Number One Reason NOT to Drink the Coffee at My Parent's House

Warning:
Possible offensive or at the very least crude content that might leave some scarred for life (especially if you have actually drank coffee at my parent's house.)


A week and half ago Atlanta got hit with a "snow storm". The quote marks are for the readers who live in areas where they actually have snow storms with snow. (I wouldn't want to offend anyone having just started back blogging and all.) But those who have not ever experienced a southern snow you need to know that in Atlanta any amount of snow, no matter how little, is reason for the world to shut down and for people to forget all driving skills. This year, though the snow accumulation was laughable, there really was ice on the roads and it made for some pretty scary driving over in my parts.

Exhibit A: Carmella and Beau playing the street across from my house. Complete sheet of ice.

As the member of a family where it is genetically ingrained that you must attempt to drive in all adverse conditions no matter how ill advised I drove over to my Mom's to pick her up so we could run at the Leita Thompson trail. The Leita trail is about 2 miles from her house and 7 miles from my house. I had contemplated running to the Leita but it did seem a little crazy to run 14 miles (round trip) just so I could run a few loops on the soft, groomed, snow covered Leita trails (longest loop is 2.5 miles and the max I can stand to run that loop is 4 times, usually I'm just good for 2 though). Plus, as I discovered the next day when I did run from my house that the sidewalks were very treacherous. So driving actually proved a better choice. I know many people chose to take the "snow" day off from workouts or opted to go to the gym as the temps were in the single digits but we so rarely get "snow" that I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to run in it. Who knows when Frosty is gonna show again. Gotta run and have some fun before it all melts away, right?

Snow, for us Southerners is a precious novelty. I feel like I am in a fairy tale running through the snow. Silly, I know, but don't forget: I've lived here my whole life and have been logging 50+ miles a week on the same roads for over 4 years now. Snow is a free change of scenery.

Leita trail about a mile in (clockwise):

Me and Lola heading out:

Frozen pond at the midway point on the trail:

Mom and Lola:

Mom and I had a lovely run and on the way back to her house I asked her if she had any coffee. I was out and didn't feel like stopping at the store. She only had whole beans. Oh, never mind I said, I don't have a grinder. . .

Oh, she said, I have a back up coffee maker with a grinder. You can have it. (Score!)

I know you are thinking, "back up coffee maker"? Okay, so there are 4 important things to know here about my parents:

1. They are very serious about their coffee. Annoyingly serious. Growing up 2 things we were never out of were coffee and wine.

2. My dad LOVES to buy kitchen appliances and gadgets.

3. They actually have another "back up coffee maker".

4. Yes, this makes it damn near impossible to ever buy my parents gifts. Except wine. You can, apparently, never have too much wine.

Said "back up coffee maker" that I scored:

After a lesson from her how to make a great cup of coffee, I left Mom's happy from my run and with a bag of coffee beans, a new coffee maker, a waffle iron, some beer, some potatoes, and some ketchup. (Yeah, so I remembered there were a few other things I needed to get at the store.)

I tell you what.

The shopping at my parents is good! And cheap. (Hello free! Pleased to meet you!) However, it does require some patience; like how I am waiting for them to decide that they don't really want that big flat screen that they just bought or for mom to figure out already that the wardrobe in their room really isn't the right piece for them. . .

Ryan was really excited about our new coffee maker too; especially once he figured out he could program it. And while I love that I can wake up and have coffee hot, ready and waiting--the thing sounds like the space shuttle taking off in my kitchen and serves dually as an alarm clock. The not so good part about that is at 5:30 am when I don't need to get up until 6 am. Why 5:30 am? Because Ryan ambitiously thinks he is going to be ready and leaving the house before 6 am. But typically at 5:30 am I am in the process of smacking him for the 3rd time in 27 minutes to get up and turn off the f-ing snooze.

Ryan also has been a little frustrated by the coffee but for a different reason. He thinks the coffee is weak. Therefore, I am of the belief that he is just not adding enough beans but he isn't convinced. When he found out today that my mom was coming over because my sister was coming over to do my hair he told me to ask her again how to make a "great cup of coffee." But then he changed his mind and said, never mind, ask your sister. Then he when out to do boy stuff since there was going to be a bunch of women coloring their hair here.

I totally had forgotten the story until, in mid foil and in all seriousness, I asked my sister how to make a great cup of coffee. I was thinking Ryan had told me to ask her because she and Wes have a similar coffee maker (also a previous back up coffee maker's of my parents.) But when she busted out laughing and commented that she hadn't ever told the story to mom; I suddenly remembered.

And so now we have reached the part of my story where an alternate title for this post has occurred to me: Reason #4,602 Why Not to Live in Your Parents House After College.

Pookie was about 24, doing the moved-back-into-Mom-and-Dad's-house-what-am-I-going-to-do-after-college bit. Now, first you must understand that my parents do not by any means have a small house but even though it is a larger house you are able to hear everything going on in the kitchen no matter where you are in the house. You actually come to believe, if you are in another area of the house, that once people enter my parent's kitchen they begin screaming at each other to converse. It is that clear and that loud. Pookie's bedroom at the time was at the farthest upper most point from the kitchen and one morning, surely fresh in from a hard night of partying most clearly overheard this unfortunate exchange between my parents:

Mom: Beau! This coffee is amazing! What did you do to it?

Dad: I put my dick in it.

Playing in the Snow

Ryan took a break from the whole laying of tile process to play in the snow with the kids.

I went out and documented it.

We played for about 2 hours while Ryan and Poppy waited for something or another to dry. There is still no tile on the floor yet but the furniture is out of the room, the carpet is gone and cement is primed, leveled and ready for tile in the am. I am optimistic that we will have tile and the room back in order by Tuesday at the latest. But most off all I am so happy because my dream of a carpet free house has finally been realized. Hardwoods and tile and a few area rugs. Yippy skippy, I am a happy woman and that means, well, never mind to you but we'll leave your minds to dirty places and just say Ryan is a very lucky man.

Neighbors built a kick ass snow man:


Our yard is where the snowball fight went down.

Ryan getting reamed

Beau laughing, saying "Good one!"

Carmella tossing a snowball.

Beau with monster snowball.

Carmella posing before she gets smacked in the head

Beau and Ryan on the 4 wheeler. Ryan took me for a spin and Carmella took a picture but all she got was my arm. He took me where he took Beau and I was scared. I think I might have needed a little liquid courage (read shot of bourbon) before taking a spin on the 4 wheeler. At the very least I regretted not wearing my bicycle helmet like I made Beau wear. Here is Ryan and Beau headed out of neighborhood. See I thought he took him just around the neighborhood. No. He took him about a mile or so down the road and did doughnuts in a new neighborhood. He said Beau was all woo hoo but I'm betting he poo'd just a little in his pants.


Hope everyone else had a fun and fantastic snow day!

Snow Run

I took this picture with my camera phone. It doesn't do the scene justice. It is from the end of my 5 miles in the snow run. When I started out the snow was just starting to fall. When I returned white was inching out the grass and red Georgia clay. I love how the road curves here. It always makes me happy to see it.

This morning Lola and I were going crazy and couldn't wait to go out to run. Ryan didn't want me to go and Lala was down right against it. But Ryan is laying tile in the playroom this weekend and more than not wanting me to run he wanted the kids and dog gone for awhile. So I called Pop and pleaded with him to watch the kids while Lola and I ran. He agreed. Lala of course tried to discourage me. Pop then got on the band wagon and lectured me and Lola and I ran out the door into the snow leaving Pop and the kids to play in the snow.

It was absolutely fantastic. Sadly though the snow wasn't magical for me like it is for Frosty. My calf tightened up about a half mile in but then relented by the end of the first mile. My leg felt a little heavy and awkward but it didn't hurt so I kept running. I thought Lola and I would hit the Leita Thompson trail but there were no cars in the parking lot when we got over that way. It was sort of freaking me out to run along the road there. I kept thinking the cars were going to hit ice, skid and plow into me. So I ducked back into the neighborhoods. There are few rollers in there but nothing too terrible except the hill that tops out at Carrie's old house. I have a hard time with this hill when feeling fresh so I just walked it. At the top of the hill I checked my calf and the vein was bulging and green again and it looked bruised around it. So I walked/jogged that last mile back to Pop and Lala's. I didn't care. I had low expectations for this run and it was nice to walk in the snow and just be out there in the Atlanta Blizzard 08. Besides I totally missed the mark for dressing for a snow run. For some reason it didn't occur to me that snow? When it melts. Is water. Yeah, waterproof, duh.

I showed Lala my leg when I got back. I was thinking maybe it was a blood clot. Both she and Pop have had problems with blood clots and even though I tested negative for all those markers--as did Pop-- I am on birth control so I was a little worried maybe that was the issue. She noted the bruising and agreed that the leg was swollen and felt different from the right leg but didn't think it was a blood clot. And after a few minutes the bulging vein and bruising subsided. Now it is completely gone. Hopefully the Dr will have some insight on what it is. Like I said, it doesn't hurt. Just pressure and tightening in the area and a sort of dull vague ache--but not now, only when running.

Oh well. Off to play in the snow and on the 4 wheeler. . .

PS. Welcome to The Clyde. Thanks for delurking. I totally see how snow might not seem so fantastical if it was an everyday thing but here in the South it is a rare and precious gem that causes mass hysteria and hysterics.

PPS 20/0 and 41 miles for the week. Eh.

Just Before Bedtime and the Magic Melts

My front yard 5 minutes ago . . .
Oh, Frosty, the snowman, is a fairy tale they say. He was made of snow but the children know how he came to life one day.
There must have been some magic in that old silk hat they found. For when they placed it on his head he began to dance around. . .


That's right. There is snow in Atlanta. And, it is sticking. And the kids are out of their mind excited. So I let them go out in their pj's and no shoes to dance in the falling the snow for just a minute.The first time Carmella ever saw snow she was just a year old. We came downstairs in the morning and she pressed her face against the glass and said "Look. It sugared."

And Beau told me just a few minutes ago that snow was like cold sand. . .

And I say snow makes the world look magical.

I hope the magic stays so we can make our very own Frosty in the morning.

17/0: Ten miles again today. Calf is much better. This time I ran the hills, even pacing. Very nice.