Back in the Game
“This sandwich isn’t fresh anymore. Why would it do this?” Sometimes I think Francis honestly believes that food is capable of personal affronts, stingy personalities, and – on occasion – personal vendetta. Today was clearly no different. In fact, it was little surprise to me that the first word out of his mouth when he walked in the front door was, “LUNCH!”
Today, however, I didn’t have time to fix him an egg sandwich. After ten days of separation-by-flu, I had returned to the Big House to resume our weekly podcast. It was about time to lug out the old Yeti and upgrade from the freebie Jon Jay headphones borrowed off Linnea, to my Cardinal-red Christmas gift version. Improvements.
It was about the lunch hour that Francis – having made his usual comments about food – was being reminded for about the twentieth time to meet with the math department regarding an incorrect grade he received on his final. He began to give a small speech about how he was a man and could handle these things on his own. (Keep in mind he had given me a handful of Q-tips about an hour earlier to clean out his ears.)
“Guys,” he emphasized, “I’m almost twenty years old. I am fully capable of handling this myself.”
“Francis. Your fly is down.”
Speech killed.
“Why?! Why, of all times?!”
While Francis regathered his dignity, I left to pick Puck and all of his paraphernalia up from school.
First words out of his mouth – “Mom, I left my hat in the gym. I threw it up in the air and it got stuck in the light. It can’t come out.”
Our usual Wednesday afternoon/evening included Puck blazing through a two-sided math sheet featuring pocket change and writing a thank you note to his Sunday School teacher for their field trip to the Magic House. Southwest burritos with cool cilantro-sour-cream dip, and Caesar salad. Then Dad got busy pawning a box of cookies off Linnea-Irish from her very belated staff Christmas party. Next he went to the all-fruit popsicles. Puck eagerly joined him.
In temperatures barely scraping four degrees Fahrenheit, Puck and I exited the scene for the evening in our brand “new” 2009 Honda Fit, now officially purchased off the Snicketts Family Lot. Other than Joe driving it into the side of a Coloradoan mountain several years ago – or maybe it was New Mexican – I think it should hold up just fine for us. Enhanced L.E.D. interior lighting included.