So where's Mr. T you ask? He's off and riding..."on the road again"! He headed out yesterday morning, destination Glen Burnie, MD by way of Ashland, VA. He looked so nice in his new burnt-orange and maroon sweater and shirt...a gift from Missy M. I told him he looked like a VaTech fan...and he said that's good 'cause he was headed to Hokie country. It's been two months since his shoulder surgery, and he feels better with each day.
However...
He's a little out of practice. A couple hours after he left, I noticed his wallet on the counter (pic above) His WALLET! With his driver's license...his credit cards...his folding money. Yikes! Change of my plans: day trip!
I texted and phoned him, and he was blissfully unaware of his situation. He was also just over the VA state line on I-85 North. And he was almost out of gas. (Since gas is so much cheaper in VA than NC, he usually tries to stretch his luck to save some $.)
I grabbed the wallet, my purse, and my phone...tossed the pups (who were confused about Daddy's absence) a rawhide/chicken jerky chew each and promised I'd bring home fries (first thing that came to mind!)...jumped in Lillie Pearl PTC and headed her toward a meetup in the middle. Almost.
Mr. T could only find a little over $3.00 in loose change in his car. Fortunately, gas in VA was $3.08 a gallon so he got a whole gallon...giving him a little over 30 miles in his tank. He decided he could make it to a Sheetz at Exit 212. That gave me about 100 miles...which would work as I had a little over a half-tank.
Thankfully it was a gorgeous day for driving. We had bitter cold temps on the way, but it wasn't predicted until late afternoon. I could do this! And I did. We met up, exchanged the wallet for another goodbye kiss (!), and was back on the road home...and Mr. T back in the road to VA/MD...in less than 10 minutes (even with a potty break)! *
I made it home (with a bag of Mickey D's fries) in time to take down the outdoor Christmas decor (just a wreath, a couple of flags and windsocks), cover the containers with my miniature roses, detach the garden hoses, and cover the faucets with styrofoam caps. The temps had dropped 10 degrees on my ride home, and I wanted to be prepared. Here's a shot of the clouds I snapped on my drive home. (Looked like snow clouds, but no go for the snow.)
While I didn't get everything done I'd planned for my first day Back to Normal, I got the main things accomplished...including a 12.5 bike ride from Lewisville, NC to Shacktown, NC (more on that in another post to come).
Today, I finished up my list by washing a big pile of clothes, making a big pot of beef-veg soup, and then making my 3 favorite "comfort food" sandwich spreads (pimiento cheese, ham salad, and egg salad)...half-recipes, since only I will eat them.
[Funny...the only differences in my pimiento cheese recipe and my Cheese Ball recipe are about 4 times the amount of cream cheese, 1/2 as much mayonnaise, and pecan pieces, cayenne pepper, and paprika for rolling the Cheese Ball...but Mr. T turns his nose up at pimiento cheese, all the while devouring the Cheese Ball. Oh well...more for me!]
"Comfort food" and winter weather preparations? Oh yeah! I snapped this shot of the thermometer on the deck (against the house) at 7:30 this morning: 7 degrees!!!
And from the Weather Station reporting from the Way Back (out in the open) at 7:41 this morning: 5.5 degrees!
The weather wonks are assuring us we will rapidly be returning to more normal temps. Bring it on! I'm really ready for some Normal.
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*Footnote:
I got this message from Mr. T last night, after he had finally made it to his hotel room.
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Heheheheh. (Almost) back to normal indeed.
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