After I went back to sleep for a few hours, I woke up feeling like a completely new man. Without thinking, I went to the bathroom and immediately emptied the dirty clothes hamper and started carrying the first load of dirty clothes to the washer.

It was at some point during that short journey that some words of wisdom from Hal found their way to the front of my mind. “Don’t bend over for any reason,” as I dropped the clothes onto the floor to prepare for the faint I felt coming on.

Hal heard me, rushed into the living room, and immediately deduced what I had done. Why did I tell you, “Don’t bend over for any reason” in the first place? I think he must have loved using that phrase, knowing it was going through my mind at the same time.

We got the clothes to the washer, and then I was placed into a chair and told to sit for at least fifteen minutes before getting up again. Hal doesn’t play games. When I told him that the only reason I attempted what I did in the first place was that I felt so good getting out of bed, Hal immediately asked if I still felt that good, and honestly, the answer was “No.” Hence, he smugly said, next time, to think before doing something stupid.

Now, and I’m virtually in timeout until Hal decides otherwise. Once I’m allowed out of the chair, I will shower and get ready for the rest of the day.