Midway through August...

Well, folks, here we are...at that unmistakable point in the Summer when I find myself beset with a case of the...blahs. Vacation time is over. The hot, humid weather lingers. And in just a few days, Team WestEnders--which has been chugging along with a full roster since early May--will shrink back down to 3, since I'll be driving the College Dude back to South Carolina for his Sophomore year. Yep, welcome to the August Doldrums...

As expected, then, things have been fairly quiet since we returned from our Vancouver adventure--but here's a brief roundup of our collective hijinks in the last few weeks:

--Derek finished up his rather strange employment experience with the home-improvement-giant-that-shall-not-be-named. While he was ostensibly hired to serve in their outdoor Lawn and Garden department, helping customers tote purchases to their cars and whatnot...he never once set foot there during his 2-ish months on the job. Or as he succinctly put it, "I never even touched a bag of mulch!" For a while, he managed to get himself placed on the "unloading crew" responsible for emptying the nightly delivery truck, which he enjoyed reasonably well. However, since he had apparently been "entered in their system" as an in-store employee, management kept pulling him to monitor the self-checkout station when they were short-handed (which was often). He'd received very little training for this task...and even less for the Customer Service Desk, where they also placed him on occasion...with no instruction or backup.

It was...hmm..."chaotic" would be a polite way to describe this company, in terms of their "organization"...or lack thereof. So it should come as no surprise that--even after several pay periods had already passed--the Powers That Be had no idea who he was or what he was doing there. His initial paperwork, submitted online immediately after he was hired, somehow got lost. And the direct deposit that we signed him up for never did take effect, meaning that he had to go in and pick up a paper check each time he was due some hard-earned wages. Needless to say, it was not a stellar part-time gig, and--except for picking up a few shifts during his Winter Break, if they can manage to hold onto his information, so we don't have to redo it all--he doesn't intend to return.

--Meanwhile, despite his dedicated and tireless efforts, Riley wasn't able to find a position and start working this Summer, as he'd hoped. However, at this point he'll be turning 16 soon, which opens up the pool of potential employers who will consider you, so he's looking forward to renewing his quest in a few weeks. He also applied and was selected to take part in a special camp at UNC, called Energy LEAP. During the week-long program, the participants learned about sustainable energy, completed hands-on design and problem-solving activities, and took excursions to local sites of interest. They visited a solar farm, a campus lab whose research focuses on formulating cheaper fuel cells for cars, and the university's community garden, where they dropped off the compost they'd been collecting from their homes all week. They collaborated to build wind and hydropower turbines. And they collected data about their household energy usage, and discussed ways to increase efficiency and utilize greener options.

Yeah, yeah--it sounds suspiciously like "school"...but it's right up Riley's alley, and he had a good time, so that's what counts, right? Besides, not only was the opportunity free for the students chosen...when they finished, they were each given a Visa giftcard...worth $150. So, it was kind of like having a temporary job, at least!

--Changing gears for the athletic update: we checked off our obligatory family 5K for the year by running the Bull Moon race, in Durham. It's the only one we do that takes place in the evening--so yes, it's warm and muggy...but we don't have to get up early, which is delightful. Unfortunately, I'm still battling the stupid foot issue, so my circuit was (relatively) slow, (incredibly) painful, and involved several episodes of walking, when the pounding simply became too much to take. Husband and Derek stuck together, as usual, and posted respectable times. And naturally, Riley finished 3rd...overall. I'm sure he earned a gift certificate for his achievement...but he refused to stick around and wait for the presentation. (Siiighhhh....)

A much gentler outing involved a hike with several buddies from the Sunday morning bootcamp gang. You see, it had come up over our regular post-workout breakfast at Whole Foods that it might be fun to do some other things together, outside of the hour we normally spend sweating in each others' company. Wasting no time, our Fearless Leader created the marvelous Field Trip Schedule of 2019...including many chances for shared shenanigans. So, this time a small group of ladies met at Occoneechee Mountain to tromp through the woods, chat, and commune with nature for a couple of hours on a Saturday, for a change. Bonus: we got a good bit of exercise...and no burpees! (Yaaaayyyy!)

Aaannnd...that about covers the news for now. Like I said, it's been pleasantly calm and peaceful of late. So if you'll excuse me, I think I either need to go rustle up some iced tea and maybe a plate of nice, cold fruit...or find some trouble to get into, before I slide into boredom. I'll report back when I've figured it out! Stay tuned...