Scooting

Okay, I admit it. With Covid winding slowly down and everyone in our household vaccinated, not once, but twice (amazing how accommodating a city can be when Sally lives in your household…just sayin’), things are starting to look quite a bit rosier.
And, let’s face it, with the advent of Peter, my life in particular has taken on a distinct glow.
In the weeks since that first meeting at the park, we have managed to meet at quite a few other places.
7-11 for Slurpies.
Wendy’s for Baconators.
Pizza Hut for . . . you know . . . pizza.
Popeye’s for the best chicken sandwich this side of anywhere.
And more than one visit to Dunkin’ Donuts.
I know. I know. That’s a lot of meeting ‘somewhere elses’. I’ll tell you right here: I was just a bit afraid of exposing him to too much Sally.
Because.
So I discovered that we like the same food, drinks and snacks.
And, once I relented and allowed him a closer acquaintance with my family by actually (gasp) inviting him inside our yard, we realized there were even more things we had in common.
Like liking the same movies on Sally’s big outdoor screen.
Even those featuring heartbreak, beautiful women in distress and/or men in kilts.
Seriously. He’s the first guy I know who also cries at the end of Pride and Prejudice.
That alone would be a reason to hang onto him.
He’s also steady, honest and I probably don’t have to mention it—brave.
Because this guy can handle Sally’s shenanigans. Well, I’m just going to say it: he’s a king among men and leave it at that.
But today, he proved that, not only is he all of the above, he’s also smart . . .
Sally and Mort were pouring over some sort of catalogue when I reached the breakfast table out on the back deck this morning.
That alone shouldn’t be reason for alarm.
But in our household, it is.
You know that Sally’s job pays . . . quite well.
So money is definitely not a problem at this time in her (and by association: our) life.
As I sat down to Mom’s amazing apple popovers and homemade yogurt, I glanced casually over at what had them so engrossed.
It was a motorcycle catalog.
M-O-T-O-R-C-Y-C-L-E C-A-T-A-L-O-G.
Did this orchestrate the same symphony of alarm into your heart as it did mine?
Then, all I can say is this: YOU DON’T LIVE WITH HER!!!
Suddenly, all I could picture was Sally, hell-bent-for-leather, riding through the formerly peaceful streets of our fair city, causing no end of mayhem.
And Mort right behind her, tangling up the dripping remains.
I mean, if they would promise to only ride out in the boondocks, then maybe.
But what are the chances of that?!
My life and the lives of all the other innocent citizens who called this city home suddenly flashed before my eyes.
My mouth was instantly frozen in an ‘oh’ of horror.
And then Peter walked in.
Well, knocked on the back gate and waited for admittance.
Then walked in.
Suffice it to say I was more than glad to see him.
He took one look at that magazine, then turned and glanced at the dismay that was still writ large on my face.
And pulled out his phone.
“You know what would be better than motorbikes?” he asked.
Both Sally and Mort looked at him. “What?” asked Sally, already interested.
“Mobility scooters.”
“Say again?” Mort said.
“No. You could totally have fun with these!” Peter tapped a few keys and held the phone out to them. “See? They’re electric. You could get a bunch of them and have all kinds of races. Play baseball. And, at a top speed of 4 miles-per-hour, everyone could do it!”
Sally reached for his phone, her eyes glued to the screen. “Yeah . . .” she said softly.
I was staring at him.
In less than 100 words, he had neatly diverted their attention.
And channeled their enthusiasm toward something not too deadly.
This man wasn’t just smart. He was a genius!
By this afternoon, Sally, Mort and Scary Gary along with half a dozen neighbourhood kids and at least three seniors were organizing races and a baseball game around the park in the center of our neighbourhood.
And from now on, when any of us speak to Peter, we're just going to call him ‘Sir’.

He deserves it.
 

Today’s post was a writing challenge. Each participant picked 4 – 6 words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words to be used at least once and all the posts to be unique as each writer has received their own set of words.
That’s the challenge—here’s a fun twist; no one who’s participating knows who got their words and in what direction the writer will take them. Until now.
 
My words were: boondock ~ electric ~ heartbreak ~ mouth ~ sir
And given to me by my sweet friend, Rena at: https://wanderingwebdesigner.com/blog
 
At the end of this post are the other blogs featuring this challenge.
Check them all out—see what words they got and how they used them. 
 
Baking In A Tornado                  
Wandering Web Designer
Climaxed
What TF Sarah
Part-time Working Hockey Mom