Ups and Downs

Friday started off in an interesting way. My parents thought I was sleeping in. Mother wanted me to have that boon since I was on vacation. Big T was making perogies on the last full morning I was around and wanted me to get up and enjoy them. The thing was that I wasn’t asleep. I was up before six bells due to the incessent chirping of a stupid cricket. A second cricket had invaded my space and I couldn’t track this one down as easily as I did the first. I thought it was in the ceiling above the windown but couldn’t get into the drop ceiling without making an epic mess so I tried to suck it up. This resulted in me getting up later than planned and thus getting some blacker than intended perogies. They weren’t burnt but they weren’t perfect. I doused them in sriracha ranch dipping sauce to make up for it. After eating I wanted to watch a video on changing bearings on a boat trailer before work. Today was going to a be a half work day, half summer hours day. Everyone had left for work or their daily adventure so it was just me and the dogs. Titi, the rescue dog was crying and barking, thinking himself abandoned again for a few hours but I called out to quiet him. He came to see me in the basement and was very excited. He managed to clamber up on the bed and was circling, I figured he’d lay down and sleep, his favourite thing. Then I felt something hot on my side. It took a second to register but I jumped up yelling. I looked down and saw the comforter that he’d pissed all over. I ripped my freshly laundered shirt off in a rage and yelled at the dog. He got me, got me good.

I ripped the comforter off the bed before it could soak into the sheets and screamed at the dog a sufficient amount that he knew that wasn’t a smart plan. I composed myself and went to work for the morning. It was really just a few conference calls that I dialled into, providing input when asked. It was fairly low impact. I took the last hour of the morning light to work through a few things that were lingering a bit. It was good to get them off the list. I was wrapped up before lunch which consisted of the previous night’s leftovers being rolled up in a wrap and some mushroom soup that I split with Mother. While that was heating I noticed a squirrel mocking Titi and generally being a dick. I went and got the old pellet gun and took some shots. I probably nailed it four or five times out of eighteen shots. It took a couple to get the gas right and a couple more to get my aim back. By then it was up in the top of the tree with the sun behind it. I wasn’t shooting to kill or maim, simply to teach. The dog wouldn’t leave the tree for a long time after that.

After lunch was over and the excitement died down I hustled down to the shop to continue working on the boat trailer. I finished more of the wiring and started tearing about the hub on one side. The plan was to get the bearings out then go get new ones, pack them and re-install everything. We did get the wheel torn apart but had to rush home to meet up with GRP. I’d invited him out to visit, fly the drone, and see the boat. We had a nice visit and played out a couple of the drone batteries. He felt the boat was bigger in person. He also hadn’t really seen the Corvette in person so we looked at that for a bit, same with the motorcycle. I guess he doesn’t get into the shop much. We parted ways shortly after and it was time for dinner. Mother was getting some video assistance to make rolled up chicken jalapeno poppers, or some such name. The rest of the meal came out of their garden that day. The tomatoes in particular were fantastic. The beans were good, third round of those in the week though. The cucumber was interesting. It was very bitter. Apparently when cucurbits get stressed from heat or drought they react by producing a lot of cucurbitacin. This chemical can be poisonous in large quantities, usually only resulting in mild illness though. The strange folklore cure for it is to cut the end off and rub the cut end vigoursly until a white foam comes out. This flushes the toxin from the cucumber apparently. It sounds both perverse and unlikely to me but I’ll try it if I have to. Nobody died from dinner so I went to Canadian Tire and got the bearings I needed and the Big T and I toiled until ten bells working on that. We got the tires all done, new rims, new tires, new bearings. Every possible step we could take to ensure a successful journey home. We went home for a beer and then to bed. Saturday is the day of the return voyage.