Security Breach and Imminence

Grampa - I'm Too Busy with These Legos to Have My Picture Taken

My paltry efforts at restricting the movements of the Wonder Pooch were thoroughly defeated yesterday as he seems to be enjoying his new found route to freedom. I tried wedging a carpet and weighing that down when I left for work. I came home to find he had forced the door open and had seriously compromised the pristinely shining floor near the front windows. I can only assume someone had the temerity to walk by the house on the sidewalk and he felt the need to warn them off in some enthusiastic fashion. I put him back downstairs and closed the door to see how he was doing it. I didn’t have long to wait. In less than ten seconds he was scratching at the area near the door knob and eventually hit it just right that the door popped open.

Evidence of the Crime

The Gate That Didn't Work and the Criminal

I stepped up my efforts by placing a baby gate at the bottom of the stairs figuring that would keep him from reaching the door. There was no immediate breach as I finished up pre-wifely return chores late last night. I awoke in the pre-dawn hours this morning and leaned over to see I still had forty five minutes before the alarm went off. It was at that point that I heard a mysterious thumping on the floor next to my bed. After my heart stopped racing I saw Buddy’s green eyes gleaming in the dark, he’d broken containment again!! I had no choice but go with the nuclear option and put him in his cage when I’m not home until I buy a better door wedge. So far I’m getting seriously outpointed by a dog.

Wife Surrounded by Pana-Gals Last Night

One of those late night chores involved taking a video call from Panama City where my wife travelled yesterday in preparation for her flight tonight into Boston. She was hanging out in the hotel bar with her sister and assorted cousins and looked to be having a great time; I’m sure some sangria was involved. I think the house is as ready as I can get it for her imminent return. I have the advantage of the newly renovated kitchen to distract her from some of my less successful cleaning efforts. All of the toilet seats have been lowered from their “present arms” position and even the microwave oven was cleaned. That was kind scary, like sci-fi level scary.  Apparently I have to take more care in the future in covering food up prior to nuking.

Sisters

When I finished my last book I found the latest C.J. Box book, Vicious Circle, waiting for me on my kindle. It’s another in the Joe Pickett series which I’ve come to love. Box finally gives Pickett some wherewithal instead of having him stumble into bad situations. Joe and his family are under siege from the villain of the last book. I was starting to worry Joe was in over his head in dealing with the crew set up against him until his friend Nate showed up. I then knew everything would be okay as Nate is not blessed with Joe’s bone deep decency. A couple of ear removals later and I could breathe a little easier. Now I’ve damned myself again because of my rush through the book (impossible to avoid with a Box book) I have to wait for him to publish again. If you haven’t discovered Joe Pickett yet, do yourself a favor.

I Told You! No Pictures Today!

Powering Up & Canine Invention

Tense Negotiations On her New Table

Buddy the Wonder Pooch has come up with yet another method of confounding his owner and it brooks concern with the imminent return of his main antagonist, my Favorite Panamanian. Buddy, ever the man of leisure, has a bad habit of climbing onto couches to rest his weary body. It’s a trait he fine-tuned in Rhode Island under the tutelage of that well known dog whisperer, the Great Aunt. His black fur combined with a black lab’s native ability to shed is a very bad combination with the white couch we have in the living room.

My Wife (l) Enjoying her Sangria Laden farewell with Friends

To counter this couch climbing ability, whenever I’m out of the house or even upstairs I always close the door to the basement as he likes hanging out down there and even has his own Canine Cave under the stairs complete with luxurious mattress. The last couple days I’ve come home for lunch to find him greeting me at the door even though I know I secured the basement door before leaving. He’s somehow figured out how to lean into the basement door until it pops open. He hasn’t taken it upon himself to go upstairs and avail himself of the beds but I’m sure that’s coming. Any lock I put on the door runs the chance of locking myself in the Man Cave (not a bad fate but lacking sanitary facilities). I’m sure a battle will brew once my wife learns of Buddy’s new abilities.

Kelly Square

Every now and then I like to write about living in Worcester which I’ve truly come to enjoy. Worcester has a very sour reputation with most of New England which probably stems from its history as a gritty mill town. I’ve found its nothing like that and one of the best kept secrets of central New England. There are some challenges though, especially if you’re an outsider. There is no better example than Kelly Square. I travel through that benighted intersection several times a day on my way to and from work. If you’re not used to its idiosyncrasies it can be the stuff of nightmares. My Favorite Son traveled through it on his way to see the new building and he showed up pale and trembling. I nodded sagely at his condition and asked, “Kelly Square?”. He told me I should have warned him.

March is Leaving Like a Lion
Hope Wife's Flight Makes it Through This Storm 

Kelly Square has no less than six converging streets as well as two on and off ramps from an interstate highway. It leads to a glorious sea of confused autos and trucks. There are no traffic lights and its survival of the fittest. Strangely it seems to work well, as long as only locals are involved. Throw in someone unfamiliar with it, like my son, and chaos increases geometrically.

I went to see Power Rangers last night mainly in ode to my son since I remember him raging about them when he was very young. I invested a lot of money in action figures without ever being brought into the mythology. Given that, I had no preconceived expectations about the movie which I found very entertaining. The group of teenagers drafted into roles in a galactic war were all appealing and well-conceived. Elizabeth Banks steals each and every scene as the “bad guy” named Rita Repulsa (I’m serious). It takes a while for the action to heat up but this movie works on a number of levels. The last thirty minutes are some of the loudest I’ve ever experienced in a movie theater which came in handy to drown out the annoying group of teenagers a couple rows back intent on demonstrating their immaturity.

Beyond Words

Chipping Away

At Her New Table

Another day falls to the relentless march of time aimed towards my wife’s Friday return. Even the snow seems to fear being around to confound her, at least the resident snow. We had a day of continuous, cold rain where it was just warm enough to make a dent in our snow pack. I can now see the edges of the lawn and another day of high sun and above freezing temps could see the end of the snow cover except for the snow banks. This, all to make a certain Panamanian’s return more palatable. The amount she complains about heat down in Panama leads me to believe she’ll take what she can get upon her return.

The New and Future Chairs

Or so I thought until I heard this morning’s forecast for Friday. It will be the last day of March but they’re calling for freezing rain and accumulation snow. Apparently someone didn’t get the memo about my wife’s return. I’ll take it just to get my partner in crime back. My hopefully last dateless date night had me back at the theater last night (see below) which turned out kind of weird. I got my ticket and was directed to one of the eighteen theaters for the movie. I sat through the previews and was surprised when the movie started up and it was the one I saw last week – The Belko Experiment. I was in theater 18 and when I rushed back to the ticket counter the young lady there apologized and directed me to theater 1. In my moves around the large theater complex I noted a very welcome development. The hallways were lined with new plush, reclining seats, obviously positioned for installation. Score!!!

Hosting a Party

My granddaughter gave me a tour of her new table and chairs yesterday during our call. Her other gramma gifted the set. My daughter assembled the set assisted by her pint sized Styrofoam eating assistant. She’s already hosted a social event attended by all the best teddy bears within range. She also demonstrated a growing love of salsa music which has to be genetic. She showed me some of her most daring dance moves before losing interest to chase after the cat (also a genetic trait).

Updated Photo of our Condo (3rd Floor Near Corner)

The Backside

I also spoke with that genome source late last night who was in high form. My Favorite Panamanian is doing her usual week long farewell tour with friends and family. Last night saw an evening spent with PanaGals and Panamanian Sangria. My wife shares a very interesting history with that liquid which would get me in more trouble than I’m willing to risk to reveal here.

I went to see Chips during my trek through the theater complex which I really enjoyed. I don’t think I ever saw a complete episode of the old television series this is based on so I wasn’t encumbered with expectations. Dax Shepard and Michael Pena make an interesting set of buddies with some real chemistry. It was nice to see Pena finally getting some top billing as he’s always killing it in supporting roles. He gets the Ponch role and plays it to the hilt as a womanizer with the unfortunate habit of serially shooting his partner. I think fans of the original series are angry because this translates the plot into raunchy comedy but it is very funny. There are too many cameos to highlight and everybody seemed to have a great time. The script is lot smarter than its getting credit for. 

Hasty Dental

What do you Mean I can't eat Styrofoam!

Mondays really likes to screw with you. It wasn’t enough that I had  a potential freezing rain situation to deal with along with a contentious staff meeting but I also received a garbled (funny that) message on Friday that someone in my family had a dentist appointment first thing Monday morning. I thought it was for my absent wife but when I turned over the card that’s been sitting under glass on my desk for the past six months I learned it was for me, fun.

Elmo Can Draw Also

I figured I had just enough time to squeeze in the cleaning appointment before the staff meeting. I can’t be late to those since I’ve made it such a big issue with subordinates showing up late. I really like my dentists, a group of Asian-Americans who do great work; one of whom, is actually named Han Solo. The hygienist is a well-endowed young lady whom I will never admit to any pain inflicted because I don’t want to seem like a wimp in front of such pulchritude, it’s a guy thing. Once she as through excavating one of the dentists showed up to pronounce I had no cavities but needed a panoramic x-ray.

Everyone was really excited because they got a new machine and I was the first patient to be subjected to it. I had to duck into a booth like enclosure and place my chin in a stirrup and bite on this little protuberance. I was also told to stand up straight which was impossible since the machine was set for someone about a foot shorter than I was. They finally figured out how to raise it but it hit the roof before I could stand up straight, so we compromised on that. My shoulders were then too wide for the machine to swing around my head. We figured if I scrunched my shoulders forward the machine could make its arc. We were successful and I count this as my first ever yoga session. I made it to the staff meeting with thirty seconds to spare.

It Fits!

I had talks last night with both of my far flung descendants. The favorite Son and ABFA are gearing up for a visit home this weekend to help welcome back my Favorite Panamanian. Riggins spent the day in dog care and was uncharacteristically exhausted. He slept through the call instead of attacking my son’s feet. In my call to New Jersey my daughter was unpacking yet another aspect of a play center the First Blog Reader received from her other grandmother, a size appropriate table and chair. My granddaughter’s job was breaking up the Styrofoam packing material which she was attacking with gusto as my daughter and I talked.

My daughter dropped her IPad and squawked a bit when a small piece of the Styrofoam proved too big a temptation and ended up in the little one’s mouth. I blame myself for this because it did look like a piece of popcorn and I’m addicted in no small measure to that delicacy; so it’s in her genes. I also got a quick video yesterday that has her managing for the first time to say her own name. This induced a typically heart melting moment for her grandfather.

Floored Off

Artist in Front of Her Pallet

Here’s a handy hint for anybody who goes about the same project I attempted yesterday – washing and waxing an entire floor. Do not, under any circumstances, seal yourself off from access to the bathroom if you neglected to utilize said bathroom before the sealing. I found myself fretting in the Man Cave yesterday afternoon waiting for the damned floor to dry so I could utilize the facilities on nearly an emergency basis (note - middle age can suck). Buddy was down in the Cave with me and I could almost ready his mind saying that now I know how he feels when he’s left home alone for long hours.

Kitchen Floor Before

The project took longer than expected because it was a lot more work than expected. I thanked the world for my wife’s conspicuous consumption when it comes to cleaning products because her Shark floor cleaner/buffer was key. I moved the furniture to one side of the house, vacuumed, cleaned, laid down the wax, waited for it dry, and then moved all the furniture back. You’ll note that I waited until my wife’s imminent arrival before I did this instead of right after the floor was installed. I figured – why do it twice.

And After

I do find myself strangely in her camp now when it comes to wearing of shoes inside. Having done all the work at creating the shiny floors I’m loath to let them get smudged. My wife nodded sagely when I reported this and carped about my failure to support in earlier efforts in this area – when she had waxed the floors (probably something I’ll be paying for for a while). We had to do this while living in Hawaii (local – strangely Japanese custom) and I always thought it was a pain in the ass. I guess the critical missing element was my involvement in waxing the floor.

It's All in the Wrist Grampa

The First Blog Reader was flexing her creative chops down in New Jersey over the weekend. She’s acquired a drawing tablet and quickly taken to scribbling almost endlessly there. I first noted this when I was taking care of her in February. Her preferred technique is to draw a line and then hand the marker off to whatever adult is closest so she can try another color. She learned how to say “purple” so now all colors are called purple despite my daughter’s best efforts to add to her tinted vocabulary.

Kissing the Elmo Wingman Drew for Her

Whenever Dad Eats - It is Time to Hover

She Does Share Her Bear With Him

Journey to Calm

I'm Ready for my Closeup

Anyone who’s been reading Frail Deeds over the past couple of weeks know that I’ve been more than a little concerned about the health situation of Keene Friend. Yesterday marked one week home from the hospital for him and I finally got the opportunity to get up there to see how he’s progressing. He’s almost back to normal but a persistent cough has returned which is troubling. He’s taking the baby steps back towards full health and has a full card of medical appointments in the coming week to hopefully nail down exactly what’s going on in his pulmonary system.

Keene Friend at Elm City Yesterday

It was strange to walk into his familiar house and see a huge oxygen tank and associated equipment. He also had a long line of medications he has to take daily set up in a manner to ease distribution. I wanted to get him out of the house because combined with his week in the hospital and home recovery he had to be getting some cabin fever. He’s had a whole squad of friends taking him out for errands and short trips all week but this was my turn. I took him out for lunch and for the first time in recorded history when the two of us entered Elm City Brewery I did not have a single beer. This is worthy of note in that I finally may be maturing. It was nice to have a semi-normal conversation even if we were accompanied by an oxygen bottle in case of emergency. He hasn’t had to use any of his associated oxygen equipment in over a week but he’s being a dutiful patient.

The Medicinal Lineup

We went back to his house where we watched a movie I brought up – John Wick. We’d both seen this movie fairly recently but you know – John Wick. The Cantankerous Friend showed up displaying his well camouflaged decency. He said he was only staying for a moment but ended up watching the entire movie because – John Wick. It was so nice just hanging out with my two oldest friends (they’ll love that appellation). We did get a FaceTime call from my Favorite Panamanian who tried to supervise Keene Friend’s doctor visits from 5000 miles away.

She's inherited her Grandfather's Pizza Eating Technique

A robust snow squall hit town coincidental with the movie and I kept waiting for it to turn over to the promised rain. When that didn’t happen I decided to head home. It was time anyways because the Wonder Pooch hadn’t made the trip with me and I imagined him crossing his legs while cursing me in the basement awaiting my return. The roads were pretty slick and a car had sailed off the road just outside of town but the snow never made it south of the Massachusetts border so the rest of the trip was uneventful.

But Cleans Up Nicely

In New Jersey the First Blog Reader was casting her spell over yet another of my daughter’s friends there for a weekend visit. She raising charisma to an actual physical trait, but I could be a tiny bit biased on this subject. It looks like they had a great day together. Since it was a cold rainy (typically March) day I consigned myself to the Man Cave with the now much relieved Buddy. When I couldn’t find anything worth watching on seven hundred cable channels I decided on some hedonism and stayed up to watch the other two special edition versions of both The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. I finally hit the sack around 2am – fully geekified for the week.

Great Freinds

Wingman Made it in for This One

Charm Offensive

Big Bear Gets His Daily Hug