Would you like to know what happens when two indecisive people get together? Total mayhem! One indecisive person (such as myself) is bad enough. Nothing gets done in a timely manner. Everyone’s wants, needs, and desires must be taken into consideration before a clear and concise decision can be made. When there are more than one or two people, five for example, that can lead to a long, drawn-out, and exasperating process. Going through this on two separate occasions today has been how I’ve managed to spend most of my afternoon and evening. I’m nearly brain dead from all of the overthinking. And the two decisions were over relatively minor things, whether to extend my visit for one more night and what to pick up for dinner. Sad to say, but the only thing I managed to figure out was dinner. Determining whether or not I’m going to stay one more night will have to wait until tomorrow. If I sleep as bad tonight as I did yesterday, I’m definitely not extending my visit.
Last night was no walk in the park. After I finished my post, I went out to my brother’s trailer in order to get some long awaited, restorative sleep. When I opened the door, I was relieved to find it was toasty warm inside. I then closed the door carefully behind me and locked it. Per my brother’s recommendation, I shut off the furnace and just left the space heater running. He was concerned that the noise was going to keep me up all night. After shutting it off, I went through my nightly ritual (changing into pajamas, flossing and brushing teeth, catching up on all the latest headline news, etc.) and eventually climbed into bed. I noticed it was cooling off inside the trailer but I figured that once I got under the covers, I’d be fine. No, I wasn’t fine. I laid there for several hours freezing and once I got the nerve to get up and turn the furnace back on, I realized what it must be like to spend any amount of time inside of a meat locker.
It was c-c-c-cold! I couldn’t understand it because I still had the space heater running, but I thought if the outside temperatures were low enough, maybe it wasn’t capable of sufficiently heating the trailer. Regardless, I knew (when I looked at the clock and it read 4:40 am) that I was never going to be able to rest unless I could warm up adequately. About 30 minutes after I turned on the furnace, I finally fell asleep. It ran almost non-stop and it was LOUD; however, I was so wiped out from sleep deprivation that I was able to tune it out after a while. Seven hours later, I woke feeling refreshed. By then, it was noon. It was at that precise time that I walked to the front of the trailer and noticed that the door was open. Yes, OPEN! No wonder it was so blasted cold. I had heard a loud sound after I’d initially climbed under the covers and I suspect it was the sound of the door when it popped open. I tried to be quiet when I closed it so I don’t think the lock actually latched.
Explains a lot! I will know to be more careful when closing the door tonight; however, if anything else happens that results in another less-than-desirable experience, the odds are that I’m out of here! Last time, it poured cats and dogs all night long. Pelting rain on a metal roof are not conducive to a good night’s rest. Before I reach a ‘final’ decision; however, I still want to factor in my brother’s wishes. I have asked my brother Clover 3-4 times if he’d like me to extend my stay but even though he’s mentioned several times that Saturday’s going to be warm and sunny and that it’d be a nice day for a get-together, when it comes down to it, he won’t say, “Yes”, he’ll only say, “It’s up to you.” Ack! I guess I will know when I know and reach a decision at some point. Speaking of ‘reaching a decision’, trying to figure out what everyone wanted for dinner tonight felt like pulling teeth. I had a place already picked out and was going to treat my mom but my brother wasn’t comfortable with my plans.
Whenever I come to town, I always go to Ivar’s. My mom loves their food, too. The local restaurants have finally opened up again to 25% capacity so I was looking forward to a nice meal ‘out’ with my mom. Surprisingly, my brother intervened and indicated he wasn’t comfortable with her dining at a restaurant. It had less to do with her catching Covid and more to do with the likelihood that it’d create drama with DD and M&M (my sister and her daughter). I really wanted to go and was disappointed but I understood. He is the one that lives here and has to contend with them and I don’t want to make life harder for him than it already is. Once dining at Ivar’s was shot down, I deliberated just picking up the food and having my mom and I eat in the car. The problem with that is, have you thought about the last time you tried to eat in your vehicle? I have. It’s difficult to enjoy a meal when in the process of juggling multiple containers, food items end up where they shouldn’t.
‘Too many’ is how many times fries have become lodged between my seat and the center console. In addition to that, something inevitably winds up on my blouse, my pants, the seat, the seat belt, or the floor. That’s hard to control when using my lap as a table and I usually end up with ketchup or tartar sauce somewhere on my person. No thanks. The other alternative was bringing the food back to my brother’s house and eating it there, but soggy, lukewarm fish & chips aren’t very tantalizing. We nixed Ivar’s. I looked over at my mom and asked her what she’d like for dinner. “I’m happy with tacos,” she said. Tacos and/or Mexican food sounded good but we still had to decide ‘where’ to purchase them from. Within a mile of my brother’s house, there are at least 5 Mexican restaurants. He mentioned that there was one just 2 blocks away but it was kind of pricey. Ordinarily, I would have gone there in order to save time but once I went online and saw with my own eyes how pricey it actually was, I nixed it, too.
Holy cow! Nineteen dollars for two enchiladas, rice and beans? No can do! I checked the prices on two other restaurants but it was more of the same. Cheap Mexican food and cheap Chinese food aren’t as commonplace as they used to be. That is generally the case these days, with the exception of Taco Bell or Taco Time. My brother mentioned them and I put the kibosh on that idea immediately. They both tear up my stomach and saving a few bucks isn’t worth ‘paying the price’ later. Then it hit me! The last time I ordered from a Mexican restaurant in the town where I live, I realized it was a franchise and had locations throughout the state, including one right next to my sister-in-law’s office (10 minutes away). When I brought it up, there was some hesitancy because aside from me, no one else had eaten there before; however, eventually everyone agreed. Great! “What would you guys like to order?” I then asked. Oh, God! That turned into something I hadn’t expected.
It started out with an enchilada/flauta combo meal, 1 order of shredded beef tacos, 1 order of cheese enchiladas, and 1 shredded beef burrito minus the onions. An hour and a half later, after multiple changes, it eventually ended up as 1 order of chicken tacos, 2 orders of cheese enchiladas, and 2 orders of chicken enchiladas. I was so hangry by the time I placed the order and picked it up that I probably would have hurt someone if they caused any further delay in my goal, which was to simply ‘eat’. My friends, we haven’t figured out tomorrow’s meal yet and we’re nearly out of time. I’m losing faith that a decision will ever be made. We’ve already discussed cabbage rolls and fried chicken but nobody got excited about either. Personally, I believe including dinner in the plans is over-complicating matters. I think my mom would be more than pleased with balloons, flowers, a cake with candles, and a birthday banner but the decision isn’t entirely up to me.
Decisions aren’t my ‘strong suit’ and I’m dreading something else I intend to do tomorrow, which is purchase a new phone. If decisions were mountains, staying one more night and choosing dinner would be equivalent to Mount Shasta, and choosing a new cell phone would be equivalent to Mount Everest. I’m really dreading the thought of purchasing a new phone but I need one that will allow me to install more than one app at a time (which is what my current/obsolete phone allows). I don’t drink but by the time I finally select and purchase a replacement phone, I might reconsider! Thank you so much for stopping by. For the folks that are ‘following’ me, I am grateful for you and the continued interest you have in reading my blog. I’m no poet laureate or anyone with significant credentials to speak of but I do enjoy the opportunity to share things about my life and family or to just make simple random observations. If all goes well and I haven’t run you off, I trust you will return tomorrow as will I.
My entire family is insane. 