Ja ever have one a those days

J’ever have one a those days.

My second son, the forty three year old bachelor who has done many of the good things in life but who has yet to father a grandchild (as a bachelor, that’s okay, but he could fix that part too, if he tried hard) has a birthday tomorrow.  We decided to have a little birthday party today, since he has to be out of town tomorrow, so we got out some steaks to thaw, and Janet spent much of yesterday making him a black forest cake (he requested one, and she had never done it before but you can always find a recipe on the webb).  

Today, on the way to the store, with second son driving, we decided to go yard sale surfing (yard “sailing” would probably be a better term but heck. . .. .) We went around to several good “sounding” sales but really found nothing but a couple of books and acres of baby :clothes, toys, furniture, etc.   It would have been a good time for us if our youngest wasn’t in the mid-thirties.   For a family with two or three kids under eight, this would have been a good day.  As we were driving around we had reached the stage that we were deciding whether to go home and eat shredded wheat, to do Shoney’s breakfast bar (the glutton’s friend”) or try one more sale, when the car in front of us slowed to make a left turn.  My son was driving so he slowed as well.  The driver in front had just started his turn when CRASSSHH.  A monster pick-up rear ended us, and sandwiched us between him and the turning car.  It was not a fun moment.  Fortunately we were all seat belted, but my poor old Pontiac Montana van is not going to be the same for  awhile.  It was drivable and we got home  without incident. (The weirdest thing was trying to find my glasses.  I was wearing them at the time of the accident, and they just popped off.  We finally found the frames, with one lens popped out, back in the back end of the car.  We still haven’t found the other lens- - -should make church tomorrow interesting—I bet that lens loss isn’t covered by insurance either)

We all seem to be okay, but Janet is beginning to have back spasms (it is now eight-thirty P. M.) and the whole thing took the edge of the birthday bash. When we arrived home,  I went out to check the charcoal grill and it had been knocked over scattering charcoal dust every where, and the base was broken (had nothing to do with the car accident, but these things seem to come in threes).  By the time I repaired the grill and cleaned up the mess it was about five thirty and  the senior son had been invited over for the party at six P.M. so it was really to late to start the charcoal.  Luckily we have a gas grill as well, so I went over to clean the grates and start the steaks voila, the tank was empty (number 3, I told ya.).  Whatever klutz (probably me) had used it last hadn’t turned off the gas at the tank and all the gas had seeped away.  Fortunately I had another tank connected to the turkey-fryer/ shrimp boil cooker.  I finally got the thing changed over (It takes about twice as long now that I have passed the three score and ten mark) and got some New York Strips and Rib eyes  finished  and we had dinner, sang happy birthday and did all those things.  The Black Forest Cake was wonderful (of course, it was made by the love of my life, and she never misses) but now, Janet has gone to bed with back-spasms and a little lortab, Everyone else has gone home and my back is beginning to feel “iffy”.  Well it was a nice birthday party, but I would like to excommunicate the little black cloud that seemed to follow me around all day.