MY LIFE - JULY

Tuesday, July 6, 1999

What a day. It wasn't exactly how I envisioned my first day back to work to be, but it was pretty good. It was also nice to be in air conditioning, instead of being in the hot, sticky air that's dominated the region of late. It was 95°, but I was sitting in a building where the temperature was right around 70°. I also got to avoid the rain and storms that rolled through. Well, almost.

The first really interesting moment in the day came when I got a call from my mom right around 3:30pm, just two hours after getting to work. It was my mom trying to figure out where my sister was since it was right about to begin raining. Apparently she wasn't home and my mom was concerned about the windows being open and the dog being outside. I got permission from my manager to go home and check things out. I was in for a major shock.

As I pulled into the driveway in the rain, I noticed that the front door was open and the rain was flying into the two upstairs windows, soaking the bathroom and my older sister's room. Further investigation showed that my sister wasn't home at all, this was proven when I looked on the fridge and found a note saying that she had gone to a friend's house. Okay, so why was the front door open? Didn't she realize that just anyone could've walked into the house and taken anything they wanted?

In any case, I was very upset not only because of that, but because I lost a half-hour of work and got completely soaked in the process of checking the house. I went to the backyard, brought our dog into the house, putting him in his cage, and shut up all the windows where the rain was coming in. Then I made another mad dash to my car as I tried to avoid getting drenched anymore. Didn't work. By the time I got back to work, I was soaked and very mad by the time I got back to work, and I think it showed.

Teresa at least apologized for it, especially after I explained to her that these kind of storms can just kind of pop out of nowhere in the kind of heat we had. Basically, I told her that whenever she leaves, she has to shut the front and back doors and lower the windows at least halfway in case of a storm. In any case, she seems very sorry for what she did and told me it wouldn't happen again.

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The soap opera with my dad continues. He's again begun the complaint on why we still live in his house and that we should move out, rather than him fixing the problems that have come up. Most recent is that our upstairs shower head is now leaking a bit, making it difficult to shut off completely. My mom called him and asked him if he'd give us some sort of help in fixing it. His reply? "Move out." I just started shaking my head at that.

His problems are so bad his own parents are trying to get him to get help, but he refuses to believe that there's a problem with himself. My grandparents, his parents, are very upset at him and at the way he treats us. I have to wonder how he came to be the way he is, since his parents are so much nicer and care so much more. It just makes me shake my head constantly and I have given thought about maybe calling him and asking what his problem is. I've held back simply because I know it won't get anywhere at all, making it completely worthless to even try.

I sometimes wonder how I would've been with a normal, caring dad. Instead, I'm stuck with an alcoholic and drug abuser instead who can't keep his word no matter what. The saving grace? He's been a great example of what not to do in life.

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We had some big storms roll through the area today, dumping 1-3 inches of rain in about two to three hours time, giving us much needed rain. Unfortunately, those storms also brought some very volatile weather with them, downing power lines, flooding streets, and causing all sorts of other problems. It's absolutely amazing, summertime weather. These storms just kind of blew out of nowhere and quickly dissipated after they went through Akron, but not before leaving damage behind.

Sewage systems were overwhelmed by the massive amounts of rain, which I got to drive through, the wind and lightning brought down trees and power lines, and the streets and parking lots became dangerously flooded. Our parking lot flooded, and Pearl Road, which is notorious for its flooding, didn't fail as rivers of water started to flow down the street. It was something else though, and it did bring cooler temperatures, as it went from 94° to 75° in a hurry.

It's now supposed to be a bit cooler and a whole lot less humid over the next few days, which is great as far as I'm concerned. Now I'll be at least a bit comfortable at night and during the day, since I won't be sweating constantly. Right now, a low of 65° sounds just lovely after having lows in the mid 70s all weekend. I certainly will enjoy it.

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Our intern Keith is on vacation this week and Debbie goes on vacation next week, which means I'll be working a few morning shifts to accomadate the fact that Keith won't be able to work much next week. I may also have six days depending on whether or not he can work Saturday. If he can't, I'll be working 9am-2pm. If so, I'm off the weekend again.

It's amazing. I go a year and half with only one Saturday off. Within the last four weeks, I've had two Saturdays off and could have a third one next week. Hey, I'm not complaining.

Tribe Watch '99

Last Game
Cleveland, 3
Minnesota, 1

Summary
Manny Ramirez hit his 23rd home run of the year in the first inning and Jaret Wright allowed just one run on four hits in six innings, winning his seventh game of the year as both teams saw some phenomenal pitching tonight. M. Ramirez hit his home run with one on and two outs, giving the Indians a 2-0 lead. It was made 2-1 in the bottom of the first on a lead-off home run, but Wright didn't allow another run. Omar Vizquel drove in the third run with a sacrifice fly, making it 3-1. Paul Assenmacher, Paul Shuey, and Mike Jackson closed out the game, allowing two hits. Twins pitcher Eric Milton left early in the game with soreness.

Game Notes
M. Ramirez's home run gave him 90 RBI's on the year, as he tries to get 100 before the break....Wright continued his pattern of having a good outing after a couple bad ones as he wiggled out of trouble a couple of times....The Indians have taken four straight from the Twins in the Metrodome....Pitcher Dwight Gooden has been demoted to the bullpen after having several bad starts. Tom Candiotti moves into the rotation and will take a crack at being the fifth starter....Catcher Sandy Alomar didn't get to start catching in his second rehabilitation start due to the storms moving through Akron, canceling the game....The Indians are 21-2 when Ramirez hits a home run.

Record
54-28