Motley Monday. I went to The Anchor for coffee and scripture before spending the afternoon in Dayton: I grabbed a small Christmas tree from the attic and tinkered around on an Acer netbook my aunt found and decided to give me. It runs faster than my Dell, so I'm going to use the Dell as a backup and the Acer as my primary writing computer. I headed down to Ashley's through a flurry of sleet, and we spent the evening hanging out with Chloe and Zoey. Chloe loves reading and writing, and she's super excited to write a story with me. Working title: Layla the Cupcake Monster. We hashed out the plot at the kitchen table. It's a little shaky, but I think we can make something out of it. I headed home to clean and watch The Book of Eli, and Ashley came over and we were up until 2:30 AM browsing Pinterest and talking about all sorts of things. She asked a lot of questions about Mandy, which is okay: I want her to know everything she wants to know. I don't really enjoy talking about it, but at the same time it's nice to get a different perspective on things.
Testicle Tuesday. I went to Anchor Grill for coffee and scripture and hung out with Ashley before work. We fixed a healthy lunch (Asian stir fry with TONS of water chestnuts) and hung out with her mom and dad. I worked 2-8:00 PM and rounded out the evening watching episodes of House that I rented from the Blue Ash library.
Whack-a-Mole Wednesday. I went to The Anchor for coffee and scripture and spent the afternoon hanging out with Ashley and Zoey. I worked 3-7:00 and then went back to Ashley's to see her and Amanda, who hung out there for most of the afternoon. I've spent so long praying that God will turn my love for Mandy into indifference without stopping to ask if He would do such a thing. It's common knowledge that the opposite of love isn't hate but indifference; to ask a God of Love to destroy love in your heart is basically to ask God to do that which He loathes. I've been thinking about that a lot lately, and I'm starting to pray not that God will destroy my love for her, but that He will bring me to a point where I can love her not as a romantic partner but as a woman whom I care so deeply about. I already care about her so damned much, and just the thought of hurting her, of causing her pain, of her hurting and me not being able to do anything about it... That itself causes anguish in my heart. I know one day I'll be over all this, that I'll be able to move forward without being constrained by nostalgia and regret. That day will come. It's just a matter of time. And when that day does come, I don't want my heart towards her to be stained by anger.
Tickle-Me-Drunk Thursday. I woke early to enjoy coffee and scripture at Anchor Grill before working 8:30-4:00. I planned on going to see Ashley, but around 2:00 it started sleeting and showed no signs of letting up. I decided just to go home to be safe, and the commute took more than an hour because of traffic and scattered accidents. I took a shortcut through downtown to shave about five minutes off the commute, and I spent the evening huddled inside the Hobbit Hole with the oil lanterns glowing, watching House and reading N.T. Wright's The New Testament and the People of God. Not a bad way to spend the evening at all!
Foggy Friday. "Foggy" is an understatement: the whole day was nothing but hammering rains and settling mist. I went out to my car to drive to The Anchor to discover I had a flat. Ashley came down and took me to a Used Tire Shop off Mitchell. We traded out the flat for a used tire and ended up having to go back because the used tire had a hole in it. They patched it up real good. Frustrating, but worth saving $50. We went back to her place for a little bit, and then I headed up to Dayton to work on the Oldsmobile with Dad: there's a problem with the running lights, and we weren't able to diagnose it. The drive home took nearly an hour and a half because of traffic and drenching rains. The interstate was all but flooded. Ashley came down, and we went for a run through the rain, chowed down on chicken korma curry, watched Arrested Development, drank rum, and talked late into the night until we both passed out. These "Date Nights" without the girls are definitely cherished. The girls, though I love them, can be overwhelming. Especially that little one: she screamed in the van for a good forty minutes this afternoon.
Sasquatch Saturday. Ashley and I went to The Anchor for coffee and we prayed together before she headed home. I had Subway for lunch and watched House, and then I went up to West Chester to drink coffee and watch TV with Ashley. She gave me a phenomenal back massage, rubbing out some vicious knots that have cropped up. I worked an Overnight in Blue Ash. I fixed chicken jalfrezi with naan bread for Ben and myself, and Jason and I watched The Santa Clause with Tim Allen. Ashley swung by to see me after she finished work down the street, and I got to see Chloe. She's excited about her birthday: she'll officially be eight years old this coming Wednesday!
Sensual Sunday. I left Blue Ash at 8:00 and enjoyed coffee and scripture at Anchor Grill. The girls were with their father today, so Ashley came down and we spent the afternoon together: running the trails at Mount Echo, dining on homemade chicken tikka masala, and watching episodes of House and Arrested Development. I did some writing at The Anchor after she left, and then I worked 7:30-Midnight in Blue Ash covering for John B. I returned home, lit some oil lanterns, read some scripture and spent some time in prayer, and I was passed out by 1:30 AM.
Whack-a-Mole Wednesday. I went to The Anchor for coffee and scripture and spent the afternoon hanging out with Ashley and Zoey. I worked 3-7:00 and then went back to Ashley's to see her and Amanda, who hung out there for most of the afternoon. I've spent so long praying that God will turn my love for Mandy into indifference without stopping to ask if He would do such a thing. It's common knowledge that the opposite of love isn't hate but indifference; to ask a God of Love to destroy love in your heart is basically to ask God to do that which He loathes. I've been thinking about that a lot lately, and I'm starting to pray not that God will destroy my love for her, but that He will bring me to a point where I can love her not as a romantic partner but as a woman whom I care so deeply about. I already care about her so damned much, and just the thought of hurting her, of causing her pain, of her hurting and me not being able to do anything about it... That itself causes anguish in my heart. I know one day I'll be over all this, that I'll be able to move forward without being constrained by nostalgia and regret. That day will come. It's just a matter of time. And when that day does come, I don't want my heart towards her to be stained by anger.
Tickle-Me-Drunk Thursday. I woke early to enjoy coffee and scripture at Anchor Grill before working 8:30-4:00. I planned on going to see Ashley, but around 2:00 it started sleeting and showed no signs of letting up. I decided just to go home to be safe, and the commute took more than an hour because of traffic and scattered accidents. I took a shortcut through downtown to shave about five minutes off the commute, and I spent the evening huddled inside the Hobbit Hole with the oil lanterns glowing, watching House and reading N.T. Wright's The New Testament and the People of God. Not a bad way to spend the evening at all!
Foggy Friday. "Foggy" is an understatement: the whole day was nothing but hammering rains and settling mist. I went out to my car to drive to The Anchor to discover I had a flat. Ashley came down and took me to a Used Tire Shop off Mitchell. We traded out the flat for a used tire and ended up having to go back because the used tire had a hole in it. They patched it up real good. Frustrating, but worth saving $50. We went back to her place for a little bit, and then I headed up to Dayton to work on the Oldsmobile with Dad: there's a problem with the running lights, and we weren't able to diagnose it. The drive home took nearly an hour and a half because of traffic and drenching rains. The interstate was all but flooded. Ashley came down, and we went for a run through the rain, chowed down on chicken korma curry, watched Arrested Development, drank rum, and talked late into the night until we both passed out. These "Date Nights" without the girls are definitely cherished. The girls, though I love them, can be overwhelming. Especially that little one: she screamed in the van for a good forty minutes this afternoon.
Sasquatch Saturday. Ashley and I went to The Anchor for coffee and we prayed together before she headed home. I had Subway for lunch and watched House, and then I went up to West Chester to drink coffee and watch TV with Ashley. She gave me a phenomenal back massage, rubbing out some vicious knots that have cropped up. I worked an Overnight in Blue Ash. I fixed chicken jalfrezi with naan bread for Ben and myself, and Jason and I watched The Santa Clause with Tim Allen. Ashley swung by to see me after she finished work down the street, and I got to see Chloe. She's excited about her birthday: she'll officially be eight years old this coming Wednesday!
Sensual Sunday. I left Blue Ash at 8:00 and enjoyed coffee and scripture at Anchor Grill. The girls were with their father today, so Ashley came down and we spent the afternoon together: running the trails at Mount Echo, dining on homemade chicken tikka masala, and watching episodes of House and Arrested Development. I did some writing at The Anchor after she left, and then I worked 7:30-Midnight in Blue Ash covering for John B. I returned home, lit some oil lanterns, read some scripture and spent some time in prayer, and I was passed out by 1:30 AM.
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