Time Fades Away

Saturday morning, I slept in. It might have had something to do with the drinks I’d had at the bar with my brother, or just the accumulation of one really long fucking week. Either way, I slept in, and it was great. I don’t ever go out at night, and my age was definitely showing that morning.

When I finally crawled my lazy, under-the-weather ass out of bed, I found Lola cooking bacon and chorizo potato breakfast tacos. What a real treat. I was craving chicken and waffles, but that could wait. Who the fuck passes up greasy bacon and chorizo when they have a mighty hangover? Only a damn fool, that’s who.

To make things move a little faster, I decided to help by firing up the grill and cooking the tortillas. I can throw twelve on the Blackstone and have them cooked perfectly in the same amount of time it would take her to cook two. Thank God the weather was tolerable for my condition. It was actually rather beautiful — perfect weather for a nice cup of coffee on the patio with the dogs.

I decided the tacos needed one extra ingredient: eggs. I scrambled some up and assembled myself a few bacon and egg tacos. The chorizo seemed a little too greasy for my taste. I didn’t want an upset stomach on top of the head fog I was already feeling.

It was nice having a family breakfast..

Afterward, I fiddled around the house, digging through old shit in my little office. I discovered a lot of things I wasn’t even aware I had — lots of old artifacts, old treasures, and silly things I’d held onto. I also threw a lot of shit out. Before I knew it, the morning had passed, and it was afternoon.

I was feeling better, so I ran some errands, namely getting some Mother’s Day cards and groceries for the night’s feast. My brother and I were making chicken Parmesan with broccolini and garlic bread. We were cooking for my mom for Mother’s Day. She had been craving this meal. The last time my brother made it was after my mom had knee surgery, and she was apparently too loopy on pain meds to recall what it tasted like.

My brother and I were shooting for dinner at seven. What a joke that ended up being. We thought we were prepared, but boy howdy, were we ever wrong. A lot of issues arose, primarily from my brother. He claimed to know the recipe, but when he looked it up, he realized there were extra steps he’d forgotten about. We also ran into some issues keeping the oil at a consistent temperature. We are both amateurs when it comes to frying food.

It was apparent my mother, Yvette, and Teegan were more than ready for a meal. The anticipation must have been killing them. When 8:30 finally arrived, so did the meal. Everyone frantically ate more than they probably should have. A very late, heavy meal. The bloat. I felt like a fucking hippo.

It was time for a few after-hours drinks. We visited and had a good time, at least until the food began to settle and lull us into a state of exhaustion. I sure enjoy my time in the kitchen with my brother and miss his visits.

When the evening finally concluded, I made a stop by Noah’s to check on their dogs. They had made an impromptu trip to the ranch. The dogs were extremely happy to go outside. By the time I made it home, I was ready to hit the hay. It had been a great evening, but it had also been a very long day.

Mother’s Day!! This was the day that Yvette was able to sleep in a bit. I decided I should treat my mother to breakfast for Mother’s Day. I called her and she and my brother placed an order for burritos from this little joint called The Corner Stop that has been serving us for over twenty years. Hell, since I was in high school at least. They make the best damn flour tortillas.

My mom was very happy with the burrito breakfast. Who doesn’t love a damn good burrito? There was an Indiana Jones marathon on, and we began talking about the newest one that came out three years prior, The Dial of Destiny. It became alarmingly apparent that my mother had never watched the movie. The last one she saw was The Crystal Skull, which would be an awful way to end the franchise. That one leaves a bad taste in my mouth, and I would rather forget it even happened. Thank God they made one more movie to try and cleanse the palate.

I had seen Dial of Destiny once, and I will be honest — I was drunk. Watching it with a clear head was quite an enjoyable experience. There was so much I had forgotten. They used some de-aging to make Harrison Ford look like he did in the earlier films. I am not generally for that, but the technology has come a long way, and it didn’t really look all that bad. It helped tie this to the original three films.

The film was a vast improvement over The Crystal Skull. It actually felt like nostalgia pulling at me. I grew up watching the Indiana Jones movies, so seeing an old Harrison Ford out-thinking and kicking some major ass tickled me with joy. The story was also very good, and the ending, while not as grounded as the originals, was still much better than that last dreadful effort. The less said about that film, the better.

In summary, Dial of Destiny is a great addition and final farewell to a decades-long adventure with Indiana Jones. Growing up with Indiana Jones since I was a little boy in the eighties, he is essentially a part of me. As kids we used to pretend we were Indiana Jones and put ourselves through our own adventures. I had some of that childish joy rise to the surface while watching Dial of Destiny. Like Indiana, I am also getting old. It was nice to tag along with him for one final adventure.

After that, I went over to my in-laws for a true feast. They had a spread of chicken thighs and legs, pork and beef ribs, venison sausage, potato salad, and beans. Like I said — a true fucking feast. I wasn’t even all that hungry after the morning burrito, but I indulged anyway. We stuck around and visited for a while.

While chatting away, their Alexa device notified us that we were under a thunderstorm watch with high winds and large hail starting at four and stretching into the evening hours. I had a good deal of errands I needed to run, so I urged Yvette to say goodbye so I could knock them out before the potential storm arrived. It took a little longer to leave than I would have liked, and when we finally did, we could see the distant storm. She said it didn’t look bad, but I knew otherwise. It was still far off, and they can look misleading to the untrained eye.

I started running errands, making four different stops to gather everything I needed for the Mother’s Day dinner I was cooking for Yvette and Lola. As I was running around town, each time I left one of my destinations, the storm was closer and looking more and more menacing. Such an ominous vide. I knew this might be a nasty bitch. Yvette put the kids’ cars under cover just in case it actually did hail, which ended up being a good thing.

The storm began to hit just as I was getting home. At first light rain, then heavy rain. I began to feel comfortable that no hail would occur, and after saying as much to Yvette, we started hearing the clicking of hail against the vents on the roof. Shit. Foot in mouth. I pulled my car as far into the garage as I could. Lola really needs to go through all her shit that’s taking up half of the garage. I keep bringing this up, but it falls on deaf ears.

The storm was rather amazing. The wind was fucking crazy. It was really bad in other areas, but all we had was marble-sized hail. I don’t need another new roof. As exciting as a good storm is, now that I’m a homeowner I would really rather it didn’t get extreme.

As the storm passed, I began my hibachi. The temperature was perfect for a night in front of a hot grill. It really was. The rain and thunder continued at short intervals, and I was in my own little paradise. Mother’s Day dinner was a hit, and I couldn’t have been happier cooking it for these amazing mothers.

Graduation week. A frightening time. Monday was a pretty damn fine day, if I must say so myself, and I rarely say that on a Monday. The weather was top notch — grounds for celebration in May — and I was in a good mood doing what I love to do at work: out and about around town. I spent very little time in the office, thank the Lord, and the day sped by. I found myself visiting with vendors. Sometimes I talk too much. One thing I really like to make happen is spending the university’s money locally. I think that’s good for our image and good for the local economy. Whenever I have an option, I’ll use a place in town.

After work, Teegan had yet another awards ceremony. Pretty impressive, really. I sure as hell didn’t attend any awards ceremonies when I was in high school. This event was being held downtown at a much nicer venue than the high school campus. Thank God — I hate that auditorium.

The ceremony was a little over an hour, and it didn’t even feel that long. The master of ceremonies was quick and had a good sense of humor, making me laugh a few times. That’s a rare thing at these kinds of events. I’m usually bored to tears and just waiting to see whomever I came to see have their small part. When Teegan accepted his award, he walked onto the stage with confidence. I was so proud of him and his many accomplishments. The young man has a bright future.

Tuesday, I had it in my mind that it was actually Wednesday. I don’t have a clue why that was, but it just was. I had two people bring me back to reality that it was actually only Tuesday, and each time I felt a sharp ping in my chest at the realization I wasn’t yet at mid-week. What a real bummer it was. I’m sure everyone can relate to that kind of horse shit.

Honestly, I can’t say much about the day. I spent about as much time shopping for eyeglasses as I did actually working. Sad fact. Some days are just like that. After work, I ran and picked up my prescriptions and visited my mother before she left for Houston. She will probably come back with some sort of illness. I surely fucking hope not, but nine times out of ten, she does.

Wednesday was just more of the same. Blah. We had a very pointless meeting — most of which are — and that was pretty much it for the damn day. I had hardly any real work to do. Slow days this time of year before graduation are just weird. It worried me that maybe Thursday and Friday were going to be crazy as hell. All the last-minute graduation preparation. Lord, I prayed not.

That last statement was a jinx on myself. Thursday was indeed a crazy busy day. I was running back and forth all over the damn town. People were so needy, but at least I was busy. I figured that would be the case. I think my coworkers thought I was out fucking around, but they really had no idea how many tickets I had — how many credit card swipes I made. I had trouble staying ahead, which was a blessing considering how freaking slow Tuesday and Wednesday were.

I felt that after the morning, I owed myself a nice lunch, so Yvette and I went and had some brisket street tacos. A place called The Pitt serves them as a Thursday-only special, and boy are they a real treat. We’ve only ever needed to split the meal, and we’re both always left satisfied. They sure didn’t disappoint.

After lunch, it was once again a busy-bee afternoon. I was screwed. The two people I hate buying for with a passion were waiting for me to make a run with them. I don’t like doing that because they take forever and talk about the most far-out bullshit. Not to mention all the MAGA garbage that one of them spews. I swear if Trump told him that inserting Tylenol up his asshole would cure a headache, he would comply without question.

My misadventure with Beavis and Butt-Head started out as it always did: them not knowing what the fuck they really needed. I mean, they knew what they needed, but they were being extremely picky about it. I suppose it’s a lost art to find the perfect piece of lumber. For Christ’s sake, it was going on a trailer bed — why did it have to look perfect? Overall, I wasted almost two hours of my life with the two eejits.

After work, we had plans to meet up at a bar for a birthday, but things change. I’m still finding out how quickly that happens with kids. All new to me. Teegan hurt his knee at the senior picnic and had to go to the ER. Luckily, it wasn’t terrible — just a strained meniscus. Still, he was in pain and can’t walk correctly. Poor kid.

Friday went by very quickly. It was surprisingly nice and gloomy, and we even had a little bit of rain—sort of like how the week began. I will certainly take as many of these cooler days as I can get because, before long, summer will rear its head like a beast from hell.

This was the end of the Spring 2026 semester. Graduation weekend. It’s just crazy. I have seen so many students come and go over the years. It’s hard to believe that another school year is behind us. I mean, where does the time go? It really doesn’t seem all that long ago that the fall semester began. It’s a little frightening. Life is too damn short. I’m just about forty-five—halfway to ninety. Jesus Christ, when I put it that way. Can things just slow down a little bit? If only.

So yes, another class of students is on their way to whatever the future may hold for them. I hope they cherish the moments they had on campus. It’s a time unlike any other in one’s life. College is one of the final steps before adulthood. Once you graduate, you officially join the real world. You say goodbye to the last years of your youth.

Every year, graduation brings a certain sadness to me. I suppose that comes from the fact that I graduated a long time ago. Perhaps it’s also the realization that another year has vanished in the blink of an eye. I feel a bit sad for the graduates because they do not yet understand how much they’ll miss this chapter of their lives. But more than anything else, I am truly happy for them as they walk the stage. They have accomplished something great, and they have a future ahead of them full of possibilities. Cheers and congratulations to another graduating class. Time keeps moving, whether we like it or not.