Well, halfway. I'm off to Kellyburgh (a term that has confused some friends and my mother in the past when I've used it. It is the home of our friends Chris and Chrissy and their last name combined with Pittsburgh gives you Kellyburgh). It is a good halfway point between here and there. And I love visiting with them.
Tomorrow morning at this time I hope to be underway to Pittsburgh and to Jess and her stuff. We'll pack up the car, she'll check out of the dorm. We'll spend the night at a hotel up by Doug's parents and then in the morning on Friday get up and motor out.
I am taking Geoff with me.
He has an unplanned vacation from school. I had toyed with the idea of taking him with me anyway, and dismissed it because I know he gets upset if I take him out of school for a couple hours for a doctor's appointment. I knew he'd freak out if I said that he was coming with me for three days. What kid does that? Honestly? Don't most kids LOVE a day off from school? Mine never did. Weirdos.
Anyway, his vacation is unplanned because he got in trouble in gym yesterday after a kid hit him (hard) in the face with a ball. The kid says he didn't mean it, but Geoff thought it was intentional and actually wrapped his hands around the kid's through (a la Homer and Bart Simpson). The kid is fine, Geoff's got a sore nose and cheek but not discernible black eye or anything. The punishment for aggressive choking of a kid (punching him would have gotten a one day, for a first offense) is a five day suspension but the Assistant Principal has known Geoff since he was in 5th grade with the youth football league, and realizes that Geoff over reacted, and gave him three days.
Exactly the amount of time that I wanted to (but didn't) take him out of school.
When I told the Assistant Principal of my plan (that I'd abandoned) he said "Hey, you got what you wanted in a round about way. Do me a favor, don't wish anything that has to do with me."
You know, lest HE get suspended or something.
So yeah. Getting ready ... we should be outta here in like an hour or so. I'm letting Geoff sleep because he is very angry in general, and doesn't even want to go with me, so I'm giving him wide berth today until it is time to go. He never sleeps past 8am and it is nigh unto 10 at this point. I'm wondering if he is just awake, and curled up with sullen self-loathing in his bed.
I'm willing to give him that self-loathing time, if it is what he wants.
We have to tidy the car up, I may have him clean the upstairs study a bit before we go since Doug works there on Thursdays and it is a super mess. I want to burn some CDs so we aren't stuck listening to crap across Central Pennsylvania.
More than anything in this trip, I actually hope we have time on Thursday to go to the Carneige Museum and see the Christmas Trees and the Presepio. It is the highlight of Christmas in Pittsburgh to me.
And I'm not sure when we'll get back there, if Jess will end up going back there to study next fall or no... So I want to soak it in. Just a little. I think of all the things right now that bum me out most in life, my living vicariously through my daughter's inner city Pittsburgh experience coming to an end bums me out the most.
So, as we depart, here is a picture of some angels and junk. This is what I want to see in Pittsburgh. I'll let you know if I make it there. If you want to see a closer up version, click here, and you can also look at all the pictures I took last winter in that set.
It is so wrong how hard Geoff always makes me laugh for the scrapes he gets into at school. It's the WAY he gets into trouble that always makes a great story. Like the kid behind him in chorus? I would have punched him too plus he gave him fair warning! Have a safe trip honey. c
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