I got up this morning and worked from home for a few hours until everything was caught up and there was no work waiting on me. Then, around eleven thirty, I managed to head out to the car and take the hour and a half drive out to Warren, New Jersey, so that I could spend the day out there at that office.
The weather was pretty nice today and the drive out to Warren was pleasant. I had my iPod so I was listening to that while I drove. I drive so seldom these days that putting in the occassional drive out to Warren is actually qutie relaxing and it gives me a chance to learn these roads a bit better. It is actually surprising how close we are to Warren, Newark and other points of interest where we have recently lived and worked.
I got to the office a little after one. I was extremely hungry by this point since I had skipped breakfast. Xavier and I went down to Warrenville to get some Thai from the Thai restaurant there that I have been going to for three years now. It might be the first restaurant that I went to from work if memory serves. It has been a while since I have been there and the owner commented but they tend to understand when they find out that I have moved to another state. It was really nice to have something different in my diet for a change.
The afternoon was pretty busy at the office. Mostly because I was so backed up from the time spent driving and eating – neither of which do I normally take time away from my desk to do. My usual workstation was usurped today so I was crammed into a corner at the only working and available workstation that we could find.
I left work around five thirty. The drive home actually went extremely well today. Well under two hours. Even though I was driving in rush hour it was only barely longer than if I was driving without any real traffic. I was home just after seven which was great.
We spent an hour cleaning, cooking, taking out the trash, entertaining Liesl, etc. Katie and Dudley arrived just before eight thirty. It is crappy that Katie is unable to get up to Peekskill until so late in the evening. It is the curse of living in the New York Metro area – doing anything after work is a major hassle and nearly impossible. It takes so long to get home and so long to get anywhere else and then, after all that, you still have to go home yet.
Dominica was all sad because she hadn’t had time to bake a pie but Katie (having coordinated with me) had brought surprise cupcakes from Crumbs Bakery near Grand Central Station (there is also one just off of Wall near my office!)
Oreo and Dudley ended up not getting along very well. Dudley is half Boxer and Oreo has an aversion to Boxers or any Boston Terrier-like dog that is larger than him. Oreo feels that he always has to be king of the hill. Dudley is almost three times Oreo’s size and when no one was looking the two of them decided to throw down and have at it in the living room. Oreo ended up losing being flipped over on his back and panicking pretty badly. He is not a good loser.
Oreo spent most of the evening locked in the master bedroom where I brought him his dinner. He was being very boo boo doggy all night. When I took him out for a walk he didn’t even want to go back to the house. After a while we were able to leave him out in the open and he just stayed upstairs laying on our bed until after Dudley left.
It is very sad that Oreo and Duds can’t play together nicely because it makes it very difficult for Katie to visit us if Dudley isn’t able to tag along. And we like having Dudley visit too. He is a big sweety.
Katie and Dudley stayed until around eleven or so. Katie was pretty exhausted when she had to drive back home. We ended up being awake until around half past midnight and then heading off to bed.
I ended up not feeling very well (too much sugar and fried rice, I imagine) and had a tummy ache that kept me up until one thirty in the morning. At least that gave me a chance to read most of Model Railroading Magazine which had arrived today.
I am expecting to be back in Warren next Thursday again. We will be attempting a different travel combination this time. Shuttles and carpools.