Creative surfing

We've been without access to the internet from home since Thursday, which has required me to do some creative finagling to get online. (If you're about to suggest that I could have gone on a multi-day internet fast, you obviously don't know me well.)

Thursday evening, I was offline. That was ok because we were busy with the high school open house and all. Friday morning, I met my friend Beth for breakfast and some wifi at Panera. Then I went into the office where the internet was flowing just fine. On Friday night while Charlie was at football practice, I snagged a drink and wifi at Dunkin' Donuts -- where I did NOT eat a donut, aren't you so proud of me?!

Yesterday was our 17th wedding anniversary. So Mike and I took a long walk with the dog, then stole away to Panera. Two nerds with their laptops, enjoying that "we don't have to talk all the time" silence while soaking up the world wide waves over breakfast power sandwiches. For dinner last night, we took the family to McAlister's where they have a great selection of food, sweet tea (though I just ordered water) and, you guessed it, free wifi.

At about 3am last night, I was searching for some wifi to hop on to in my neighborhood, but those smart neighbors of mine all have their networks secure -- as do we). Which meant I was sorting laundry until 4am.

After church, I treated Robbie to hotcakes at McD's and myself to a Diet Coke and (say it with me...) free wifi. And now, mostly because Charlie was starving after his football game, I'm sitting at Panera -- a different one, getting my last hit until I can get to the office in the morning. I'm sure my boss will wonder what I'm doing there at 5am.

All in all, this dang snafu has cost me probably $65 and hundreds (thousands?) of calories. At least I've learned one thing about myself for sure -- I cannot live off the grid.

Dear Panera

Dear Panera --

I love you for your Fuji Apple Chicken salad, your low-fat vegetarian black bean soup and your chocolate chip muffies. I I love you for your free WIFI that makes this a perfect office away from home.

I would love you more if you jacked up the thermostat a bit, but that's nothing that a pair of jeans and a sweater cannot fix. I would love you even more than that if you served Diet Coke instead of Diet Pepsi, but I can get over it.

However, our long-term relationship might come to a screeching halt over this monumentally annoying jazz music with its "makes-my-mind-race" tempo and its blaring horn solos.

Will miss you much (unless I invest in some noise-canceling headphones),
Amy