Suddenly *Not So* Single Journey

It may take me a bit to get to the happy part.  Hang on.  I’ll get there eventually.  I promise.

*sigh*

So, Wednesday was supposed to be really great.  I planned it out.  Really I did.  Rachel had prepped the chocolate croissants the night before.  We were going to have breakfast together before they left for the beach and I left for work and we wouldn’t see each other for a week.  She was going to make cheesy scrambled eggs and we were going to sip tea.  Keenan was going to join us, even though he has no serious love for food.  I somehow failed him.  He eats everything, just not with passion.  Oh, well.

I had my post up earlier than normal.  I had managed to write it the night before, despite a few distractions.  And I had read through most of the blogs and commented well before 7am.  And I even sent Lisa a text to let her know I would have time to talk before work, a rare and beautiful thing.  And I took my shower, full of hope and happiness.  HE was already up and had been joking with me.

HIM: Look at you.  You are so happy…all because of that chocolate.

And I didn’t have to look in a mirror to know that my eyes were twinkling and I was practically glowing.  HE was working on Ed and Laura’s roof for the next few days.  Since the commute was across the driveway, he was thrilled.  No packing up equipment or worrying about forgetting anything.  Convenience.  Yay!  So, I went through my usual goodbyes, expecting he would be on a roof before I was dressed.

me: Goodbye!  Have a nice day!

And HE held my face in his hands and teased me.

HIM: Ah, cherubic cheeks…

Now, I was surprised he knew the word cherubic.  He never ceases to amaze me.  And then I made excuses…

me: It’s my cheek bones!

Right.

Well, I showered and felt pretty good about my day.  Only by the time I reached the kitchen, all hell had broken loose.  Apparently there was a missing key.  A really important key.  The only key to Ed’s tractor, which was integral to the job.  It was supposed to move the trailer.  And the trailer was supposed to move the old shingles.  And the old shingles needed to come off so the new shingles could go on.  And a 60% chance of rain was forcasted.  Yikes.

It only got uglier over then next hour.  I was trying to enjoy breakfast with kids while trying to help him find the key while trying to finish getting ready for work.  It suddenly had all the makings of a terrible, horrible, no good very bad day.  Grrr.

There was swearing.  And I hate angry swearing.  There was tension.  And I hate tension.  There were chocolate croissants.  And I hate getting fatter.  And the kids were going to be leaving sooner than I planned and staying longer than I had agreed.  And I missed my kids when they were gone for longer than a weekend.  (Last year I ran up a $300 phone bill on the cruise because I missed them…and had no idea about cellular at sea charges.  Those rat bastards, preying on kid-sick parents!)

HE finally calmed down.  And I started doing what I do.  There was problem solving.  There was feelings soothing.  There was my special brand of being a big helper.  I played totally beyond myself and took down serial numbers aand make and model numbers rather than saying…it’s an orange tractor.  I Googled.  I called.  I emailed.  I contacted every tractor dealer and parts supplier in two states.  I contacted the nearest Hinomoto dealer…in SOUTH AFRICA .  And the closest thing I have to a solution is a tractor company in York, South Carolina that is willing to let us look through their keys and sell us one with a money back guarantee, a man who will remove the entire ignition and replace it for several hundred dollars, and a locksmith who doesn’t normally work on tractors but succumbed to my charm and headed over to the house to see what he could do.

I did my best.  And I was pleasant to everyone, which is why I’m guessing they all tried to help me…referring me to other businesses and going out of their way to do something they wouldn’t normally.  (Except those South Africans…they didn’t even email me back!)

In the end, the charm worked.  The locksmith came through.  The new key was made.  It’s even a key that can be copied now, which makes it superior to the original.  That it came at such a high cost is a bit unsettling, but otherwise it all worked out.

I knew it would.  And I got to be HIS favorite person for the day because of it.