On This Date in 1999 (February 11)

Around 6:25, JoAnna called from the kitchen, her voice tinged with urgency. 

“Cub Scouts!”

Immediately, I jumped up from the couch in the family room, originally planning to finish the book I was reading before moving again. In spite of the fact that a reminder of Eddie’s den meeting was magnetized to the refrigerator, Mom and Dad had both spaced out.

Eddie was on the toilet in the small bathroom.

“C’mon, Stedmans, we’ve got to get going,” I called out to him.

“I have to wipe my butt,” he informed me.

He also needed a fresh roll of toilet paper, so I sprinted to the other bathroom and quickly retrieved one for him. Before we left the house, he had to put on his shirt, neckerchief, clasp, and shoes, so by the time I dropped him off, he was nearly 10 minutes late.

We have not been the healthiest of families lately. Eddie missed the final hour of school last Friday and was sick all weekend. Then Andy came down with a fever Sunday evening and missed three days of school. Unheard of! He went to band practice, which starts at 7:20, on Tuesday morning, but was in the nurse’s office before 9:00. Eddie even came home from school early that day, right around lunchtime, but he was definitely fakin’ it. He was too full of energy, zipping around the house while Andy lay immobile on our bed watching TV. JoAnna came down with her third cold of the season yesterday, her energy drained and her nose all red by the time she went to bed last night. I’ve been feeling fine, although late this afternoon, while I was tidying up and organizing my desk in preparation for tomorrow’s tasks at the library, I started to feel like a vehicle running out of gas. There has been a lot of sickness going around, a combination of low-grade fever and hacking cough. Andy was in good spirits today, leaving for school at 7:30 so he could play football with his friends before the bell rang. Right now playing basketball on his Playstation game, a reward for getting his homework done this afternoon.

Before I exercised this morning, I didn’t feel the usual chill in the family room. No wonder! It was almost 60 degrees outside, a record high for the day. As the day progressed, the temperature decreased. In fact, when Eddie and I left the house for his scout meeting, we were met with a light swirl of snowflakes. Even over the noise of the TV, I can hear the wind howling. We are supposed to get a couple inches of snow by morning. As a result of the warm weather we’ve had since last weekend, most of our snow is gone. Only a few patches here and there remain. During the middle of the afternoon today, a powerful thunderstorm blew through the area. The skies unleashed a torrent of rain. The lights flickered at the library at least a half dozen times, but fortunately we didn’t experience a power outage. Being so computer-dependent, we can’t operate without power. 

When I returned home from work, I noticed a piece of insulation on the floor of the garage. The floor itself looked unusually wet. We had problems with drainage here. For most of January, a small pond of water obscured the drain. I think it might be a good idea to call Roto-Rooter. 

I haven’t eaten anything yet – supper is serve yourself tonight – and I’d like to get something in my stomach before it’s time to pick up Eddie. I’ll continue this letter later this evening or during Andy’s basketball practice tomorrow.