Oh What A Day

Yesterday, not a day that I wish to relive.  It has been raining since Sunday here in the Washington, DC area.  It is the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee that came up from the Gulf of Mexico, Louisiana and Alabama.  Today makes the fourth straight day of rain, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

As I usually try to do on Wednesdays, I was ready for grocery shopping at Shoppers Food Warehouse.  Armed with list in hand, I set out to also stop by CVS (drug store) and possibly Giant Food if I didn't get everything needed at SFW.  As usual, I got a later start than I wanted.  I have to stop goofing off  in the morning playing on the computer, drinking coffee and watching the news.  I stopped at CVS first to pick up a card for John's birthday and some other items.  Leaving CVS and heading onto Shoppers Food Warehouse, the rain seems to be getting worse.  It may be a little hard to see, there were puddles (flooding) on the road everywhere.

The rain started to slow to a drizzle when I was making my way into Shoppers Food Warehouse (SFW) in my dampening condition.  I had my umbrella and removed my raincoat and left it in the car.  I found previously walking around CVS in my raincoat the humidity made me sweat too much.  The downpours come in waves from a drizzle to a pounding.

One request John had for his birthday yesterday was Mint Chocolate Chip Klondike Ice Cream Bars.  Of course, SFW didn't have them.  I did escape SFW with a bill less than I normally spend, although I didn't buy Diet Cokes for John this week, he still had plenty.  I also didn't buy beer for him.  He has a sinus infection and is taking prescribed antibiotics, which cannot be taken with alcohol.  He isn't drinking for the next two weeks until he finishes his antibiotics medication.  I knew I was in for a trip to Giant Food (another closer grocery store and more expensive than SFW).  I didn't think it was possible, it seemed to be raining harder again.  Notice the puddles in the parking lot.

Heading onto Giant, I snapped this picture quickly as I was driving (just holding onto the camera).  As you can see, there was little traffic on my side of the road.  I seemed to be the only nut out in this crappy weather.

I got to Giant and picked up just a couple of items including the Mint Chocolate Chip Klondike Bars for John and headed home.  It is still pouring rain like crazy when I pulled in the driveway.  I backed my car in the driveway to unload the groceries into the garage.  My plan is to carry the groceries into the kitchen from the garage to keep the groceries from getting too soaked.  I get all the groceries laid out in their bags on the garage floor and reach for my house keys - they're gone from my key ring!!!  My heart dropped and started beating at twice the normal rate as I stared at my key ring.  I went back and searched my trunk and inside my car, no keys.  What to do?  I thought it best to call John first.  Hopefully, he could come home and let me in the house to get the groceries unpacked.  Thankfully, with refrigerators in our garage, I was able to save the perishables until John arrived about 20 minutes after I reached him.  He was obviously none too pleased to leave work early to come home and rescue me.  I thought he would be happy to leave work early on his birthday - NOT!

I felt like I was listening to my father.  I got the "you have to be more careful" speech about losing my keys.  This was the first time it happened in our 19 years together!  John told me I must drive my route today again and look for my keys.  In the meantime, he was going to Lowe's to buy new locks for our doors (a bit extreme I thought).  I just needed another set of keys made.  John's thought was someone saw me drop my keys and followed me home - we could be robbed!  Really, really???  Certainly worst case scenario thinking, never in a million years in my opinion.  They were a set of keys on a ring, that's it, no identifier, not like they had our address or phone number on them!


I asked how I would get back into the house when I returned if I hadn't found my keys.  John said he would be home before I got back.  I got the remainder of the groceries put away and headed out to retrace my tracks.

I drove to CVS, nothing.  I drove the parking lot twice to be sure.  I passed Giant before SFW, so I swung into the parking lot, it was very crowded.  I drove their parking lot twice near where I parked looking for my keys, nothing.  Onto SFW, the rain was letting up a bit, the parking lot was crowded here as well.   I guess since the rain had stopped, everyone was coming out to get their errands done.  I drove the parking lot once, didn't see them, on my second pass I saw something shiny on the ground, my heart was pounding - YEAH!!  My keys, there they were on the ground, I was so relieved!!!  Had it not been pouring, I probably would have heard them drop off my key ring.

I called John on his cell, it had been about 15 minutes since I left the house, he was still there.  His cell phone rang and rang, it went to voice mail.  I left a message that I had found my keys and was headed home.

Pulling in the driveway, John's pickup truck was still missing.  I hope he checked his phone and didn't buy the new door locks at Lowe's.  About five minutes later, he pulled in carrying two bags of door locks informing me he had spent $300.  I informed him of the message I left on his cell phone that I found my keys.  He figured he didn't get a signal in Lowe's, which is why he didn't hear his phone ring and it went to voice mail.


We had three doors that would have needed to be rekeyed - the back door, garage door and front door if I had not found my keys.  The back door and garage door have the same lock, the front door is different.  Here's our garage door lock, a usual lock in my opinion - the same lock is on our back door.

Here is our front door lock.

I told John if he left me the receipt, I would return the locks to Lowe's for him today.  After all, since I found my keys, there was no reason to replace the locks.  I just don't understand men...I think John was looking for a reason to justify the expenditure.  True, we are having a little trouble with our locks, it is something we lived with, certainly no reason to replace them.  They worked fine.  We just had to make sure they lock all the way (to a click sound) when locking them, no big deal.  Well, we are keeping the new door locks, and our locks replaced.  John had his Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Bar before bedtime.  All's right with the world again.

There must be some madness to this, I am not questioning it.  I lost my keys, I found my keys, no one found my keys to rob us!  Now, if this rain would just stop, all would be right with the world.  I just took this picture from my porch of street.  You get the idea, it's still pouring!  Not checking the rain gauge until it stops.  Hope you are safe and dry.  I'm staying home today, doing a little laundry and staying out of trouble!