A Rainy Friday

SoCal woke up this morning to a rainy Friday. Nothing out of the ordinary, it is December after all. And all it meant to me was that I was just as likely to stay indoors today. Except that I didn't. First Lisa dropped off Claire and told me she got a ping from Amazon that there was a package on her patio but she couldn't find it. It was likely out on the front yard. I told her I'd pass by her house and go put it inside the for her on my way to other places later. What other places? I happened to purchase Johnnie's black pants and white shirt outfit he needed for next week's winter music show in the auditorium. It's obviously a big deal and I wanted to make sure he had the appropriate attire. And I planned to pick it up at the store I bought it from - The Children's Place at the Westfield Fox Hills mall. So yes I did plan on going out somewhere today after all. I did go by Lisa's house and while there I figured I'd take a shower. I don't know why I preferred to shower in her downstairs bathroom even more than my own shower. Maybe I got used to it back in the day? Anyway I got cleaned up and then went home just long enough to attend the Salesforce check-in meeting at 11 AM. I dreaded this meeting because it felt like the consultants were dragging it out and going through all kinds of crap just to extend the project. And the project leader wasn't providing much added value. A point that Barbara had to make sure she expressed, even while also saying this was the first time she was really involved in the project to the level of detail that she was. I kept myself from actually saying THAT IS WHY we try to avoid involving you to this level of detail. But since this is her workflow, she had to approve stuff in the weeds. Even though in the process of doing so, some miscommunication was bound to take place. And I have to step in to make sure there is balance between expectation and result. Kind of the same thing that was happening with Penelope. People not used to dealing with software implementations simply are too all-over-the place overwhelmed and the vendor is really simply trying to make sure they do what the customer says. Although Barbara I'm sure is too much in the trees to come down to the weeds.  Anyway that's for next week and I notch it as simply another to-do. And I patted myself on the back that I did not lose my patience, or get insecure with myself. I know what I'm doing. If I'm not communicating properly I will acknowledge it. And if none of it is good enough, it's ok. I note to myself that this is all the more reason to lock in an income source to replace the QueensCare income. I know it won't get rid of the annoyances brought up by the Barbara's and the Marina's and the Eloisa's of the world. But maybe it would help me be more patient and more motivated to work with other new people?

Anyway I did find myself at the Westfield mall right after the meeting. I haven't been to a mall at Christmas time in a couple of years! It made me remember all those Christmases past when I would spend some time at malls during this time of year. That would be when I still gave presents LOL. These days the only person bugging me for a present is Johnnie of course. And I don't know what to get him still.  How come I stopped doing that... buying people presents I mean? Anyway, it wasn't crazy busy, at least not today. I was still able to find a parking spot close to the entrance. But it was busy enough to me. And I was glad people are out and about again buying presents and what not. I also made it to the food court to try something new, this time a barbecued tri-tip sandwich that I had for lunch. I picked up Johnnie's outfit too and I was excited for him to try it later on. I picked him up from work around 4 PM and there was no Spanish class today since his teacher Hayil asked for a reschedule. All that meant was that Johnnie had more TV time. Lisa worked today and we knew she wasn't planning on staying late at all. But I still made Johnnie dinner. Penne and chicken noodle broth AND a Trader Joe's pizza. For me I was in the mood to make beef stew actually. Always nice to make stew on a rainy day right? Lisa came to pick up Johnnie at around 6:30 PM. Way way earlier than usual. She claims to be trying to turn over a new leaf and spend less time at the office. I hope she does that in earnest and I, for one, would support her 1000%. I mean how can you not spend whatever down time you can with Johnnie? I loaded him in her truck and that would be it for this weekend I thought since Lisa isn't working tomorrow. I spent the rest of my evening watching Netflix. The Chloe Grace Moretz sci-fi thriller PERIPHERAL on Amazon Prime too. And I pronounced myself ready for a nice, restful weekend.