4:00:57 PM. Enjoying a beautiful, sunny last day of my four day holiday. Took the kids to work this morning to do some jeans-required tasks. Screwed a drawer on a table, moved an office panel, and sat on the floor with Danny testing AA batteries.

Kathy waited tables and got $41 in tips.

Yesterday morning, I went out on a top-secret mission to K-Mart. Used the Toyota because the Fox had a near-death battery. Came home just in time to see Kathy piling the kids and Cassie into the Fox. I figured someone was bleeding, and they were heading for the hospital.

I rolled down my window and shouted, “What’s wrong!”

Kathy was huffing and puffying as she stuffed away. “This stupid dog isn’t staying in the house. She threw up twice big time!”

I was mad. Funny how people get mad when they think something is wrong and then everything’s o.k. Afterall, using the last volt of energy left in that battery, a volt reserved for getting the car to the shop, demands a real emergency.

I took Cassie to Mom and Dad’s. She went into the pen and immediately started barking at the neighbor’s dog. I watched for five minutes. She didn’t even pause to breathe. People started coming out of their houses, so I brought the dog back home. I started to break out in hives of exasperation.

I started wondering why the dog threw up.

Turns out she had eaten dog food soaked in turkey drippings that had been sitting in her bowl from the night before. I didn’t blame her for throwing up the bacteria laden mess.

Later we dropped off the Fox to have it tuned and recharged. Runs great now, but the guy says my fuel injectors and seats leak. Volkswagons do that, he assured me. It would run for a while but eventually it would quit running all together, if I didn’t have them replaced.

I’ll be sure to have those things replaced soon, I told him. (As soon as it quits running.)