Day Tripping, Paper Writing, and Plumbing

Friday was a "non-duty" day for my school district so I spend it laboring over a grad paper that was actually due on Thursday -- but I got permission to turn it in a day late. I hope it also wasn't a "dollar short."

Saturday morning dawned another beautiful day in the Midwest, just the right touch of crisp in the air, leaves pretty well gone due to heavy rain during the week but now just a little cloud cover. We headed out, once again, for a good breakfast and then Hubby took the notion to drive to Lawrence. We used to go frequently when they had a thriving Outlet Mall but that is now a thing of the past.

We ambled up Highway 10 past the Haskell Institution, the Indian College just outside of Lawrence. We drove around the town center for a bit and let me remember my dad who had been born in Lawrence, lived there during his early childhood, and proudly went back to attend KU in 1920. My family drove to Colorado nearly every summer and we never went by Lawrence without singing the KU fight song full voice. Dad was very proud to have been a Jay Hawker.

Lawrence is exactly like the charming college town one would expect. The main drag is lined with trendy shops and ethnic restaurants. The population is either very young and funky or old and professional. The houses are circa 1850 and up. There are lots of apartments. There are two major cemeteries and all that I know of my father's family is buried in one of them.

We drove the main drag, inspected the city parks, and then headed out of town when Hubby went by the Half Price Bookstore. These are usually in outlet malls in the Midwest -- and I hadn't been in one in over a year. Hubby pulled in -- and I entered a fantasy land. This was different from any mall outlet store I'd ever been inside. This store sold everything a book lover could desire -- and stuff we never dreamed of.

You know all that expensive stuff that clutter the counters in Borders and Barnes & Noble? The stuff you admire, know you don't need, wish you could buy, but can't afford? Well, this store must buy up the stuff that doesn't sell - and then they price it at $2 to $5. And now you CAN afford it -- even when you know you DON'T need it.

An hour later and $100 poorer, I finally tore myself away because Hubby and the boys were waiting patiently in the car for me. I had boxes of Christmas cards, fabulous Cd's, a day planner, boxes of assorted greeting cards, five books, and Christmas presents for Houston crowd. I toted three heavily packed bags to the car -- and promised Hubby that Lawrence needed to become a regular jaunt once again.

Today we enjoyed the extra hour of sleep. Then I spend an hour in the kitchen, cooking up Hubby's favorite meal which will last us through most of the week. The laundry needed to be done -- and thankfully is mostly caught up now -- but right in the middle of the afternoon the water heater sprung a huge leak from the bottom. We've been mopping up every since. So, while I'm off teaching next week, Hubby will be plumbing. Such are the joys of married life.