The Randall Recap

Randall didn’t arrive at the house until mid-day Saturday.  That worked out pretty perfectly for me as I got my normal to do’s knocked out.  He pulled up as I was just unloading groceries from the truck.  Elsa was timid as usual although she warmed up much quicker than the last time she saw Randall some four years ago.  Sadie was happy to see Randall.  Seeing Sadie and her physical condition was a a bit of a shock for him.  The last time he saw Sadie she was basically normal.  Seeing her struggle mightily to take each and every step was unexpected.

I gave Randall a tour of the property, a LOT has changed since he was last there, more than I even realized.  When you turn back the clock to four years ago there is a ton of things that have transformed.  After giving him the new lay of the land we agreed to go try out the pickleball courts at the new park.  I just got a new racquet set and some balls last week and was eager to try out the sport so many people have told me about.  It was bright, sunny and hot when we got to the park.  It was too hot to be honest, the thermometer in the truck read something like 85 degrees.

When we started smacking the ball around to warm up it felt pretty weird.  The ball is very dead compared to other racquet sports I have played but you can put a lot of spin on shots in a way that is a hybrid between tennis and ping pong.  After hitting around for maybe 10 minutes we started the game.  There were some rules that I had a hard time getting used to like the one bounce rule which means the ball has to bounce once on each side before being able to attack a ball in the air.  You also can’t smash a ball if you are standing in the “kitchen”, the area right by the net.  It makes for longer rallies.

Serving was a bit weird for me too, you have to make sure you serve underhand where the paddle is not higher than your waist.  At first I was serving more sidearm which Randall informed me of.  The first game Randall beat me pretty badly.  I was having a hard time returning his deep and low serves.  I had a lot of unforced errors as I was still getting a feel for the physics of the game, just how hard of a swing and what angles I needed to use. The second game was a side out war that took forever that I eventually squeaked out for a win. I also won the third game.  It was funny how the trash talking for both of us came right back like we never skipped a beat.  It felt good.

The heat was really beating us down so we sat in the shade for a bit before resuming the match. Randall won another close game to tie us up 2-2.  Neither of us wanted to end in a tie so we did a 5th and final game.  I won it pretty easily but Randall was running out of gas, he hadn’t eaten since mid-morning and was feeling pretty tired.  I really enjoyed playing although the sudden stopping, starting and lunging was not something my body reacted well to.  My back and lower body felt pretty tattered for the next 24 hours.

We decided to go to the Bonehook Brewery for dinner.  I guess Randall has been a fan of their beer.  I had never been there despite it being only around a dozen miles away.  With it being Saturday night I was worried it would be stupid busy but it wasn’t bad at all.  We downed a couple IPA’s as we talked about life and the virtues of being single versus being not single.  Randall has had a number of long term relationships since I have known him but he also has spent even more time on his own.  At this point in his life he seems pretty convinced that he is happier with the latter.

I shared some of my feelings, struggles and challenges thus far.  Of course Randall or anyone else for that matter doesn’t have a magic pill to set everything right in my world but I think the more human beings I get to just simply talk to the better off I will be.  I certainly appreciated his willingness to sit and listen.  By the time we left the place a little after 8:30 it was nearly empty.  The mostly older crowd that dominated the seating when we arrived had all cleared out.

Saturday night I unleashed Randall into the world of VR.  He had never experienced it before.  Like pretty much everyone else I have shown it to, he was blown away.  He played a bunch of games including Beat Saber, Vader Immortal, mini-golf and ping pong.  I was being his virtual guide by connecting to the headset with my phone so I could see what he was seeing.  It’s always entertaining for me watching others try out VR.  He had a good time and will likely be getting one himself.

We woke up Sunday to steady rain, something I did not know was coming.  I originally thought we would be doing a road bike ride but the rain sort of washed that idea from my head.  Instead we did a coffee run and then Randall got some more VR time in which was funny.  It’s a good thing I have the external battery back for mine or it would have ran dead for sure.  Around 4PM we piled in the truck to take Sadie home.  I wanted to get back before the Super Bowl started.  After a very slow march into the apartment I made her supper and then we headed out.  She is having major oral surgery today so I knew it was going to be a tough few weeks for the old girl.

When we got back Randall was in VR right up to kick off the Super Bowl.  We had bought a couple frozen pizzas along with a few other items for our tiny SB “party”, it was fine with me.  I was just glad to have someone there to watch the game with besides Elsa.  I thought the game was very entertaining.  I thought some of the commercials were really funny and I didn’t dislike the halftime show as much as I expected to.  I had a slight preference for the Bengals to win since they never had done so before.  The Rams however took care of business with a long dominating drive as the clock wound down followed by the defense making the Bengals turn the ball over on downs.

After the game Randall was again in VR to try to attend a Foo Fighters concert.  Yes Meta had been promoting that the Foo Fighters would be doing a concert in VR at 11PM.  Randall was at the virtual door waiting but never was able to get in.  My assumption is the site was overwhelmed.   He tried for over 45 minutes to get in the door but it just was a no go, bummer.

Even though I took today off I set my alarm at 6:30 to see Randall off.  He had to leave by 7 to make an appointment back on the east coast.  I thanked him again for coming and we agreed that it won’t be four years until he returns this time.

I am in the middle of trying to knock out a ton of little tasks that I have been most procrastinating about.  I should get out and ride a wheel but I don’t think it’s going to happen.