Yesterday was truly exhausting.  I gave blood and have the bruise to prove it.   We do the blood drive at work, so that part isn't inconvenient.  It just always wipes me out and I often end up with a headache, including yesterday. After donating, you have to increase fluids (no alcohol), don't lift anything, and no exercise for 24 hours.  

Also, yesterday my son had an orthodontist appt.  I was picking him up at school.  Left work early to get there in time.  He is a high school freshman.  New school.  New building.  I got there at 3:15, just as school was getting out.

He said that he would be exiting out the back door of the school.  Students aren't allowed to park in the back so that is where the parents go to pick up their kids.  There are two back entrances and when you are sitting in the parking lot of either, you can't see the other one.  You are also not allowed to get out of your car to check the other one.  You have to drive .5 mile down the street, make a right, go another block, up the other street .5 mile and pull into the other parking lot.  It is stupidly designed.  

anyway, so there I was.  Waiting and waiting.  The kids that had come out had all gotten picked up.  The buses that pick up (and which my son normally takes) came and went and no kid.  

So I drove around the block to the other exit.  

Then I drove back to the main entrance.  Can't park there either but what the heck.  Got out, walked around the front of the inside of the school, looking down the main corridors to the back entrances.   

Then I drove to the bus stop.  

Then home (our home is 2.5 miles from the school).

No kid.  

Called the orthodontist.

Back again.  One exit then the other then the other then home.  

Then my gas gauge light went on.

Got gas.  One more circuit to both back entrances.  

Breathe in.  Breathe out.  Breathe in.  Breathe out.

4:15.  Truly one hour later.

Back to the high school main entrance.  Can't park there either but truly at this point I didn't care.  I am going to find someone who can run the public address system and page him.  I don't care if he is embarrassed.  

I promised God that I wouldn't yell.  Truly, I wouldn't yell, just let him be there because my next stop was the police station.

And he was.  Standing out front with a huge smile on his face because he was so glad to see me.  

Did I mention that he is 13.  Has no cell phone (soon to be fixed) and has a tendency to day dream.  He is also slight and thin and small and blonde and wears glasses and was sick as a baby and was born when I was 46 and my older daughters rag on me that I overprotect him . . . did I mention any of that?

Being that I had promised God I wouldn't yell, I didn't.  Instead, I burst into tears.  

What was he doing, you may ask?  He was standing by the back door waiting for me.  Of course, he was inside a foyer, held the door for the cleaning person who was sweeping the foyer and steps, reading his book and "gee, Mom, what's wrong with you?  Aren't we going to the doctor's?"  

I truly was numb, had a headache and I should have gone for a walk.  Instead, after dinner, I sat down and took a nap.  

Then watched the end of the Biggest Loser.  I almost cried.  I felt so sorry for those who ONLY lost a pound or two.  They felt like they had let the whole team down.  Since I only watched the weigh ins, I don't know if they had been goofing off or not, I just felt their pain.  Especially, when you watch the guys hop on the scales and knock down six pounds.  The women were working as hard as they could.