Boxed To Go

Hurray, it’s the weekend! Summer has finally come to the great Northwest (from Memorial Day weekend until the 4^th of July it rains constantly here).

There are no weddings, graduations, birthdays, holidays, baseball tournaments, retirement parties or classes. Absolutely no plans what-so-ever.

We dropped Kidlet off at Manlet’s apartment last night so they could go play for the weekend, and Steve and I went out to dinner with a gift card I had from my birthday. My hubby was thrilled to have a ‘free’ meal.

The wait for a table was short even though the restaurant was busy. We had a lovely table in a secluded section with minimal noise around us. Our waiter was pleasant, and just attentive enough to meet our needs, but give us privacy to talk.

With bread, salad and drinks in front of us, we did just that. Or at least I did. Steve was busy digging into his fodder. It was just late enough that we were both starved. I do really wish that speaking burned up calories like running does. At least it slows my consumption down.

Work has been going well for Steve, and the new summer class that he is teaching was filled to capacity – a good boost for his ego. He loves sharing his knowledge, which (in his interest areas) seems limitless. My spouse is content, relaxed, and happy. He even smiled numerous times at me while looking directly at my face. Which makes me happy, of course.

As the evening progressed and our entrees served, we (mostly me) conversed, laughed, supped, and at last pushed our nearly empty plates away. We sighed contentedly while declining dessert.

Our waiter brought a take-out box for our leftovers, which Steve enthusiastically filled while expounding upon what a lovely meal it would make for his lunch the next day. My Sweetie loves leftovers. I do on some things, but others are best shared with the dog.

We exited the restaurant’s cool interior into the dusky warm evening. As we climbed into the car I opened the sunroof and all the windows. Seatbelts snapped shut, radio turned on, I hit the highway towards home. A huge orange moon was just rising to the east over the small town we live near. Great food in our bellies, classic rock gently thumping,  and warm summer air blowing through the car lulled us into a pleasant silence all the way home.

As I pulled into the driveway, Steve loudly gasped. I tromped on the brakes expecting to see deer or a bear or cougar directly in front of us. Since we live in a rural area we often see these critters around.

“Did you grab the take out box?” Sweetie asked.

“No, you filled it and it was on the table in front of you,” I replied. “Did you forget it?”

“Ummm, well, ahhh…” was the mumble from the passenger seat.

Oh well, just a slight hiccup in an otherwise perfect evening.

I laughed. Steve didn’t.