2005-07-27

Got up on time today, at 6:00. Open up a box of Honey Nut Chex for breakfast, to replace the box of Reese's Puffs I finished yesterday. I clean up a few dishes, then go to grab a shower. I must have forgotten to open that valve that directs the water back down into the tub [instead of out of the shower head] yesterday, because as I turn on the water, I spray myself in the back of the head with cold water.

After I shower, I replace the batteries in my shower radio and do a light bit of internet surfing. Woot.com is having a woot-off today, which just means they're selling several items in succession as fast as they can sell out of them [they usually only have one item a day, I may have mentioned that before]. I'm hoping a remote control T-Rex shows up at some point, they usually do in woot-offs but I've missed it the last few times. I get dressed and brush my teeth, then check my e-mail and gather up my satellite radio boom box before head out to work at 6:45.

I get to work around 7:25 [traffic is pretty good this early in the morning] and toil through the day until about 5:45. A long day at work, with 2 downers: First, I'm told I can't have the satellite radio in my area, because apparently the antenna can somehow broadcast classified info from the computers without even being connected to them. Right. Second, the reason I put in the effort to get to work early today was so that I could [hopefully] make it to Christiana by 6:00 to meet with Shannon and her mom to look at the Hilton for a possible reception site. Leaving this late, there's no way I'll make it, but there wasn't much I could do, I always end up staying past 5 on Wednesdays do to some weekly tasks I have to carry out.

Traffic is light on the way home, I need gas so I decide to roll by the comic store [new comics come in on Wednesdays] and then head over to BJ's for cheap gas. I get into Newport around 6:40, and stop off at the bank to deposit the ticket monies owed to my father before going to Comicmania. After I'm done there, as I’m head back to 95 and then onto BJ's, I try getting a hold of Shannon to see if they're still at the Hilton and/or if she wants to get some fast food for dinner. I call her phone several times, but she doesn't pick up, so I end up calling her dad to get her mom's cell number. He gets it for me, and asks that if I make it to BJ's, to look for a light-up palm tree that we had seen there a few weeks ago.

I get a hold of Shannon and her mom who are in fact still at the Hilton, and head over there to check it out. I get there just after 7 and just as a big storm starts to roll in. The place is pretty nice, but so is every other place we've been to. I think we'll end up having a great time no matter what, my main concern these days being actually getting a place booked before we run out options completely. After we're done, Shannon tells me she's headed back home with her mom to discuss the options for the reception, and hints that I should go with them. Not really having a good excuse not to, I agree. On the way, I was going to stop for gas, but I eyeball it and figure I can make it to the house in Newark and back to BJ's without any problems [I hope].

It starts pouring while I'm on 95, and traffic slows to a crawl. I decide to call my mom, as I haven't talked to her in about a week. While talking, I bring up that Shannon's parents might ask about what she can contribute financially towards the wedding tonight. She basically repeats what she told me the last time we talked and confirms what I've been telling Shannon lately: they will be glad to help out, but being this far out from the actual wedding and not knowing where we're going to have the reception [or how much will be needed], she can't really give any concrete numbers. I get to Shannon's parents' and sit outside for a few minutes, still chatting with mom about a few potential problems that might come up with the wedding.

I head inside around 7:30, and watch some Discovery channel programming with Shannon's dad until Shannon and her mom get home, bringing some KFC with them for dinner. Everyone eats, and one of the shows on Discovery leads Shannon's dad to talk about a guy he knows who has master his chi, and can do some pretty crazy stuff with his body. By the time we're all done eating, its 8:30, and I have to go if I'm going to make it to BJ's before it closes. So I head out, not one word about the reception ever being spoken.

On the way to BJ's I call dad to check in, and end up talking to Guy for a while. He's going to be in Ocean City, NJ starting Sunday, and he wants me to either come up and visit him during the week or convince dad to let him drive his own car down so he can visit me. I'm not sure I'm able to do either, and as I'm wrapping up talking to my dad [and pumping gas], Shannon calls so I conference her in. Dad and I spout nonsense at her for a couple of minutes before everyone hangs up and I head into BJ's 2 minutes before they close to look for the palm tree. They're out, but they do have light up flamingos, which Shannon says will have to do so I pick one up and then head back home.

On the way home, I call Jeff to say "hi" and then I call Tom to confirm that he and Betsy are still coming up tomorrow. They are, but Betsy it not keen on chicken with bones in it, and I as I was planning on making beer can chicken for dinner I’ll have to make an alternate dish for Betsy. Home, I check my e-mail and the woot-off, which I'm surprised to find hasn't moved more than 2 or 3 items since I left work. While waiting for Shannon to get home, I finish reading "Lion, Witch..." and then settle in to watch PTI. I'm disappoint to find that what got Tivo'ed instead were innings 11-13 of a baseball game.

I start watching the of the Yankees game that’s on ESPN instead, answering the phone when Shannon calls to let me know she's on her way home. She's mildly upset, having spent most of the time since I left talking about the reception with her parents. I guess there was some yelling and disagreements going one, and we're still not any closer to picking a place. I tell her I'll talk to her when she gets home, and go back to watching the game.

The next thing I know, Shannon is waking me up and telling me to go to bed, which I do...