I Accidentally Had A Date - 3/15/12

Thursday - 3/15/12

We had a sleepover last night so I could watch my grand kids today.  I miss being at home.  At the same time, I enjoy spending that extra time with the family.  I slept in Christina's bed.  She slept on an air mattress on the floor.  She likes having me over for the night (I hope that never changes!)  She also likes sleeping on the air mattress (it's special.)  As an added bonus she doesn't have to make her bed in the morning.  Lots of pluses for having me over!

Last night Christina didn't sleep well, she kept coughing.  This morning I woke to her calling my name.  Then, she tells me "it's time to get up!"  I check my phone for the time.  Yep, she's right!  It is time to get up!  She seems to be in great spirits.  The cough medicine must have done the trick.  She's up running around.  You wouldn't know she'd had problems sleeping!

Logan and I just picked Christina up from school.  We're going to have a play-date with Claire and her kids.  We're all going to the Santa Ana Zoo.  I'm torn about zoos. I don't believe it's right to cage the animals.  I wouldn't want caged!  Sometimes, at this zoo you can feel the animal's boredom and frustration.  That's horrible.  I don't take the kids to the zoo often because of my feelings about that.

The other side is that it's been a blessing to have the kids see what this or that animal is like, without a TV in-between.  My daughter's family and Claire's family both have annual passes, which makes it a free thing to do, and a bit more enticing for me.  They also have a terrific kid's play area.

We're here at the zoo, having a picnic on the grass.  The kids finished eating first.  They're running around on the grass, enjoying the sunny day while Claire and I finish (or actually start) our meals.

Now we're in the bird aviary.  I'd like to come here and sketch sometime.  It's beautiful.  Logan especially likes the turtles.  Christina likes all the brightly colored birds.  I told them earlier that we were going to go on a unicorn hunt.  We're occasionally looking for unicorns.

Sometimes it feels strange to have the use of the SUV for the whole day, while watching the kids, and then put my backpack on and scoot off to catch the bus in the evening.  Today, I have a different plan!  I had to get in touch with one of my ex-Avalon tenants.  When I did, he offered to take me out for the meal he'd always promised.  He was supposed to come up to Norwalk on Tuesday and take me out for lunch, but had to cancel.  The next time we could work out was tonight.  He's going to pick me up from here, take me to dinner, then drop me off at my home.  I'm not counting on it.  He's a flake when it comes to schedules, but it would be nice to see him and catch up, and heck, I'd get home at the same time I'd get home by riding the bus!  No down side!

I've texted him, trying to make sure he's coming.  I don't want to miss the bus waiting for someone who's flaking.  He calls and says he is on his way, but will be 20 minutes late.  That's nothing!  Christina will love having that extra time with me.  I'm excited!  I haven't been out for dinner in awhile!  This will be fun!

My ex-tenant is a tall, thin black man with short dreads.  He's due any minute and I'm just starting to wonder how my son-in-law will handle that.  I don't want him to read anything into it either.  We're not dating, it's just an ex-tenant catching up on news and saying "thank you."

He comes to the door while Logan and Daddy are in the bathroom.  Logan's potty training.  This sometimes takes awhile.  I can't leave now, not without saying goodbye.  I tell him I need five more minutes.  He says OK and goes out to his car to make phone calls.  Now there isn't a chance to introduce him to Christian.  In a way, I'm relieved, but I also feel weird about it.  If it was a date, I'd have made a point of introducing him, but dinner with an ex-tenant doesn't have the same feeling.

I say my goodbyes and take off.  Christian jokingly tells me to have a good date.  I laugh at him and remind him that it's not a date.

My ex-tenant wants to go to the Filling-station in Orange.  He was supposed to check their menu to see if there was anything there for vegans.  He hasn't.  He tells me if I can't eat there, we can go somewhere else.

We're sitting at an outside table next to a space heater.  It's still very cold!  I'm quizzing the waitress.  They only have one vegetarian item on the menu and she doesn't know if it's vegan or not.  I'm not willing to take the chance.  I ask to leave.  

We walk down the street to Rutabegorz.  I know I can eat there.  He's disappointed, both because he isn't getting the meal he wanted from the Filling-station and because he isn't introducing me to any place new.  I've been to Rutabegorz before.

Dinner is fun.  He's an entertaining person.  Easy to be with and talk to.  Halfway through the dinner he says something about this being our first date!  Oops!  I hadn't known I was on a date!  I wish someone would warn me about this stuff!  I'll have to think about how I'd feel about dating him.  In the meantime, I'm just going to enjoy the evening!

He left for the bathroom.  I texted my friend Mary that I'm accidentally on a date.  That should give her a laugh!

We're outside my apartment complex now.  It's been a nice evening.  He asked to come in, I don't think he expected it.  I said "no."  He's going to call me tomorrow.  I'll figure out what I want to say by then.  I like him.  He's fun to hang out with, but I'm not interested in him.  It was a nice evening though.