Diane and I slept very well last night and extended the relaxation period to late morning. Like till 1000. Then the phone rang. I knew right away that it was Cedric because that’s what my caller ID told me. Knowing this, I answered right away to see what was up.

He said, “you can come and get me, if you want.”

“Right now?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said.

“Should I come as I am or should I put clothes on?” I asked.

“Clothes would be good, Grandpa,” he said.

Actually, we were just lounging around in our jammies, waiting to see what the day would bring. It started raining last night and has been raining all day. Sometimes very hard. We had planned to put clothes on if something came up that required us to leave the room. Since it did, we told Cedric we’d be there at noon, and got busy putting on street clothes.

The rules for today were the same as yesterday except he was allowed to stay out until 2100. We got to the barracks and I was walking to the entrance just as Cedric walked out the door. We turned around and went right back in so I could sign him out for the day.

Since it was noon we took the bottomless pit to Popeye’s Chicken that’s actually part of the gas station. Odd, maybe, but that’s the way it is. Kinda like a rest stop on the freeway where there’s a KFC on one end, and Taco Bell on the other end. Here on base it’s just Popeye’s. The other end is just a gas station. That doesn’t really matter, though, because Cedric would have eaten on the gas station side if necessary.

After lunch we made a trip to the commissary with the hope of finding a knee wrap for Diane in the medical section. On the way in I saw an older fellow wearing a USMC baseball hat and did the only natural thing there was to do. He saw it coming when I saluted him and returned it. This kind of caught Cedric off guard because he wasn’t sure whether he should salute or not. No, it was just two old guys honoring each other for service rendered.

We didn’t find anything like what was needed in the commissary so went next door to the PX to search some more. They didn’t have any wraps either, but they had some shoe inserts Diane wanted to try. And I found these young soldiers having fun with costumes.

It’s a new Army.

On the way out of the PX we met the USMC guy coming in so we rendered honors once again. It’s fun being in the military again even if it’s just for fun.

After leaving the PX we stopped by the Women’s Museum at Cedric’s request. I told him I wasn’t sure we could get in because I thought maybe, since it’s a women’s museum that only women were allowed inside. I was wrong, of course. I knew I would be. Cedric wanted a moment of his ideal woman, Athena.

The displays inside were very nicely done and told a very interesting story of women in the Army. I only took one photo inside because it’s not really something I’d find useful in my library and I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t have found it interesting. This is the one I took …

Then I got Cedric just hanging out waiting for us to catch up on the outside.

The we went back to the our room to enjoy the rain and remainder of the day inside, watching a movie. Cedric has a copy of the Captain America vs. Iron Man movie. Diane had never seen it and she kinda has a crush on Captain America. So do I. He’s hot.

After the movie Diane made us a nice dinner of bake potatoes, salad, and beef brisket. It was excellent. I tried to take a selfie at the table but Cedric ruined it.

After dinner Diane broke out the mini Oreos and Cedric shared a little know story about how his Mom, our little Jennifer, would take Oreos out of the package, eat all the frosting, and put the cookies back. It’s a fond childhood memory of Cedric’s. He was happy that all the minis he got from the package had all the frosting inside.

Sharing this memory prompted him to call his Mom so he could talk to her. He put her on speaker so we could all participate. It was very nice. No other family members were present which was unfortunate, but we had a wonderful talk with Mom.

Cedric shared a karma event with us regarding the young man who agreed to be Cedric’s Liberty Buddy last Wednesday but bailed at the last minute making it necessary for us to visit at the picnic tables by the barracks. Well, today, after we arranged to pick Cedric up at noon, that same sailor wanted Cedric to be his Buddy to go off base to the credit union. Since we were on the way, Cedric declined. Oddly, the sailor was upset apparently telling Cedric he’d remember this. We all decided he probably wouldn’t since he didn’t remember the first event.

Too too, it was time to pack up and head back out into the rain. Cedric has the proper clothing for inclement weather. I love his coat but can’t afford to buy on for myself. Just as we were ready to leave Cedric’s phone rang and it was Jeran. We delayed departure for a bit so they could talk, then Cedric excused himself because we had to get him back to the barracks. He vowed to call Jeran back once he was back in his room.

That was the day. Another good one.