June 8, 1991

Liz calls to inform me that Chris can't make it to work.  Can I be on call?  Fifteen minutes later, I am reassured by the news that Deb has agreed to fill in.  A couple hours later Liz calls a thud time to say that Deb isn't feeling well, but not to worry, it's a slow day and she and Maria can handle it.  Andy and I go to Menard's to buy some landscaping posts for my backyard project.  We run into Kathy (Weise) and Bill while we're there.  Then  while Andy is napping and Barb is watching Eddie, I make a trip to the Bruce Company.  I spend most of the afternoon setting the posts in place, using the mattock to loosen the earth and provide a level surface.  When JoAnna returns from the Capitol, she asks if I'd be willing to do the grocery shopping.  I lose my list along the way, but the only important thing I forget is the [illegible].  I also stop at KMart to buy some end tables for the patio.  Larry and Martha and, later, Chuck join us for a cookout.

March 29, 1991

I plan to work a few hours in the morning as Deb is scheduled to attend an all-day workshop.  "On Good Friday?" I neglect to ask myself yesterday.  Once I realize there'll be more than adequate coverage, I decided I'm only there to pick up my paycheck.  I call JoAnna to inform her of my change in plans, and she requests that I stop by her office before going to the credit union.  After my visit there, I make my usual Friday biweekly rounds:  Pic-a-Book, a record store (where I buy a copy of Savoy Brown's Getting to the Point, and learn that my two Savoy Brown favs, Raw Sienna and Looking In, are scheduled for CD release next Tuesday) -- plus a bonus, a visit to Paul's Book Store where I make a thorough and successful search of the architecture shelves.  I pick up Andy at daycare and we walk to JoAnna's office.  We take the little guy to McDonald's for lunch.  Their filet of fish sandwich is still as unappetizing as ever.  I spend the afternoon doing laundry and taping 60s music.  Later on, we all go shopping.  We buy a TV-VCR cart and a mirror at Menard's.  I begin to lose patience with our outing at the mall.  Andy's all over the place.  I take him to the food court, mostly to avoid an argument with JoAnna.

March 23, 1991

Housecleaning is today's focus and fortunately the view outside is depressing one.  The trees shake violently against a gray sky.  I tackle the laundry.  At noon, Andy and I go shopping.  We first stop at Menard's, where I inspect ceiling light fixtures (a replacement for the utility room seems to be no longer available, a discontinued style from the early 1960s), wall mirrors, and louver doors.  Next stop is Cub Foods, followed by Brennan's (for a chuck roast), and True Value Hardware for a replacement wing nut.  (And I would have asked for a butterfly nut!  Maybe that's what they are called in Two Rivers.)   Barry and Mary join us for dinner.  The conversation is supposed to focus on alternatives to working for the Broydricks, but it never proceeds to that point, and I'm hesitant to ask the $64 question.