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| The day before my Father-in law died in 2017. |
Trans Iowa final recon had happened only a week before and with the following weekend to that being Easter, Trans Iowa business was put on hold. Traditionally I would have been going over to see my Mom and step-dad for dinner, but the year before my step-Dad told me in no uncertain terms that my Mom could no longer hold such social gatherings due to her advancing dementia/Alzheimer's condition. We would have to do our own Easter, Christmas, and Thanksgiving from that point on. Essentially, we were told that we were not to visit unless it was cleared ahead of time and no holidays.
That was tough. That was on my mind pretty heavily at this time before T.I.v13, but I quickly forgot about my feelings that Easter morning.
We were on our way to honor an invitation from a fellow congregant at our church for lunch when we got a phone call. My wife's father died the night before Easter morning. Well, that changed everything.
We went home, of course, and we had to quickly get my wife a flight to El Paso Texas. The next day I whisked her off to fly out of Des Moines, Iowa. Thoughts of Trans Iowa, my family troubles, and anything else were very far from front and center at that point. I ended up having to cover the household duties while my two school aged children were trying to do their regular routines while they were dealing with the loss of their grandfather.
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| I picked my wife up on Friday, got the t-shirts, and the next day bagged cues. |
The big trip to get there went well and then the very next day I had to meet at a restaurant with Mike and N.Y. Roll to sort cue sheets into their packets. There was a bit of a confusion surrounding whether or not we missed one bag because we had an extra sheet, but my daughter and I found the bag later at home after going through all of the sets.
It was a whirlwind of activity and I had no time to rest or even to sort through my feelings. One week to go until Trans Iowa v13 and I was just running wide open. Things were, miraculously so, coming together, but it was tense. Now toward the final week before Trans Iowa, which always twisted me up inside anyway, and here I was, twisted up inside worse than ever. But I was determined to give 110% effort and not let off until this event was over.
Later on I would reflect upon this particular week and realize how silly it was that I had tried to carry on as if nothing were happening outside of Trans Iowa, work, and general life stuff. I should have just taken time off, postponed Trans Iowa, and focused on my family, right? I was upset with myself afterward, and this ate at me for quite sometime post-T.I.v13.
But at the time, I was committed, and I was expecting that all I was doing and committed to would be respected by those I was doing all that work for. Unfortunately, things went down which made me feel otherwise.
Next: All This For Nothing
4 comments:
Did we do this in a restaurant? I thought this was the year MJ had us come over and put in a Picture window, and then we made cue sheet bags. I am getting older and things all gravel blur together.
@N.Y. Roll - Yeah, I know what you mean. I have to refer to my accounts of things as I wrote them back then. In those posts I wrote that for v13 we did the cues in a restaurant.
@N.Y. Roll - Also- You could not have stuffed cues that year as you were in the event. Remember?
The Year I tied the always powerful Sarah Cooper into CP #1. Then 6 miles later, tossed my tummy on to the top tube. It was actually a good ride with her till that point.
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