A Family.

Saturday, I woke up to Yvette calling me because I had low blood sugar. Her phone was alerting her while I was ignoring my own. Dumbass, I know. I was tired.

After treating myself with some sugar, I really wanted to relax and possibly go back to sleep. I had a THC tonic my brother had given me months ago that I had been waiting to drink when I was alone and had nothing to do. Why not now, I thought. I popped it open and could immediately smell the marijuana. It tasted exactly like it smelled. I drank the damn thing and settled down. It didn’t take long before it kicked in HARD. I fucking crashed right out. The next thing I knew, two hours of my life had passed without me realizing it. I woke up on the couch in my office with The Weather Channel on. Good Lord. Was this my new sleep aid? Not really. But damn, that stuff worked better than Ambien.

I got up and cleaned the house, picked up bottled water, and did some basic chores before the family made it home. I wanted them to come back to a stocked and clean house. I was still floating around in the clouds, so the chores were actually sort of nice. That tonic left me in a very good mood. I definitely don’t have a tolerance for that kind of thing anymore. Haha.

I decided I wanted a greasy burger, so I went to City Limits. It’s always a good burger, and it didn’t disappoint. It was a very late lunch — around three-thirty. While I sat there, I looked around at the other patrons sitting alone, having a drink and a late lunch. I couldn’t help but think about how I was once like them. How this was normal for me — to be at this bar, alone on a Saturday afternoon, usually drinking. That was my life during and after my divorce. I realized in that moment how fucking lonely my life must have been before Yvette entered it.

I went home for a little while and read more of my graphic novel, Providence. I had hours to kill before Yvette and the kids made it back into town. It was near seven o’clock when they finally made it to Dallas, leaving them with four more hours of driving. Crazy how big the state of Texas is.

By the time they arrived, all of us were exhausted. I was happy they were home. It was late, so Alaya stayed with her grandparents. I think that was for the best. We talked a little about how fucked up the situation was, but mostly everyone just wanted some rest. We saved the catching up for the next day.

On Sunday, everyone kind of slept in. Yvette and I left to go get Alaya. She was happy to see us, though maybe a little resentful that we had been away from her for so long.

Monday was surprisingly busy. During lunch, I sat outside the university center all alone. Yvette had to take Teegan to the dentist. While eating my tacos, a fox came strolling by. It was a cute little fellow. The only animals I had intended on observing were the students, so the fox was a pleasant surprise. I love the campus fox family. I’m pretty sure everyone is fairly accustomed to them. A reminder that nature is all around us.

It’s pretty amazing how much wildlife we have on campus. I’ve seen foxes, deer, wild pigs, skunks, opossums, raccoons, and even a treed bobcat. We have an abundance of tree squirrels and ground squirrels. WAY too many fucking feral cats. Dogs are walked hourly along the many sidewalks that act as arteries through the grounds. I’ve seen so many different bird species that I couldn’t count them on two hands. As an amateur birdwatcher, it’s paradise. I saw a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, American Robin, Couch’s Kingbird, Common Grackle, Northern Cardinal, Mockingbird, Common Starling, House Sparrow and White-wing Dove all in one day. The campus has a pretty diverse biome, to say the least.

That evening, Yvette’s parents had dinner with us. My pulled pork must have hit the spot because they both had seconds. We mostly talked about all the bullshit the kids were being subjected to and how crazy those people were. I was really tired and rather checked out from most of the conversation. I don’t feel it’s my place to really get involved, considering how I feel about their father. I do think they have the legal upper hand, but now that the grandparents have also filed a claim, we have to wait for the in-chambers conference between the lawyers and the judge on Thursday to see what the next move is. It’s a huge fucking mess regardless of the outcome. Probate law is a mess.

Tuesday, I had my first real eye doctor’s visit in six years. I had blown it off, but in recent years I’ve steadily noticed a decline in my vision. One of the many bummers that come with aging. I was only nearsighted my entire life, but now I’m needing readers. That’s just an annoyance. The real reason for my visit was that, with my current lenses, people were beginning to become blurry. It’s often embarrassing when I can’t recognize someone from across an aisle at the grocery store. I feel like they probably think I’m ignoring them. It’s equally embarrassing when I say hi to someone across the aisle, only to realize upon getting closer that the person isn’t who I thought they were. This has happened multiple times and finally prompted the visit to the eye care specialist.

Trying a new optometrist, I didn’t know what I had in store for me. I had been using the same office my entire life, but the wait time for appointments exceeded a year, which is fucking ridiculous. Besides, I really think the guy I had been using was stretched too thin to give much attention to someone he only sees once every few years.

I walked into the office and filled out the new patient paperwork. My biggest concern was whether they were going to dilate my eyes. I can’t stand that. My mother and I both have long-lasting side effects from those drops. When I was called back, to my grateful surprise, they used a machine that was much more forgiving. When I finally met with the optometrist, I immediately had good feelings about the visit. We decided to try bifocal lenses, which he let me sample for a day before making a final decision.

As it turned out, they were not the lenses for me. Yes, it was fucking great being able to see things up close, but that came at the cost of seeing things at a distance. I called Wednesday to let them know I would not be going with those lenses. After meeting with the optometrist again, I was given another sample pair to try. I wore them throughout the day and was amazed at how sharp everything looked. I was seeing so much more detail. I called and told them to order the lenses. To say I was a satisfied customer would be an understatement.

That evening, Yvette, Teegan, and I attended the Central High School Top 10% banquet. When I arrived, I immediately wished I had known what kind of event it was. My jeans and polo shirt felt underdressed. They had a live orchestra playing, for Christ’s sake.

Like sheep, we found our assigned seats and waited through the introductions for the dinner bell to sound. Herded through the corral, we served ourselves food and returned to our seats. The two main entrées were tasty, but the green beans were damn near raw and inedible. I was satisfied nonetheless. Unfortunately, for the sake of time, they began announcing the students to come onto the stage one at a time, so the meal felt rushed.

When Teegan was finally announced, I was busy taking pictures when the biggest surprise I’ve had in a long damn time occurred. I was announced as his father. Teegan said I am his father. A moment that shocked me and warmed my heart in a way I didn’t know was possible. Yvette didn’t even know. She whispered, “Don’t cry.” I knew my eyes were watering, and I fought back the tears. I was overcome with emotion. I was fucking honored. Jesus, I love this young adult named Teegan. My son.

After the awards, Yvette and I went over to her grandparents’ house for his ninety-eighth birthday party. Incredible. We made it a quick visit because the party was already winding down. Yvette got her cake in, and we headed home. It was a rather amazing and eventful hump day — one I will cherish for the rest of my life. I feel so much love for my family, and I am forever grateful to have them in my life.

Friday was about as slow as a workday can get. I literally sat on my ass for hours before finally looking for something to do. Out on campus, I took the scenic routes whenever possible. I made sure to talk to people for much longer than the conversations needed, just so I didn’t have to go back to the office.

Half of my office took the afternoon off, so after lunch it was like a silent movie. Other bored individuals stopped by to talk with the few of us remaining. It felt like no one was actually working anywhere on campus. Everyone just wanted to get off for the day. It wasn’t just me feeling the slow ticking of the clock. I heard the same thing from just about everyone everywhere I went.

Once that dreadful time finally passed, I ran a few errands and met up with my brother. He was in town for Mother’s Day. We had a few beers and then met up for dinner at a place called Cork & Pig Tavern.

Cork & Pig was a good time. Yvette heard some more stories she hadn’t heard before. They made me seem like a degenerate. Maybe I was. Times have changed. My brother and mother are always a lot of fun.

Afterward, I met up with my brother and our friend for a couple of drinks while they watched some bullshit basketball — the Spurs. I hate professional basketball, but the time together was worth it.

The weather this week was a real trip — not just figuratively, but legitimately. The first half of the week brought temperatures in the mid-nineties. The latter half had highs in the sixties. We even had a hump day thunderstorm. It was literally all over the place. One day kids were walking around in barely anything at all, and the next they were bundled up in winter gear again. I’ll admit, I had no time to reacclimate to the cooler weather. The days felt genuinely chilly. That’s West Texas for you, though even these cooler days were unusual for May.

I will say this: it was a damn fine week.