On This Date in 1998

And it was. A Subway kind of evening, that is. For the boys, anyway. Around 7:30, I called JoAnna at her office to get an indication of when she’d be home. She was just about ready to leave, actually, and asked if I could pick up a couple entrees at Grand China, a take-out restaurant just three doors from Subway, while the boys ordered their subs. If this family is any indication, no wonder the Madison area is such a mecca for restaurants.

The boys camped out in the family room. Being the wonderful big brother that he is, Andy allowed Eddie to be part of the group. JoAnna and I adjourned to our bedroom and watched the Badger football game, which was broadcast locally even though it was being played at home. Exciting, sometimes nerve-wracking game. Wisconsin looked unbeatable in the st quarter, taking a 14-3 lead, then the game took a 180-degree turn as the Boilermakers scored one touchdown and two field goals and knotted the score at 17-17 at the half. The third quarter looked like a continuation of the 2nd, with Purdue moving the ball effortlessly. Fortunately, turnovers prevented them from scoring. Then late in the quarter the Badger offense fired up after the defense intercepted a pass and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown, Wisconsin taking the lead for good. The Badgers are off to their best start (6-0) since 1993, when they last went to the Rose Bowl. Wisconsin does not play Ohio State this y ear, which would probably have been the showdown game of the Big Ten season.

Another gorgeous day today. JoAnna convinced all of us, Matt included, to attend 9 o’clock mass. (His family belongs to St. Bernard’s parish.) Andy, Matt, and Meaghan played together all afternoon, mostly at Meaghan’s house. With Dad as his chaperone, Eddie spent an hour rollerblading up and down a section of Elmwood Avenue, soliciting popcorn orders for a Cub Scouts fundraiser. The goal for each scout is $63 and he exceeded that by $27, and that’s before he’s made visits to the library and to JoAnna’s office. Eddie is a member of troop 340, which includes 6 other second-graders from Elm Lawn school. He was a Tiger Cub last year and really enjoyed the experience.

Once Eddie and I returned home, he watched TV but I tackled a more ambitious agenda. I continued to clean the mildew off the exterior of the house. I mowed the front lawn, a chore I thought I’d be done with for the year, but the unseasonably warm weather keeps the grass growing as if it’s mid-June. Most of the leaves are still on the trees and green, an unbelievable scenario for this time of year.

JoAnna worked almost 8 hours today. She returned home in time for a spaghetti dinner, which included salad (the already chopped up and bagged variety) and garlic sticks (the Pillsbury variety). The sauce was courtesy of Paul Newman, but I actually boiled water to cook the pasta. 

Everyone else is in bed right now. (It’s 9:20, and a few minutes ago I turned off the mute when I noticed that Atlanta’s bats had finally come alive.) The boys, of course, should be in bed, but JoAnna complained of having a stomach ache (is that a bad review of the meal I fixed?) and a general rundown feeling. I’m sure I’d feel the same way too if I hadn’t taken a real day off in more than three weeks. I’m glad the election is less than a month away.

On This Date in 1998

I sent you one of my regular reports just two days ago. Here I am back on the computer again, ready to transcribe the continuing saga of Life in Middleton. I thought I’d try a change of pace tonight by using different points of view, none of them my own.

If Andy wrote you a letter about what happened in his life the past two days, it might go something like this. 

After school I rode my bike to the library. I can’t go ho mater school now because I went to Meaghan’s house yesterday and didn’t let Dad know where I was. He was home from work since he had to work at the library in the evening. He called Meaghan’s house at quarter to four to find out where I was. I told him I’d be home in time to get ready for football practice, but before I knew it, the phone rang and it was Dad again. He sounded mad. He asked me if I was planning to skip practice. I just lost track of the time.

While Dad was at the reference desk this afternoon, I sat in his office and finished my math homework. I called Meaghan and she stopped by the library for awhile. She had to leave at 4 and go back home since her dad was giving her a ride to karate. I checked some books out of the library before going home. Dad didn’t make me stay there until he left. Even though I’m not supposed to, I watched TV until Dad and Eddie came home. 

Dad was cleaning the mildew off the front side of the house when I asked him if I could play outside. Meaghan came over and we played catch with the football in the street. Dad kept looking over at us, but he didn’t say anything until Meaghan missed a pass and the ball started rolling down the middle of the street just when a car started coming up the block. That’s when Dad told us to play in the neighbor’s yard. T hey have this big open space that they let us play on. We walked over to Meaghan’s house and played catch on the street in front of her house. Her street is only a block long so there aren’t as many cars on it. When it started to get dark, I saw Dad riding his bike down the streets, and I knew it was time for us to go home. Once Dad cleaned up the kitchen and put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher, we played State the Facts. It’s a game like Trivial Pursuit only all the questions have to do with states and cities. At 8:15, Eddie and I took a bath and then the three of us all sat in the living room and read. Mom worked late and didn’t get home until quarter to 9.

And here’s Eddie’s spin.

Dad picked me up at After School at 5:30 and as soon as I saw him I realized I was going to have to walk home. He had his brief bag slung over his shoulder. IF he had driven the car, he wouldn’t be carrying anything. It was a nice day to walk, though. I carried my jacket for awhile but asked Dad to take it when we were about halfway home. Although Dad seemed eager to start washing the outside walls of the house, he asked me what I wanted for supper. I told him pancakes even though I had them for breakfast the other day. He made the batter thick, the way I like it. I ate four big pancakes. Dad was impressed. When Meaghan came over, I went outside to play catch with her and Andy. They even let me walk with them to Meaghan’s house after Dad yelled at us not to play in the street. I was in my room for awhile when Andy and Dad started playing this board game that we played the other night, but I decided to join them since there was really nothing to do in my room. I answered a couple questions that Andy didn’t know, like Los Alamos was the place where the first atomic bomb was made. Instead of taking a shower, Andy and I took a bath, but we didn’t stay in the tub as long as we usually do. I looked at a Waldo book while Andy and Dad read. Mom came home about 15 minutes before it was time to go to bed. She tucked me in. A few minutes later, Dad turned on my light and turned off the Beatles tape I was listening to and said I had to do some homework for my special reading class. I had to read off a list of 7 words and then read 5 sentences that used these words. Dad had me do this twice, and I think he was very pleased with how well I did. He even had me spell the words without using a piece of paper, and I got every one right. Dad gave me a big hug and some words of encouragement before he turned off the light, turned on the tape player, and left the room.

November 19, 1991

I throw Barb's Tuesday schedule out of whack by keeping the washer and dryer in use for half the morning.  I also venture into the back yard to rack some leaves, though about 1/3 of the fenced-in area remains covered.  Agonizing over the conditions of some parts of the exterior of the house, I wipe off some mildew but decide against a more ambitious washing.  Just as well.  It starts raining shortly after 11.

It's a relatively slow evening at the reference desk.  No major incidents to report:  no cellular phone rudeness, no toddlers wandering into the lobby unobserved by inattentive moms, no pizza parties. Sometimes I wonder if it isn't time to take stock of my accomplishments and consider some career alternatives.

June 4, 1991

Barb must think I have the morning off, because when I need to use the bathroom, she's taking a shower.  I am annoyed.  JoAnna leaves for work early, so I need to drive Andy to daycare and myself to Baraboo for the SCLS Advisory meeting.  I'm a few minutes late, but not enough to miss out on taking minutes.  I decide to work a split day since weather conditions are good for washing the mildew off the exterior of the house.  And here I thought I had taken care of the problem last year.  How disconcerting to discover its reappearance.  I spend most of the evening typing up the minutes for Advisory.  All these Dane County concerns.  JoAnna's not home when I return.  The boys are in the TV room watching baseball (Mets vs. Reds) with Auntie Barbara.  I feed Eddie and watch a different baseball game.  The boys are still up when JoAnna returns at 10:30.