Serendipity's Fault
10-12-06, 12:08 AM

This is such an odd feeling -- I'm actually excited about work and my field again. Working with people who have a sense of humor and a passion for where they work and live has been foreign to me. If I tried to explain this to my co-workers, I�ll probably receive one those �you�re an oddball� return glance.

Since I recently moved to Arizona from Kentucky, I can't say this is a negative but my dogs are still on Eastern Standard time and wake at 5 a.m. to be let out when it is still dark. In my previous home, they had free reign of the house and backyard vis-a-vis dog doors. Now, I'm in a rental without a fenced yard and become their slave to walk them at their whim which is announced by a commanding bark and unrelenting stares.

The other morning, an ambulance was heard in the distance. Across the street in the field adjacent to the forest, a pack of coyotes responded to the wailing ambulance by howling for five minutes. My dogs froze. I froze. The howling was both amusing and frightening knowing that their numbers could overwhelm us, or at least, one of dogs as we run for shelter.

The following morning, it was either one very large coyote or a wolf that bound from the bush where the ducks usually nest at night. This large predator scampered across the road with it's nails audibly scratching the pavement as it made it's escape into the bush. Milo and Girldog instantly froze and I noted they were dwarfed by this animal�s size. Girldog, seemingly realizing that she is not as tough or the 'big dog' she thought she was, began to back into me while fixating her eyes at the scrub bush where the animal escaped. She pressed against me and twitched in fright.

Meanwhile back at the ranch.... we're all excited about running the Chicago Marathon in a week and a half but each have reservations as whether we trained train hard enough to perform well or even finish. I suppose this is normal but there is not much else we could do now and we taper down training mileage prior to the race. I did notice that I�m dropping another jean size easily to from 32 to either a 31 or 30 inch waist. Yep, nearly six years ago since I�ve been at this weight! I put on the very same jeans that I bought at my last Chicago Marathon. I�m ready!

The other aspect to the trip is my becoming engaged to the �Girl�. My plan for the proposal has been rehearsed in my mind and the place decided upon. I must admit to having moments of second guessing my decision to do so. I don't know why? Maybe, I've been single too long and grown used to my independence? I have fantasies of former girlfriends calling or meeting someone new who just awe strikes me -- similar to "Serendipity". But didn't the �Girl� evoke that emotion in me when we first met?

NO, I think this hesitation is due to wanting to meet Kate Beckinsale! Yes, it is Kate's fault. I need to meet her first and put her behind me! She has to realize that I'm moving on and I can no longer wait for her... yep, that's my problem...or at least one of many.

Yesterday - Tomorrow