One day and counting.

A rather fantasy like dream played through my head this night. Prairies that swayed and twirled as the wind swept over the grass that stretched out as far as the eye could see. A flock of swallows silhouetted against the bright blue sky and small white clouds, flying intricate patterns as two men ran through the knee-high grass, full speed.
Loosely sewn clothes encased their wiry bodies, animal skin-like designs fluttering around them with every movement when deep browns and tans made them fabrics rather than leather in the bright setting sun that cast a vibrant red over the planes.
They looked peculiar, a bit elfish I would say, with pointy ears, long flowing hair and narrow faces emphasized by patrician noses. Their eyes were intense blue, as they ran, and ran, a narrating voice pounding impressively as the view zoomed out, showing a magnificent panorama of prairie stopping in a straight line to announce a boundary of a thick dark forest.
“They were as ancient as the land itself, their souls a part of the woods they protected as much as their bodies were,” the narrator booms, the impressive panning view spinning and showing a massive army coming in the two men’s pursuit.
“Their hearts pounded like a battle drum, deep and heavy as fear urged them on. The enemy was near and all they loved was threatened. Haste was their drive and yet time was running out faster than their feet could carry them.”
The two men reached the tree line then, bursting through the thick under brushes and disappearing with an impressive burst of speed that leaves only the approaching army in view as the sun begins to set.

Though the dogs didn’t awaken me this time, that is the only scene I recall from the dream that decided to visit me this night. Blast! That could have been pretty darn impressive if I’d been able to remember more of it, I’m sure. Very “Elfquest”, and not to mention more than a little beautiful. It would certainly have made for excellent writing material. Ah well, there’s no sense in feeling miserable about it, I guess, nothing I can change about it anyway.

I’m only running a little behind today, so with that cheerful thought in mind I take the time to read a little, and take my time getting the bed made and dressing. When I do get down to the house I’m still ahead of grandpa and big brother, so I immediately start taking down laundry and hanging the new batch. The knee is doing well enough today, I barely limp and I don’t feel like I have to use the cane inside the house.

After the dry clothes and sheets have been folded and poor Yadzia is fed–he cried again during the night–I have a couple of slices of bread myself and set the coffee to percolate. After some quick chores in the kitchen, mostly involving setting stuff back in place, I head on to the table to get the computer ready.

Big brother is already going through our lesson material–exams are rapidly drawing near–so while I open the files we go over a few details before we do a final scan of yesterday’s work. It goes well enough and as the hours pass, of which the last thirty minutes are spent online with some chats, it is time to get ready for the lessons.

We arrive a little early, as was the plan, and spend about an hour in the classroom with other students as our teacher informs us of how the exams are done and what the proper protocols are.

The rules of conduct:
No looking at the tests before you get the “go ahead” mark, or you’re out.
Shut down your phone, ‘cause if it goes off, you’re out.
Fill in all the blanks and be sure to do it right, or you’re out.
Don’t forget to put your signature down, or you’re out.
Don’t take too much time, or you’re out.
Recheck your answers and the questions belonging to it because more than three mistakes and you won’t pass.
The list goes on endlessly, making me feel somewhat brain dead by the time she’s done with the instructions.

Afterwards we spend another hour doing test questions, which go well, much to my relief. Only three mistakes in five tests, yay. Meaning that if I got any of these questions, I would have passed. Phew.

Done for the evening, we head on out to the car and go to a massive department store to get some necessary items, along with baguette and cream cheese, since neither big brother nor I have had anything to eat in eight hours.

By the time we get home the evening has advanced considerably, and upon finding that no one was in the mood to make dinner, I bake some potatoes with veggies, which I pile on a plate so we can both eat from the same one. It will definitely save dishes, hah.

Clue (the pointer) is showing a slight swelling on his side, making us worried that the tunnel system problem is back, giving a rather daunting fear that we might have to visit the vet again to have it checked out.

Both of us are exhausted so for the remaining two hours we watch “Bones” and “CSI” just to unwind. By then midnight arrives, and is followed by some planning about how we’re going to handle tomorrow’s lesson and the information we still feel we need to cram into our heads before we feel suitably prepared.
What with all the warnings going on, I’m starting to get a little worried that it will depend on luck more than anything.

Ah well, we’ll see.