It's 9AM

Time, see what it's done to me ...

“Are you coming?” she asked

The text came through as I parked at 9:05 AM

I said I’d be there at 9:00

Which proves a point

I was going to pick up my ex- and drive her to the doctor for an in house procedure

It would take about an hour, hour and a half

And I had my phone with plans to work from it during that time

But…

I told her I’d be at her house at 9:00

And after ten years of knowing me

Knowing how I think, how I operate and how I just… AM

She knew to check when I was running 5 minutes behind schedule

Probably could have worded it better

But that communication style is hers

My character is so consistent

Has been so consistent

That if it’s just a few minutes after when I say I’ll be there

It deserves a check

I was trained that if you’re ten minutes early, you’re on time

So it was “out of character”

Even if we didn’t need to leave her house until 9:30

But she was nervous

Unnecessarily so, I told her as I breezed in and hit my knees

Not to beg for forgiveness, but to give scratches and cuddles to two wiggling sniffing “man, we missed you pups!”

Always my first act on crossing the threshold of that house

Then I checked a few other things as I listened to her talk through her nerves

Moved a load of clothes from the washer to the dryer

Dropped a new load in the washer and stopped it

Cleared the water bottles from the desk in #10’s room

Because he only likes “cold” water, so after a few sips it’s too warm to drink

A character trait he got from his momma

And after that five minutes was done, she said she “I’m ready,”

But she was never early

Hardly anywhere

So we left

Ten minutes ahead of schedule, per my suggestion that I always drive slow

And we got to her appointment fifteen minutes early

And she got in to see the doctor fifteen minutes ahead of schedule

Which turned her hour and a half expected procedure time down to one hour

Because the schedule nurse had baked extra time into the timing for people who run late and procedures that run over

The little things that accumulate into reasons everyone is late

Like the accident that shut down two lanes on the interstate that made me late

Some idiot driver thinking they were special because they learned to drive on GTA

Grand Theft Auto

So the laws of physics or the road didn’t apply to them as they raced throught a construction zone

Bounced off one of the concrete barriers and turned sideways on the road

Obviously, that driver knows way more than you or I about how to be a good driver

Since he only made me five minutes late

And he wasn’t going to be driving anywhere until he got a new axle or new truck

Which I never mentioned to her

Just got to where we needed to be early, which got her out before lunch

Which put us on a patio for lunch, and a friendly conversation

Mostly about 10

But sometimes post procedure patio lunches where a couple of people who’ve known each other for years

Just sit in the sunshine and drink a beer and be grateful that the doctor’s slate was clean

There should be more time for that

Hey it’s Chris,

If you’re on my daily Substack, IT’S 9AM, then you know I’m working out of office this week.

My brother is getting work done on his house and asked if I would watch it or be there while the workers were

After all, I’m making the 30 minute commute to feed the dog every day

And I said yes, because:

He has internet

So I can still work from anywhere

And he has HBO MAX

And I can finish off KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS,

Or at least episodes 5 and 6

Plus, I kinda want to watch DTF St Louis because I’m a Jason Bateman fan

Monday went well

I locked into one of the bedrooms while they laid plank flooring downstairs

Today they’re finishing up downstairs and starting upstairs

3 bedrooms and a hallway

So there’s no room for me

Except my brother has a camper trailer

Which he plugged in before he left

So I would have a quiet place to work if the noise and chaos got to be too much

Six workers in and out and up and sawing and hammering and whacking

So I moved to the camper today

Which maybe good practice anyway

Because I’ll be moving again at the end of May

Away from the apt I’ve treated as a lab AND got a heck of a lot of work done

And into an old used RV of my own

Though the debate is on if I’m getting a bounder or a camper trailer

Something around 28 feet

Big enough for a queen size bed and a chair and a desk set up

With some ring lights for live streaming

And a closet to hang my clothes or at least room to put up a rod for the same purposes

A grill outside to do 90% of the cooking, and a TV inside for some entertainment

Enough space to keep doing the work I’ve got planned for this year

To level up all I’ve done over the past seven

So today is good practice

Even if the table is a little high for what I want

It’s going to give me shoulder ache later because my arms are too high

There’s water and internet and Motown on my phone

While they do all the things they need to do inside

And I’ll be back again tomorrow while they finish out the baseboard Trim and painters show up to paint every wall eggshell white

One of the contractors told me he hoped they would be done with the floors by Wednesday

Which they have to be because I’ve made plans for Thursday and I’ll get a little miffed if I have to change them

But change happens and the only thing I can control is how I react to it

Maybe that won’t be as chaotic

Speaking of chaos!

We’re almost there with the MYSTERY BOXSETS

Let’s move just two more today and everybody gets DUMB AND FAMOUS to read this weekend!

But to start it all off, go grab BONE DEEP if you haven’t

Current count:

5 / 7 boxsets.

And we are close enough that this could go either way.

Inside the boxset right now:

• 30 Florida mystery novels
• strange crimes
• worse suspects
• decisions that make everything worse

All for $20.

If you’ve been watching this unfold from a safe distance…

This is your chance to step in.

Grab the Florida Mystery Boxset

A few more readers and the whole thing tips over.