One day last week, as I was blow drying my hair, I noticed a bump on my head. I actually remember thinking, “That could be a tick. Could that be a tick?” Yes, I thought both the statement and the question, since I was so disgusted by the possibility. Yet, we had removed ticks from worse spots. Move to the country, they said. You’ll love it. When I was done blow drying, I felt around my head for the bump again. It’s amazing how hard it is to find a tiny bump on your head, even after you know the vicinity of your head that it’s at (as if your head had vicinities). I hunted it down, and pulled it out of my head. Even though I thought it might be a tick, I still screamed when I realized that it actually was a tick… and now it was wriggling around on my bathroom counter. I yelled loud enough to rouse Tessa, who was home for a visit. Tessa works nights when she is not at home, so she can usually sleep through anything. Phone in hand to call 911, Tessa came flying downstairs and into my bathroom. I was still yelling when she came into my bathroom, so it was both a long and a loud yell. When she realized what was going on (I must have told her), she said, “Really? You very calmly pulled a tick from my crotch a couple years ago.” To which I replied, “But that was on YOU!” We both laughed a bit, and I killed the tick. So, now I am on antibiotics, even though nobody thinks it’s the kind of tick that causes Lyme disease. Antibiotics are fun, because I will always have stomach issues even if I pair it with a probiotic. That makes a fun week at work.

Then, this past weekend, as I was getting ready to go to a friend’s 60th birthday party, Trent called. He asked if the boats were in. Since he and his new girlfriend were stopping by for a visit, I thought maybe he wanted to take her out in the boat. And yes, they were in. Then he said that one of his friends had snapped him (now snapped is a verb that doesn’t imply killing someone… I’ll have to adjust) that maybe our boat was floating free in the fast zone. Allow me to clarify, a boat was definitely floating free in the fast zone, and it might be ours. I ran to the other side of the house, looked down at the boat lifts and screamed, “THE MASTERCRAFT IS GONE!!!!!” Travis was napping in the recliner, waiting on me, and he flew out of his chair and out the back door in one fluid movement. My outbursts this week have been very effective! Even Tayden came from wherever he was and flew out the back door. I followed the boys. The Minn family had roped our errant boat and were towing it back to our dock by the time we got down there. I thanked them several times. I’m pretty sure it’s small lake etiquette to return a boat if you find one floating, but I was sure appreciative. The lift wasn’t working. Hmmm. Must have been a mighty noise when that 4,000 pound boat dropped a few feet into the water. 

Travis, Tayden, and I were trying to figure out what to do. We don’t like to tie our boats up, since we live in the fast zone, and they will get beat up. I thought we should call our friends who don’t live in the fast zone, and tie our boat up on their dock. Travis didn’t want to leave it sitting in the water at all. Tayden and I found that hilarious. I said, “You know it’s a boat, right?” And it would only be for a short time. I called the place where we store our trailer, and they were closed. I left a message for our lift guy too. Then, Travis took off. Tayden and I were left by the water holding the boat, not sure where Travis went. Am I the only one with a spouse who disappears with no explanation? I left Tayden, thankful for his presence, and went to the house to retrieve some rope and buoys, following through on my plan. When I got up the yard, I checked the driveway, and sure enough, Bert was gone. I called Tayden and let him know that we may need to bust his dad out of jail when he is caught breaking into the storage place. But he got there as they were moving things around the yard, and grabbed our trailer. 

So we pulled the Mastercraft out of the water, after waiting at the boat drop over a half hour for some poor bloke to wrangle his boat back onto his trailer when it wouldn’t start. There was a stiff current, and I hate parking the boat on the trailer, but not as much as I hate driving with the trailer. Last time I left our driveway with the trailer, we were short of a mailbox. So, I was driving the boat. I had a complete fail on my first attempt at getting the boat on the trailer, which resulted with the boat at a 180 degree angle to the trailer. It also slammed into the trailer. You can only imagine the language going on there. My second attempt was much better. At that point, I noticed five of my more rambunctious high school students laughing their butts off at me, while holding their fishing poles. So, I got a bit of good natured ribbing on Monday about my boat handling skills. Then, we parked the boat in the front yard, which always looks so classy. The boat lift was fixed Monday morning, and the boat was promptly returned to the water. There were more things that happened last week, but I am out of time. Next week, we will continue the adventures of this week. 

Have a great week everyone!