humid

ugh, it's humid. there was a storm last night. i was not pleased. i haven't had to deal with thunderstorms here in at least five years so being at an outdoor festival was not a good combo.

i should have known. it was humid and hot for most of the morning yesterday and then by the afternoon when we were heading out to the festival, it had cooled down quite a bit. i had hoped the rain and storm would hold off until i got home, but as i was not in 100% control of when we left or what we did after the festival, i literally had to weather the storm. we ended up at a coffee shop in north van where Doc Tardy was being set up with Magpie's friend's brother. it was raining when we got there but within 20 minutes of us sitting down, the lightning started. and i had a mini-meltdown in the washroom. seriously, i need hypnosis.

we waited it out for a couple of hours and then the whole business of me getting home in the dark started to worry me. couple that we me having to take Luna out for her evening washroom break before bed and i was not a happy camper.

don't laugh, but when i got home, i called my brother. he and my dad were on their way home from my Lola's house, so i asked them to come by to walk Luna. my dad obliged and they ended up staying for a hour and a half. my dad really likes my dog.

hopefully today is better. it's sunny out there with nary a cloud in the sky but it's humid again. please storm at night when i'm sleeping, if it has to storm at all!

friends

my dad called me the other day and told me about the packages he was offered by his company. he read out the three options and i immediately said, "dad, you gotta call mom. i know nothing about this stuff."

apparently he did. and apparently, they're friends now. weird.

i think Luna has something to do with it - he's got something to take care of again, which gives him a sense of purpose everyday (my underlying reason of getting her, afterall). second, now that he's not working anymore, he doesn't take as many painkillers as he used to, so he's detoxed and is no longer House-like in his moods.

my mom said he offered her a ride to my grandma's birthday party on saturday and then said she could use the car whenever she needed one, so she wouldn't have to rent one anymore. weird, right?

i'm glad he's finally come around. it's hard having one parent despise the other. hopefully it lasts.

end of an era

i phoned my dad this evening just to tell him that there was a good sale on Purex toilet paper at Extra foods (12 double 3-ply rolls for $4.96 - a steal!). i then asked him how he was doing and he told me that, after much consideration, he's decided to stop working.

he's been a physical laborer ever since we moved here 31 years ago and that's a long time to be thrashing your body around. he only had 2 years to retirement but he says that his company is going to start offering packages to people who are close to retirement. hopefully they offer him something good.

in the meantime, he's applied for disability. i asked him whether he could afford to do that, quit working, and he said, "what choice do i have?"

had my parents stayed together, he'd have retired with less worry than he has to now. he would have done it because he was ready, not because he physically couldn't work anymore. he told me he emailed my mom to let her know. i haven't had a chance to talk to her yet, but i'm interested to hear what she has to say.

i told him i would hire him as my dog walker and he laughed. i know he'll enjoy spending time with Luna, as well as having something to do everyday. it won't be much, but at least he'll be getting out. i told him he should look into doing it as a part-time job. at $10 a pooch, 5 days a week, he'd be just fine.

i really am getting older. it's weird. and really scary.