Riding home from Mt. Tabor

Here I am, Friday night on the 15, heading home from Mt. Tabor. Mama and I had played Scrabble for a while, in the sitting area. She was having a pretty good evening and felt like sitting on the edge of her seat as she searched her tiles and the board, looking for a high scoring word. We didn't get to finish the game because I needed to get home to Duncan, but it was neck and neck the whole time.

By the way, I'm beside myself right now--happy, happy, joy, joy--Dale Earnhardt Jr. just won the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona! Y'all NASCAR fans are either as excited as I am, or you're mighty upset. From NASCAR.com:

It didn't take long for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to break in his new car. Junior, who is in his first year driving for Hendrick Motorsports, won his first race in the No. 88 Chevrolet by dominating Saturday night's Budweiser Shootout.

Earnhardt worked his way to the front at Daytona International Speedway via the draft early in the first 20-lap segment. After the 10-minute break in the exhibition race, Junior commanded the majority of the second 50-lap segment by working with new teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon on the outside line.

Tony Stewart was a late threat, but he couldn't overcome the Hendrick freight train. He did manage to slip by Earnhardt for the lead with nine laps to go.

Kurt Busch then brought out the race's fourth caution due to a cut tire with six laps remaining. The top nine cars stayed out while the rest of the field pitted.

On the double-file restart with three to go, Stewart got a strong jump but Earnhardt got a run on the outside with the help of Johnson hooked on his bumper.

Earnhardt grabbed the lead as the draft came off Turn 4 and took the white flag. He kept his car in the middle of the two primary lanes and held off Stewart and Johnson for the victory.

Stewart finished second, followed by Johnson, Gordon and Reed Sorenson. The fourth Hendrick car, Casey Mears, wound up sixth.

It was Earnhardt's first trip to Victory Lane, albeit an exhibition race, since the spring Richmond race in 2006.

To Grandma's room we went

After a busy Saturday morning filled with walking and feeding Duncan and doing laundry, Duncan and I got ready to visit that little woman that he knows as Grandma. By the time we were ready to go, it was snowing, making for slushy sidewalks and wet streets. Although I got plenty of rest last night, I didn't want the stress of dealing with traffic, so I decided to go on the bus. Since Duncan felt better and is no stranger to going places in a bag, I put him in a roomy tote (along with a small towel) and stashed that in my American Tourister Mobile Office. A few seconds after I took this photo in the building's lobby, he settled down into the bag, I zipped it almost shut, and we were rolling right after I had attached my Yak Trax to my shoes--they're rubber and metal traction devices.

Our first stop was the Fred Meyer store for some cherry-flavored store-brand cough drops--Mama's had a cough this week, but her lungs sound clear. I also got her a four-pack of diced peaches, one of her favorite snacks.

We boarded a 15 bus just across the street from the grocery, at Burnside and SW 19th, and disembarked about 25 minutes later at SE 60th and Belmont. My cell phone rang just as I stepped onto the sidewalk--Mama calling. I asked her to hold on and walked to the covered entrance ramp. She asked, "What was that noise?" when I had said hello. I explained that it was the bus and that we were just outside. "Can you stand up and look out your window?" I asked. I managed to unzip the rolling bag enough for her to realize that Duncan was inside. She thought that was neat, she told me when we walked into her room a few moments later.

We visited while she nibbled at her lunch, Duncan beside her on the bed. I put away all of her clean clothes--that's why there's a second black rolling bag in the photo. Then we made our way down the hall to the sitting/TV area where we played Scrabble for several hours. I have to say that I barely beat her--it was the luck of the draw. Also we got to visit with a couple of sweet Great Danes who come regularly to the facility. Duncan enjoyed a sniff or two with the male dog, Goliath, whose nose didn't seem much smaller than Duncan's whole head. By the time we finished the game, Mama was ready for some bed rest. It obvious that she's got a ways to go to regain her strength, but it's so gratifying that she's willing to work at it. I just hope that she regains her appetite--it's gone again. Perhaps when she visits her regular doctor on Tuesday, he can prescribe something to help boost it.

We kissed and hugged, and the two of us headed for the elevator. In the lobby, closer to the outdoors, I put on my layers and got Duncan's tote ready for him, where I put him after a potty break. While we waited for the bus across from Mt. Tabor, I took the photo below. Mama's room is on the third floor; I forgot to count over from the left to see which one was hers. I think it's probably the seventh one.

As you can tell, the snow had stopped. We made it home just fine. As soon as I post this, we're going to doze on the couch. If we were watching TV all of this time that we're on the couch, would that make us a couple of couch potatoes? Isn't that part of the definition of couch potato--sitting in front of the TV?