Grilling

Today is Steve's Birthday. Happy Birthday to him!

This year, I was going to try and surprise Steve with his birthday gift. A grill!

We got our last grill over ten years ago, and it was supposed to be a temporary grill. We got the most inexpensive grill we could get, thinking that we'd get a better one the following year. But we never did. We looked around, but not aggressively. One year, Lillian even gave Steve some cash specifically to buy a grill, and we never picked one out. We kept using the old one. We moved. We had kids. The grill sat out on our deck, getting rustier and rustier. We didn't cover it. We didn't take care of it. One spring, when Steve opened the cover, a couple of birds flew out. They had built a nest in it.

So I decided it was time. Steve likes to grill, and I figured he could use a newer one.

I found one at the Home Depot. It wasn't the biggest, or even the most expensive, but it was the right size for us. No extra rotisserie things, no side burners, but we had one on the old one and we never used it. The new grill was well made, and all black and silver and shiny and stuff!

Anyway, I bought it, and then I had to figure out how to get it home with out Steve noticing. I had some idea that one night I would just ask him to cook some steaks on the grill, and there the new grill would be!

But we had to deal with the delivery problem. First off, they scheduled the delivery for "Friday P.M." which could be anything from 12:30 to 8pm. We had karate and a t-ball game, and I might not be at home. It would be awkward if Steve were there and suddenly they dropped off a grill.

But the delivery folks called the day before and asked if they could switch us to the first stop. Which meant 7am. This is before I have my shower, when Im still all sweaty from running, and the boys are not yet dressed. How on earth would I keep it secret from Steve?

Well, I didn't. The delivery guy called ten minutes before he got here to give us a heads up, and the phone woke Steve. If the phone hadn't woken him, the truck backing up to our driveway would have (beepbeepbeepbeep) or Gunther barking at the guy.

So Steve got his birthday present a little early. He liked it.

But when he went to turn it on, it was missing a part!

My heart sank. I thought I'd call Home Depot and they would laugh and tell me to call the company that made the grill. They would tell me there was nothing they could do. I had signed the papers. Too late.

But they didn't. I went to the store and the guy took the part off another grill and handed it right to me. Apparently some people take parts off the grills and walk off with them. Why? I don't know. But Home Depot didn't question me, they just handed me what I needed.

And last night Steve used the grill. Wich looks pretty snazzy, I must say.