Midnight ponderings

Today I...

...waited until the last minute to get out of bed and go to work.

... drove to the store after work, and bought an odd assortment of things. An insulated lunch bag, ingredients for dinner (Blessed Basil Pasta, my own recipe which I created and posted here last fall), restocked on yogurt and bought some haircutting scissors.

... got home, made dinner, realized I had forgotten the scissors at the store. I was at the self-check-out line, and I even remembered to bring my recyclable canvas grocery tote. Yet, after I paid for everything, in a rush, I forgot the scissors.

... after dinner, Job and I decide to head back to Fred Meyer's (that's a "one-stop-shopping-center" here in the Northwest).

...not only did we decide to go to Fred's, we decided to make an adventure of it and WALK there.

...30 minutes later, we are there.

...we see Job's friend's parents, who show us pictures of their newest grandbaby who we've been meaning to visit. Very fun!

... I get the scissors back, and make one of my frequent trips to the restroom.

...We walk home, chilly and inhaling traffic exhaust, but we're happy.

... Job realizes he forgot his keys to the apartment. I don't have mine either. But I shrug it off-- afterall, we had the scissors and that's all I cared about.

... Tried knocking on several neighbor's doors to use a phone.

... Our apartment manager is not home.

... We try the door of a couple that lives on the first floor. They are from George Fox University too... but we've never really met.

... They let us in and are very friendly and hospitable, and let us use their phone and internet for finding resources for helping with our problem.

... While Job was trying to pry open our apartment with a coat hanger, I stayed with our new neighbor buddies. Our apt. manager returned my call and said he could let us in after he got home from work... at 11:00 pm.

...Hmmm. Pay $55 for locksmith or wait an hour and a half... Since I was actually pretty beat, I was ready to shell out the big bucks, but nah!

... We thank our neighbors for their hospitality and warmth, and we walk 6 blocks to Job's bro's house.

... We watched an old 80s movie on tv with the sis-in-law, and then two episodes of 'Who's Line is it Anyway?' I hadn't seen that show since high school! It was hilarious, a very special treat.

...At 11:00 pm, we are driven home in style in my brother-in-law's new (to him) 2003 Volkswagen diesel Jetta. Satan pokes at me mercilessly, doing his best to provoke my envy. Get thee behind me.

... We're back at our shoebox, and instead of crashing on the bed, I find myself in the kitchen, cleaning up the blessed basil pasta mess we'd made before we left for our wonderous walking adventure to retrieve the all-important $6.99 haircutting scissors that I'll probably never get the guts to use on my own hair.

...Scrubbing pots and pans is very cathartic for me, as I labor to ward off more covetous daydreams of me driving around in that silver diesel Jetta, saving money with each mile with it's amazing 50-miles-per-gallon milage.

... Now that the dishes are done, the sink is scrubbed, the floor is swept and the rotting potatoes have been discovered and disposed... I'm here. Apparently I'm not done with my carthartic exercises.

... Job is in bed, and I should be there too. After all, it's been a rather crazy day. Mom, I can honestly say I got my exercise for the week. :) Now I'm ready to crash.

As a final note, and only after venting about MY petty problems, I now I must take the spotlight of selfishness of myself and ask once more for your prayers. Job's grandfather died on Sunday morning. He was affectionally known as "Ceeb," and he died peacefully in his sleep, after spending the previous day at the beach surrounded by his loving children. He came to Job and I's wedding, and as weak as he was, he was so determined to stand throughout the entire service (of course, he did NOT have to, but like I said, he was determined). May his memory be eternal, and may our sweetest Lord grant him His great mercy.