Rochester - Day Three
We were hearing a lot of that legendary Minnesota accent lately. I always thought it was exaggerated when imitated. But not by much.
As we walked through Apache Mall that evening, killing some time, we passed a granny talking to a friend in the store.
“She grew up so much! She’s just really stretched oot!”
The Swedish leftovers of a former age.
Earlier: before taking the shuttle to the Mayo again that morning, we got ready, discussing perfume ideas that weren’t too masculine.
“Guys like vanilla,” Carrie was saying. “Something that smells like food.”
“Oh, I know what scent Dad would like,” Mom said. “Steak and Caesar salad. Ooh – or Captain Crunch.”
“Or Francis. Some day he gets his girlfriend perfume. He says, ‘Hey, I got you perfume. Essence of – French fries.”
On that note, we left for the clinic. Of course, whenever I hear “Mayo Clinic”, I can only think of mayonnaise.
Two appointments, turkey-cranberry-mayo flatbread wraps at the Healthy Living Center cafe, and some muscle-rib therapy possibilities at Sports Medicine later, we finally caught the three o’clock shuttle back to the motel.
Mom had finally found her fill of HGTV and was ready for something different. So that’s how we ended up a couple of miles away at the Apache Mall in this frozen tundra. Didn’t spend a cent. It was more interesting listening for that unusual accent.
Using the back seat of Dad’s Civic as an impromptu freezer, we made our dinner selection. I ended up with an organic apple sausage potato egg white wrap, destined for the microwave. Add that to the arugula and red onion in my wrap at lunch, and I’d say I’m doing a decent job of stuffing down those healthy things.
As honorary old women, Carrie and I were both asleep again shortly after nine. Mom wrapped up a few of her HGTV shows.
Then we were all up again around two AM to the sounds of drunks at the McDonald’s across the street. They sounded like it anyway. Mom observed from the window curtain and decided it was nearer a gang of teens. Eventually they left. Mixed in with the noise of the helicopter pad, there might have been another interruption or two, but eventually things died out again for the rest of the night.