I crawled out of bed at 7:30 this morning and quickly made my first shot of espresso before I brushed my teeth, pulled on shorts and t-shirt and put my hair in a ponytail. I was a little concerned. I hadn't had much sleep the night before. Just having problems with insomnia, and then when I finally started to fall asleep, Reagan crawled into bed with me and tried to play pat-a-cake on my face. 7:30 was not the ideal time to be waking up, but I had to. Today was my THEA testing day, and it started at 8:30.
Tanner got the kids in the car and drove me to Blinn. The test was slotted to take 5 hours, so I made sure there was a bottle of milk and plenty of baby cereal for Georgie. We arranged for me to call from the office phone when I was finished.
Well, I finished in just under 2 1/2 hours, and I walked over to the office. That was when I realized that it was Saturday. I tried the office anyway, but it was closed. I groaned. It meant I would have to walk to find a phone. The usually crowded parking lot was deserted. Summer break had just started for the colleges in this area. I sighed and began my hunt for a pay phone. I walked down 29th street to Villa Maria. I walked down Villa Maria to Texas Ave. 2 miles of walking before I found a phone.
I placed a collect call to Tanner, but no one answered. I sighed again. Tried again. No answer. Tried one more time. No luck. Decided to walk to Starbucks and get coffee and a donut. After a bit, I went back to the phone and tried again. No luck. Once more unto the breach dear friends, and still no success. I shrugged, figured it was only about 3, maybe 4 miles to home, so I'd just walk it.
As I trekked on down Texas Ave., I remembered that we had dropped off a bike at the bike store. That would mean the very last bit of the journey could be accomplished pretty quickly if I picked up the bike. About another two miles down the road, I spied another pay phone. I was surprised at how empty the streets were, but I guess everyone is right about the town emptying during summer break. So, I tried another collect call, and this time the operator said that our phone wasn't set up for a collect calls. Aha! So, I payed for the phone with my debit card, but still, no answer. Oh, well, it didn't really matter, I was almost home.
I stopped at the bike store, picked up the bike and pedal my weary way home. Only about a mile left in the journey, but it was nice to have the speed for the last little part. When I got home, there was no car in the driveway. So, I sat on the porch and prepared for a long wait. And then, the thunder began to roll. I almost started to cry at that point, but instead I prayed, "Dear Lord, I really don't want to get wet or electrocuted, please bring my family home to let me into the house."
Apparently, Tanner had woken up to hear the phone ringing the time before I went to Starbucks. I think it was my sixth call. But, he wasn't able to accept the collect call. He assumed I was calling from Blinn, so he put the kids in the car and went to go get me. He waited around for about an hour, and then when I finally didn't come out of the building, he drove home the same way that I walked.
He got home about 20 minutes after I did, so the I didn't get wet. I didn't get electrocuted, and I discovered that it is possible to walk all the way home from Blinn. Tanner clocked it: 5 1/2 miles. I guess I'm getting into pretty good shape because I'm not even that phased by the trek. I am tired, but that's because I didn't sleep last night.
Oh, and the testing went well.
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