Wednesday, December 18, 1991

Wisconsin State Journal, 12/18/1991

The alarm is set for 5:30, a half hour earlier than usual, due to the fact that I need to be in Appleton by 9.  I make it there with an hour to spare.  I'm disappointed to find the Casbah restaurant closed, so I settle for breakfast at Burger King.  College Avenue, to my horror, is a shell of its former self.  The Grand Chute mall has certainly sucked most of the life out of downtown.  

The reference workshop goes very well.  I really zip through my material with confidence.  I stay for lunch, hitting the road at 2, and take a detour through Oshkosh to press a few memory cells.  I remember how many times I saw the same views from the seat of my bicycle.  Once in Madison, I stop at the credit union to cash my honorarium check, then unload the six boxes of books at the library.  JoAnna wants KFC for dinner but I want to change and have a martini first.  I take a few sips and then stash the glass in the freezer while Andy and I make the trek to KFC.  The Middleton store has nothing ready, always a problem at this location.  I can't resist making a few disparaging remarks as we leave.  The store on Mineral Point Road is loaded with chicken.  

We have a dinner party in the family room, something we would have never done with  Barb, god forbid, still being here.  JoAnna crashes early, and once again Andy and I stay up to watch Green Acres.

Saturday, December 14, 1991

We get a later start than planned.  I have to stop at a TYME machine to get the last of the money that Barb is owed and at PDQ for gas.  The wind is so violently cold I settle for half a tank.  Since JoAnna plans to do doors, the boys accompany Barb and me to Milwaukee.  I keep the radio on and talk to Andy while Barb soothes a fussy Eddie.  I say nothing to Barb during the entire trip.  After she boards her plane, I don't even stick around to see her take off.  I take the boys back to the van, and then Andy tells me he needs to go potty, so we walk back into the terminal.  Eddie sleeps for the entire trip back, which is why we wait to eat lunch in Madison.  We stop at the Burger King on East Washington near Hawthorne Plaza.  The Beauty and the Beast promotion must be old news, but Andy doesn't complain about the toy he gets with his kids meal, some nerdy little kid riding a "bookmobile".  Back home, the boys and I reclaim the guest bedroom, what had been Barb's closed-door, off-limits domain for the past 11 months.  I tape music while Andy plays Santa Claus with Eddie's birthday gifts.  While Eddie naps, Andy and I watch Planet of the Apes.

JoAnna is amazed at how much Jesse has grown since the last time he has babysat for us.  I am, too, actually.  The holiday party at Sheila's is most enjoyable.  JoAnna and I should host it next year.

July 3, 1991

At first Andy doesn't want to go to daycare.

"Do you think Barb will mind if he stays home?"  JoAnna asks me.

I mumble a response, not happy with Andy's morning attitude.  My preference is that he go to daycare, and with some persistence on JoAnna's and my part, he does.

Most of my time at the library is spent at a public service desk, but I am able to do some satisfying revisions of the long-range plan.  When I look at objective #1 of the Reference Library section, I discover that the work has already been done.  I lose steam during the latter part of the afternoon and spend the time playing with some DLS annual report figures.

Andy wants to eat at Burger King.  He won't be denied, and I figure, why not, a B. K. Broiler sounds good.   Once again, Andy has ants in his pants.  He can't stay in his chair.  And why should he?  We rarely sit down to eat as a family at home.

When we get back home, Barb and Eddie are in the kitchen.  I think Barb's annoyed that she had to feed the little guy.  Tough diddy-way-diddy remains unspoken.