Amanda and I were apparently both feeling industrious this morning. I was going to go outside to mow the lawn but decided I’d trim some limbs, which feeling was brought on by the way that every time I’ve parked in the driveway lately a tree branch has brushed the car (even though Amanda hasn’t noticed it). I went looking for the shears but couldn’t find them in the shed, so I looked in the coat closet (where we keep a lot of tools and such). It turns out that they were hanging just about on the roof in the shed and I didn’t think to look up, but that lead me to pulling everything out of the floor of the coat closet and reorganizing it, which has been pretty long overdue.

I went out to chop limbs after that and Amanda set herself to organizing the nursery- unpacking things from boxes and putting them away.

When I was just about done with branch trimming Amanda brought the phone outside and gave it to me. It was Erin Dotsey, my first sister, who happened to have come to Wilmington last night. She came over and the three of us got some breakfast at Atlanta Bread. We came back to the house for a little bit and decided to go to Wrightsville Beach. Our brother, Adam Dotsey, met us at the Wrightsville Beach Park and rode with us to Anna and Barry Frazelle’s.

Amanda’s brother, Michael Mercer, showed up soon after and we all went on out. Erin, it had been decided, was going to learn how to surf today. I let her use my spring suit, figuring I’d be alright without it. It gave me a chance to wear the beaver tail neoprene top (which is more like a jacket) that I got for my birthday that I hadn’t worn yet. Michael tried his neoprene top and baggies too, but he didn’t last in the water long before getting back out to change into his wetsuit.

I was proud of Erin- she did really good, especially given that it was her first time ever surfing. She caught a few waves and stood up on at least a couple of them. She didn’t last too long though- her arms got tired pretty quick from paddling out. Michael went to change when she got out.

Michael and I surfed a good long while as two-thirds of my siblings sat on the beach with my wife, who did not get sunburned this time.

Amanda’s friend from college, Robin Crabtree, was in town with some friends. They’d been to the beach (at Johnny Mercer’s pier I think) and we were meeting them for dinner at Flaming Amy’s, which was what finally got me and Michael out of the water. Adam went on home, but the rest of us went to eat. Michael drew penises on our to go boxes.

We went on home after that, and Erin went to her friend Sam’s house. We had a coupon for 50% off any one item at AC Moore good only today, so Amanda and I, having forgotten to go earlier, went then. She wanted toget a vase. I had had too much water at Flaming Amy’s and had to pee really, really bad. I finally found a restroom at Home Goods then joined Amanda back at AC Moore, where she decided she liked a vase that was on clearance anyway so she couldn’t use the coupon and gave it to a couple guys in the checkout line. Then she ended up not using the vase for its originally-intended purpose, which was to put in it some fake flowers Amanda had gotten for the nursery.

After we got home I watched a Coldplay concert on Palladian, a music channel that actually shows music videos. I’d seen it was going to be on from a Facebook posting by Nick.

Speaking of Mr. Warkentien, he and Eli spent a big chunk of the day together. Amy had a wedding to film so father and son got to spend some good quality time together.

Zach Dotsey