A Post Out of Turn

Note: Obviously, I started this post a long time ago and am now just posting it (though I’m dating the blogpost as if I’d posted it on time). I really am a slacker!

Every Monday I do a very short, very informal chaplain’s brief at the indoc class for CNATTU (an aviation schoolhouse on the base). I always try to be squared away when I get up in front of people, so I took extra care that morning to get my fresh uniform in tip-top shape, precisely measuring out the placement of ribbons, insignia, etc., etc. I also put bars back on my black relax jacket as Melissa had washed it the night before. I arrived at work a little early so that I could hit up the barber at the NEX for a high-and-tight haircut (1 on the top, skin on the sides). I’m all set, right? Wrong! After my presentation, one of the junior sailors stepped out of the room with me and told me that I had put one set of the bars on sideways on my uniform. Oops! Why had no one pointed this out to me when I was at the NEX or in the chapel? Surely people noticed! Sadly, unlike some friends who spend their weekends at wild parties with captains and admirals, I had no hangover excuse to justify my wardrobe malfunction…just a case of the Monday mornings I suppose!

Speaking of the weekend, Mom and Dad were able to come out for a quick visit, arriving late Wednesday night and leaving early Sunday morning. We were happy to see them and enjoyed celebrating Mom’s birthday (no, I won’t say how old she is) on Friday. Saturday, Dad and I enjoyed Fort Casey while Melissa and Mom taught Sarah Rose how to blow Daddy’s money. By the end of the day, Sarah had a classic metal top and slinky dog courtesy of Daddy’s paycheck along with a new book from Grandma. The other highlight of the day was having my first piece of loganberry pie.

The real fun didn’t happen on Saturday however. Friday was truly the highlight of the weekend as Dad and I attempted to do a little do-it-yourself plumbing. The hot water handle in our tub had developed a slow leak that was getting worse. So, I decided that replacing the stem and its seat would be a fun, easy project to do with my Dad—you know, something nice and manly to offset all the female hormones running amuck in the house. Sadly, a one hour job turned in to a four hour job for four (Hoorah FOUR) reasons. First, I had trouble getting the old stem out as whoever put it in first (or tried to repair it earlier) stripped the nut. Using my noggin, I duct taped the inside of my deep socket to make it fight tightly and was finally able to get the old stem out. Second, I discovered that the old seat wasn’t coming out as it too had been abused. Third, when we ventured to Home Depot, we discovered that they didn’t carry the same kind of stems. Fourth, when we ventured to Ace Hardware (Melissa was calling a plumber by this time), we were able to purchase a stem that worked, but really wasn’t 100% right. It seems that no one makes the same kind of plumbing anymore (we never did figure out the manufacturer), so two days later the real plumber came to put in a completely new faucet and handles. While at the house he also replaced the master water shutoff valve under the house that was rusted shut and also reseated our toilet (also leaking) after cutting out a segment of the drainage pipe so that the flange the toilet sits on wouldn’t ride an inch off the floor (it’s supposed to be flush). So much for saving those 700 bucks to spend on French doors and a porch this summer…

Moving on to a happier thought: the other night I settled in the glider in Sarah’s room and waited for her to pull off her bookshelf (shaped like a dollhouse) the books she wanted me to read to her as a bedtime story, as is our custom every night. Well, God bless her, the little munchkin pulled off every single penguin book she owned and brought them to me. Mind you know, she didn’t pull off any other books; just the penguin ones! I have trained my daughter so well!

An even happier thought: when I returned home from work today, I sat on the couch and let Sarah sit in my lap. She likes exploring the pockets of my relax jacket, pulling out the pens, cell phones, wallet, keys and loose change she finds in there and scattering them about the living room. Well, after she was done today, I lifted up the seat cushions to retrieve a pen and some change that Sarah had dropped into the cracks. Guess what I found under one cushion, in plain sight? You’ve got it—Melissa’s cell phone, the one missing since late December, the one she finally bought a replacement phone that just arrived two days ago. Figures doesn’t it? I must say though that the look on her face when I showed her the phone was almost worth the money we spent buying her a new one. Almost.