What now....

It's New Year's Day, and I just got home. I left Lubbock on two days ago, but ice and snow held us in Denver until today. I'm tired....

But here's a small update. I did see dear Greg before I left. When I didn't see him Saturday night, I decided to write him a little note and say goodbye before I left town. We had to clear town no later than noon, to make our flight. The restaurant opened at 11:00. I had a one-hour window of time, but I didn't know if he was even working on Sunday.

Got there at 11:00. No Greg car. So, I went in and asked. Yes, he was due in 30 minutes. That's half of my window of time. About then, I learned the kids had not had breakfast (thanks to my wonderful ex). They were hungry, so we got a table, ordered, and I waited.

30 minutes went by, but no Greg. He was running late, this day of all days. 11:50 AM and still no Greg. I was familiar with the bartender, and she knew I had to get on the road for Colorado. "Listen," I said, "I can't wait any longer. Can you please see that he gets this?" I handed her the envelope and turned to go, disheartened.

And there he was.

He rushed to get clocked in, then came to see me.

"I had to come say goodbye before we hit the road," I said, and handed him the envelope. "This is for you."

He stood close beside me, taking the envelope. "It's good," I said, wanting to assure him I wasn't mad about our spoiled date. "Very good."

"I'll remember that," he said, smiling and tucking the envelope away to read later. He turned to my kids. "You must be the son," he said, shaking my son's hand as I introduced them. He turned to my daughter and said, "I remember you. I was telling people about your hair." She has very distinctive hair, and gave him a narrow look, as though to say his comments had better be good. He assured her they were.

"So, when are you coming back," he asked me. "Before next Christmas?"

"Spring Break," my daughter said.

"I'll be back before then," I said. "I'm being subpoenaed in a case against the university." This caught his attention and we chatted about that. Then he asked about our travel plans. We needed to hit the road.

He put an arm around me and held me close to his side. "It was really nice meeting you," he said to me, low and with emphasis. "And you," to my daughter. "And I don't know about you because I just met you," to my son, which made him laugh.

Then, we were off.

We ended up stuck in Denver and extra day. Winter weather closed the interstate we needed to get home. In the hotel, I sorted through my receipts from the trip. I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I have a recurring theme in my life -- the number 13. It started when I was a kid and I was number 13 on my softball team. Since then, if I'm in a contest or drawing, I'll win with the number 13. Addresses add up to 13. Office numbers and phone numbers will have 13 in them. The 13th is always a good day.

Looking at my food receipts, I realized that dear Greg is server number 13 at his restaurant.

Is there a future? I don't know. I'm due back there at least once a month, for the next three months. Does he want to know that? I'll have to find out. If I get the courage to ask, I'll definitely keep you posted, dear diary!