had also been bugging me to go with her to LL Bean to buy me some Father’s Day gifts. So, a bunch of dominoes fell and I found myself in the impact area. I’ve written before that, for the sake of our marriage, we do not shop together. I am simply not in her league and am not blessed with an excess of patience.

First, let’s talk about the visit to the physical therapist. I was excited to finally met with him since the foot doctor was less than useless and I only needed him to get me a referral to physical therapy where I was confident I’d run into someone who could actually address the foot issues. I was right. He was great and laughed when I told him the foot doctor had diagnosed my problem as being the high arch, ignoring the fact that I’d had the high arch for my entire life without issue. He did react with shock when I first took off my sock, saying, whoa, you weren’t kidding about the high arch. He gave me my first ever foot massage and said he could feel how tight the foot was. We spent about 45 minutes together going through a bunch of exercises designed to loosen up the foot muscles. He thinks that was what happened by pending so much time on the beach with such a tight foot that they became over taxed. He also laughingly admitted I was his first ever client claiming to be injured boogie boarding. So there.

My Apparently Weird Foot

Now about that garden expansion; I thought we had reached the culminating point in terms of the area available in our yard for gardens. I, once again, underestimated my Favorite Panamanian. Her garden complex is in full bloom right now and absolutely gorgeous. I made a mistake in asking what a couple flowers were still doing in pots. That was when I learned I was going to create a new garden space for her. She decided the area between my style challenged fireplace and the terrace behind it, needed to be converted to garden space instead of lawn. I wasn’t too upset, despite the requisite labor involved, because mowing that stretch of lawn is a compete pain in the posterior. So, there we were, at Home Depot buying the needed bricks to increase the height of retaining wall adjacent to the fireplace which will then be filled in with “good” soil and the new garden will be born. Loading those bricks in the shopping cart, then into the car, then into the back yard, hasn’t gotten any easier. The project itself shouldn’t be that tough, especially since I’m blessed with being married to apparently an expert in constructing these walls, regardless of my own experience.

The Assembled Bricks and the Location of the New Garden
Behind the Fire Place

The rest of the shopping wasn’t as onerous as I feared. I scored two pair of shoes at LL Bean which I can’t wear until Sunday and Father’s Day, but will serve me well in Ireland and Scotland. Getting back to the wife’s garden complex. The wisteria growing up onto Deckzilla is in full bloom also. This brings back memories of the haunted house we lived in during an assignment to Fort McNair in DC. There was a huge wisteria tree covering the approach to our door which had us dashing through when it was blooming because of the numerous bees attending to business with the flowers. I’m allergic to bee stings so there was that added motivation. So, I’m now doing that whenever I venture near that corner of Deckzilla.

The Deckzilla Wisteria

Despite my initial fears about venturing forth with the shopping savant I’m married to, proved baseless. I’m thinking she was on her best behavior, realizing what a rare event this was. Although I’ll never admit this to her, I sneakily kind of enjoyed hanging out with her today. She’s very entertaining, especially when engaged in her favorite activity. She’ll get to do a tax free version of that tomorrow as we’re heading up to Keene in the afternoon in search of shoes for her. Luckily Keene Friend has extensive experience in that arena. After accomplishing that I’m sure he and I will be exiled to a nearby pub while she visits her old friend, TJ Maxx. So it goes.

Earlier in the week we took in the latest Bad Boys movie. I thought the juice had faded in this series. I was wrong. This was a welcome return to what made the first couple so much fun. They toned down Martin Lawrence so he wasn’t overly obnoxious and he stole many of the scenes from Will Smith this time out. The boys are trying to clear the name of their deceased former lieutenant, Joe Pantaliano. They are assisted in this effort by Smith’s son, who is in prison for killing the lieutenant. It’s complicated. Great action and the snappy dialogue between the two leads make this a great addition to the series after a lukewarm #3. Liked it. 

In my A-Z watch, five fell since I last posted, all keepers: Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959) a classic Jules Verne that I loved as a kid, still watchable; Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008), kind of silly but Brendan Fraser can carry a movie; Judge Dredd, Stallone in the 90s, a snarling great ride; Jumanji, beloved film shot in my home town; Jumanji, Welcome to the Jungle, Rock and Hart, so funny together.

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RECURRING CHARACTERS:                                

ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete - my daughter in law; BR3 – Blog Reader #3 – granddaughter #3; BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; CRC - Connecticut Riverboat Captain – another close friend from high school, renowned sailor of the big river; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during him her single days in Brooklyn; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter; First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd Musquetera (musketeer); Namesake Nephew – son of Great Aunt and Soxfather named after me; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member; PanaGals – female relatives /friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; PCR - Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; PCR+1 - Pittsburgh College Roommate’s wife; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; Seis Amigos - two couples from our condo complex and my wife and I; Soxfather – my brother in law; Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course