Pit stop

Today was an interesting day; generally good; not what I expected. It started out frustrating because I spent 4 1/2 hours sitting at an appointment and they then told me that they were going to have to reschedule for next week. That set my mood into a downward spiral that only got worse during the first half of the day. The other day, someone at the shelter stole Scott's cell phone. We called and had them lock up the account, but that also means that he can't call me very often, which is a two-edged sword. On one hand, it's a relief. On the other hand, it makes me miss him a little and worry about him a lot. What's worse is that the few times he's called me from the shelter's phone, he has this cough that is getting worse and worse. Every time I talk to him, he is more out of breath and sounds really, really, really bad. All of this was on my mind all morning, but I didn't say anything to him about it. He's really manned-up about this whole situation and hasn't complained about even one thing and hasn't fought with me or even asked to come home. He's taken his lumps and despite cynical thoughts that will certainly be sent my way, is trying to actually do something productive and meaningful to change the situation. More on that later though, for now: back to me. :)
So as I was saying, I was in a bit of a depressed, poopy mood and went to Walmart to do some shopping before picking the kids up. As I was walking around the store buying gifts for the kids, this wave of sadness hit me like a tsunami. I did NOT get married (more than once. okay, more than twice) so that I could Christmas shop alone. What am I doing walking through this world alone AGAIN? After sitting in the parking lot and crying for a while, I got over my mini pity party and headed off to pick up the kids. In the mean time, Scott called and sounded SO bad. I told him to be waiting out front, that I was coming to pick him up. He sounded surprised, but said he would. I wanted to assess the situation and his health first-hand, without really letting him know what I was doing. I acted non-chalant and told him I wanted to run to a few stores then home for dinner and would have him back before 7pm check-in at the shelter. Well, honestly he's lucky he's not back in the hospital because I really thought about taking him. I haven't told him this yet, but he looks and sounds like he's getting pneumonia and I'm kind of worried about him.
Just as I was contemplating asking him if he wanted to sleep on the couch tonight instead of going back, Courtney came home early from work because a major ice storm hit our area and the restaurant closed down early. One of their drivers got in a wreck and the other one fell down a flight of icy stairs. Scott went outside to see how bad it was and fell on the ice within three feet of our door, so needless to say I wasn't going out to take him back. He's here and it's been a pleasant evening. I have no doubt that it will be pleasant at first and I'm not going to give it a chance to not be pleasant because he's not going to be able to stay. He has some work to do and some improvements to make before (and if) he's allowed to come back. But tonight was a nice pit-stop on this race we're running. I even tested his pleasantness threshold by watching a girl-tv marathon this evening. Lets see, I watched "Jon & Kate Plus 8", then I watched "I'm Paralyzed and Pregnant", then "The Bad Girls Club", then the season finale of "Blush". I know, right? ha! Normally he would've been running for the hills or insisting that we watch some stupid computer/ sci-fi show, but he just took it like a good boy. Now if I can just work in some mandatory cuddle time and maybe have him paint my toenails it will be a perfect visit! :)