Monday

Today was an odd day. There were intense thunderstorms all day and a big scheduling conflict. LuLu was due at dance class in the boonies at 5:15, while YaYa had an audition workshop for Fiddler on the Roof at just about the same time.

I dropped Lis and YaYa off in the midst of a severe hailstorm then headed out through the occasional flooded street to dance class.

While Lu was dancing Smiley, Lauren and I hung out in the van, listening to a kids tape and whiling away the hour.

The only problem - when dance class ended, the car wouldn't start. I'd left the key in 'on' and wore out the battery. Dumb.

Of course the kids started to wig out and no one in the parking lot had jumper cables. You'd have thougth I was asking for a handout with the way people avoided eye contact. Yikes. Finally one woman, the previously unknown Betsy, offered a jump.

Slight comedic moment: for some reason her hood didn't have a pole to prop it up, and she was very worried the jump would prove disasterous because of this.

 So here I am with the hood propped by hand, screaming kids in the van, the only light my 'low battery' phone, and a drizzle coming down.

And the phone WOULD NOT STOP RINGING. It rang 3 or 4 times as I was hooking up the cables.

"Just don't answer it!," she said annoyed.

"I can't," I said, "I have another kid waiting on X Street" I said, with X being the not so great area where the theater was located.

So the jump works and she says "God Bless You Dan!"

"Bless me? You're the Good Samaritan, you're the one who stopped to help me, not the other way around," I said.

Seems like she was so concerned about the jump going haywire that the sucess was as much a victory for her as for me.

* * *

Lu, btw, performed admirably in her class. Smiley and I caught a glimpse of her. When her class was dismissed he gave her a sincere round of applause.

Oh, he also said 'van' today - clear as day and more than once.

YaYa came back with a dance routine to get down and some lyrics to learn. The audition is later this week. Wish her luck!

* * *

P*** on Ohio State for losing another championship game. Suck it up and don't make a fool of yourself on national TV. You represent the Big Ten, you &%^(*.