Pre-Derby week news

Mom got the OK to start back to work late last week – getting medical permission for working at home – and worked through the weekend. While she worked she started getting dinner take-out and eating in her apartment instead of in the dining room. Mom has been exercising at the retirement center gym every day since her therapy wrapped up more than a week ago.

Mom has been limiting her driving, but did get out to a Tallahassee American Association of University Women annual social event – to which she invited some other friends – last week (over the weekend – besides the funeral and wedding in Ohio – she missed the state AAUW – an event she twice ran for an organization for which she served as Historian during the past year).

Friday Mom’s realtor met with the contractors. Another damaged wood spot outside was found, this one on the bank of the house. Mom has spent about $5,000 on fixing up the house. The realtor sounds close to taking pictures of the house and putting it on the market. I hope it hasn’t closed by late May, when I’m planning to visit – I’d like to see the house one more time and like to check out what the contractors did.

Although we visited Ohio this weekend, we didn’t get to see Vincent. He started his new job as a dishwasher at a Bob Evans near Graceland shopping center in north Columbus. He worked a few hours Saturday and then more hours Sunday. He had to be there at 8 a.m. Sunday and seemed tired Sunday afternoon. The only bus that goes near his apartment goes across Morse Road to near his restaurant, but it sounds like he’s gotten rides from his father or grandfather (who’s been staying at their one-bedroom with Vincent’s grandmother and their dog) so far. We offered him a ride home Saturday but he didn’t go for that. Apparently he may have opportunities for advance, but we’ll see if he sticks with it. It’s ironic because until very recently he associated Bob Evans with breakfast food and complained when we tried to go there.

If Vincent sticks with a job he may not have a week every month or two to visit us – as he’s been doing since he no longer had a job as of early January. And given what happened late Monday night to the people he hung out with while he was here last – including hanging out with them all night exactly a week before this – http://www.fox41.com/Global/story.asp?S=12362720 – we may not want him here either. Not the comments also.

Vincent has apparently tried out some of his on-line classes he signed up for and says some of them are easy. We’ll see if he can work on school and work simultaneously.

It remains to be seen what if any classroom space Stephanie will have available to her once her school takes in 100 or so new students over the summer.

I’m excited to have Oaks Day (the day after the Pegasus Parade before Derby – the Oaks is the all-fillies race that Rachel Alexandra won last year) sort of off. We’ll see if I can get the problems with my work laptop power cord/adaptor fixed before then (which would allow me to work home some that day) and whether I’ll still have a job exactly two weeks (14 days from Oaks Day) later.

Penny is busy preparing for a series of dance performances this weekend in Virginia, where she will receive an award.

-- Perry