Manic Mondays

Martin has left the Building.

That would have been this title. But that seems a little...well lets just say an undersell. After sleeping in for all summer, on Monday we all got up at 6:30am. I made breakfast burritos.

Today was Davis' first day of high school.

Lucas started his junior year in a brand new school. He sat at a table in art class and everyone started speaking Spanish. He said he did not understand a single word of the conversation.

Deneen drove into El Centro and hung out all day waiting on school to finish.

Martin and I drove into San Diego.

I had been up all night on Saturday and worked until about 3:00am on Sunday writing a grant that was due on Monday. Monday morning I was still waiting on resumes from consultants that were itemized in the grant budget.

Martin and I stopped at a Starbucks on the way. I got online and worked for a couple hours. We got into San Diego at 1:00 and I went to a meeting. After that, we went of to Balboa Park. I was hoping to see the Gustav Stickley exhibit at the San Diego Museum of Art, but museums are closed on Mondays. I forgot.

We walked around the park and I lectured Martin on the 1915 Panama Exposition, applied ornament, the effect of industrialization on architecture, and the advent of Modernism. Martin gave me another birthday present.

Around 4:00 we went over to Hodad's and ate our last meal. I lectured Martin on word-of-mouth marketing, commercialization, and food as an aspect of culture. Martin ate a huge hamburger.

I dropped Martin off at the airport.

I think this summer was the most time I have spent with him in the last three years. It is very sad to see him leave.

I drove over to Little Italy to the Starbucks and sat for the next four hours trying to get my grant submitted before midnight ET. Wrong username. Then wrong password. Then systems crash Google Chrome. Then systems crash Explorer. Then systems crash Grants.gov. Then "we close in 21 minutes." Then start the whole thing over. Then email receipt and validation of acceptance at 11:47 ET.

I called Martin who had not left LAX yet. Said goodbye. Told him that I had gotten the grant in.

Then I started home over the grade.