Back to the Old Grind

We made one last stop before we got home, right outside of Slidell. It's just over an hour's drive from there to home, and by that point we were all ready for this part to be over.

Driving around the curve of our street, I first noted that the house was still standing. So far, so good. Then we piled out and unlocked the door, and were hit by the heat in the house.

Ouch. Coming home to a non-functioning a/c is a poor homecoming indeed. It turned out to be a minor problem, however. #1 Son heard us come in and graced us with is presence, and told us that the a/c had been functioning fine up until a couple of hours ago, when our retired a/c repair guy had finally showed up to clean the outdoor unit like he promised.

It seems he called me Monday and told me he would do it while we were gone. Before he knew it, it was our homecoming day, and it still wasn't done, so he rushed to get to it. In his rush, he forgot to turn the outdoor breaker back on. A flip of a switch, and the heat was relieved.

If only everything else were so easy.

Unpacking took what seemed like forever. The house was as clean as you could expect an 18 year old boy to keep it, and the cat boxes looked like they had been scooped regularly, so there were no nasty surprises. He had cleared out all of the food I had bought him for the week, and was in a good mood. Hadn't taken the trash barrel to the front of the house for pick up, but had managed to empty the indoor garbage can regularly.

As for the cats, well, Kida is a Siamese. Nothing phases her. Hope is mildly mentally retarded and might not have even realized that we were gone, except that she didn't have Sweetie feeding her from the table and making her barf for a week. Badlands Blackie and Little Girly were their usual selves, running whenever I came near (they know I distribute pills or shots on occasion, and only come close to me when they are sure I don't have devious plans up my sleeve). Horizon, as per his usual practice, had turned wild again (feral kittenhood), and took 3 days to calm down. He finally did, he always does.


Today is

Festival of the Purple Void

Grand Duke's Birthday, Luxembourg

Let It Go Day

Midsummer Baal -- Ancient Celtic Calendar

Midsummer's Eve -- Dragaica Fair, Buzau, Romania; Golowan Festival, Cornwall; Jaaniohtu, Estonia; Ligo, Latvia; St. John's Eve, various traditions

National Columnists Day

National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism, Canada

National Pecan Sandy Day

National Pink Day

Public Service Day

St. Agrippina (patron against evil spirits, leprosy, thunder)

St. Audrey's Day (patron against neck pain. throat disease)

St. Ethelreda's Day

St. John's Festival, Portugal

St. Nicetas Day (patron of Romania)

United Nations Public Service Day

Victory Day, Estonia


Birthdays Today:

Jason Mraz, 1977
Selma Blair, 1972
Frances McDormand, 1957
Clarence Thomas, 1948
June Carter Cash, 1929
Bob Fosse, 1927
Alan Turing, 1912
Edward VIII, King of England, 1894
Alfred Kinsey, 1894
Johannes Gutenberg, 1400 (estimated)
Ptolemy XV Philopator Philometor Caesar, BC47 (Son of Cleopatra VII and Julius Caesar)


Today in History:

The world's oldest parliament, the Icelandic Althing, is established, 930
First Battle of Uji, starting the Genpei War in Japan, 1180
First War of Scottish Independence: The Battle of Bannockburn, south of Stirling, begins, 1314
The mutinous crew of Henry Hudson's fourth voyage sets Henry, his son and seven loyal crew members adrift in an open boat in what is now Hudson Bay; they are never heard from again, 1611
The French residents of Acadia are given one year to declare allegiance to Britain or leave Nova Scotia, Canada, 1713
Empress Catherine II of Russia grants Jews permission to settle in Kiev, 1794
Christopher Latham Sholes receives a patent for Type-Writer, 1868
The Rocky Mountains Park Act becomes law in Canada, creating the nation's first national park, Banff National Park, 1887
The International Olympic Committee is founded at the Sorbonne, Paris, at the initiative of Baron Pierre de Coubertin, 1894
The College Board administers the first SAT exam, 1926
Wiley Post and Harold Gatty take off from Roosevelt Field, Long Island in an attempt to circumnavigate the world in a single-engine plane, 1931
The 1946 Vancouver Island earthquake strikes Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, 1946
The Antarctic Treaty, which sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve and bans military activity on the continent, comes into force, 1961