"All the people like us are we, and everyone else is They." - Rudyard Kipling

I wasn't sure how much time it would take to get all my assigned tasks done before heading into my first day working at UFC so I started at 3 a.m. By 5:30 I was showered, had fed and walked the dog, fed myself (scrambled eggs and BACON), and baked six dozen snickerdoodles to take into the church office. First impressions count.
I could easily have slept in until 4 a.m.
It's now 6 a.m. and I still have to feed the goats but aside from that chore I'm ready.
This feels eerily reminiscent of the first day of a new school year.

Both Cat One and Cat Two seem eager to see me when I go out in the morning. Unfortunately, that's always with Buddy for his morning constitutional. He gets so worked up about cats within scent distance that he's too distracted to get his work done. The cats seem to sense they've driven him half crazy and lurk just out of range making enough noise to keep him aware of their presence.
This morning I walked him up the private gravel road on the south side of our lot (I have one of those headlamps to help me see in the pitch black of rural OR) only to look into the woods and see two white eyes reflecting light back at me. One of those rascal cats was following us on our walk!

I mentioned our goat operation in class a week ago and yesterday one of the ladies brought a clay pot for Pam to try out. I didn't realize cooking in clay pots was a thing but apparently it predates the current trend of insta-pots. You soak the clay pot and its clay lid in water and then bake - in this case goat meat - in the pot. The moisture gradually comes out of the pot making the meat very moist and tender. Because goat meat doesn't have the fat marbling of beef it can be dry when cooked so we're curious to see how the clay pot works. 

It's 2:30 and I just had lunch. Yeah, the morning didn't go so well. I got to within five miles of the church offices when Sally started making hideous noises. Long story short, I pulled over, did some inspecting, and determined the left front wheel bearing was toast. I decided to take my chances and drove the final few miles to church, praying all the way.
I called AAA and had it towed to Joe's Automotive on the recommendation of a couple of staff guys. I'm waiting for them to call me with their diagnosis and "treatment plan." I'm 99% sure it's the wheel bearings but they can put it up on a lift, pull the wheel, and know for sure.
Pam came about 1:00 and picked me up. I *hope* to have it back around noon tomorrow, which means Pam will have to drive me in tomorrow morning.

There's always a learning curve when you start a new job. Some of the things can be anticipated like dress policy, pay schedule, and where you fit on the org chart. Some come as a surprise. Here's the bathroom door from the inside.  Note the deadbolt lock with a handle that swings over to engage the bolt. More on this below.

I spent most of my morning filling out paperwork, getting an overview of the church's employment manual (ugh), and talking about what I'll do and how I'll do it. I got my weekly class quiz done and the small group question written and sent out but that's about all the "job" work. The rest was in conversations: Faith re. our employment policy (yikes!), Brett re. my discipleship efforts, Robert re. the senior's group.....

Pam picked me up about 1:00 and we stopped by Joe's Automotive. They hadn't looked at it yet but would call as soon as they had. That turned out to be about 2:30.
"Thank you for not driving that car over here." The wheel was ready to fall off."
It was indeed the wheel bearing. They'll replace the bearings on both front wheels and have it done by mid-morning. $600. Ugh!

I made a quick trip to the feed store to get hay and grain because I was out of both and needed them for tonight's feeding. That's been done and in 10 minutes we'll leave for our small group. I didn't get to the gym, I didn't get any paint prep done, and I didn't get the tool room cleaned.
I did get Buddy walked!

OK, here's a picture of the edge of that bathroom door. Note the absence of a bolt to go with that interior handle.
Do you look at the leading edge of a door to see if there's a bolt there? I don't.
I could tell you how I learned there was no bolt to go with the handle but you don't want to know and I don't want to relive it.