Good evening, friends. Looks like you are giving me yet another chance to entertain you with my latest Thursday Rundown. Hope I don’t bore you all to death again. Let’s go…

Free Coffee – My highlight of the week came at the very start of it. Sidney’s favorite espresso stand, Bean Me Up, chose us as the winners of a social media promotion it held. To enter you had to share something to your Instagram Story and comment on a Bean Me Up post with the name of your favorite coffee date. The winner would earn a $20 gift card and the person tagged would win a $10 gift card. Of course I entered the contest and lo and behold I won. That’s means a lot of free white chocolate mochas for Sid and hopefully a lotus drink or two for me.

A Bean Me Up barista announced that we had won the contest via the coffee shop’s Instagram Story.

Amy’s Donuts – Sure, it may have ripped off Dunkin Donuts’ colors, but it didn’t touch its recipe. How do I know? Because Amy’s Donuts tastes waaaay better than Dunkin. Since I now live in the Valley as opposed to the Northside, I had to find another donut shop to replace my beloved Retro Donuts. After church this past Sunday, my brother encouraged me to stop by Amy’s and give it a try. I got a chocolate peanut butter donut for me, an Oreo mocha donut for Sid, and an Elmo donut for Sloan. We all loved them. If you are in the Valley and need something sweet, stop by the quirky shop on Sprague.

Amy’s Donuts might look like Dunkin from afar, but it is much better.

Playgrounds – This week, the moment after I clocked off work, I would take Sloan to a playground to blow off some steam. It is a lot of fun for both of us to visit places we have never been before. We tried out a couple new playgrounds this week. We first played at Edgecliff Park, a heavily shaded large area with a charming playground, a ball field, splash pad, plenty of shelter for cookouts, basketball hoops, and much more. The next day we scoped out the playground at Sheridan Elementary. This playground was a little smaller than Edgecliff but still offered some fun elements, including two different sets of monkey bars that Sloan especially enjoyed. We look forward to continuing our Spokane Valley playground tour.

The top photos are of Sloan at Edgecliff Park and the bottom photos are of her at Sheridan Elementary.

Remote for Fall – Today, we announced that classes will (for the most part) be remote at Washington State University this fall. I feel bad for the students who won’t get a traditional on-campus experience this autumn but it is for the safety and sanity of everyone in our WSU community. The method with which instruction will be delivered at all levels of education is a sensitive and anxiety-ridden decision that parents and students are feeling all across the nation. I can only hope that administrators nationwide make the best decision for their communities.

We announced today that the majority of Fall 2020 classes will be online at Washington State University.

The Week in Movies – After writing about cutting the cord yesterday, I think it is only appropriate to report on the movies I watched via our Fire TV Stick this past week. We finally watched “Hamilton” which I thought was excellent. As an American history buff, I thought it was witty, catchy, and educational. I watched “Django Unchained” with my brother and loved the acting but not necessarily the violence…typical Tarantino film. Sid and I watched “For Love or Money” with Michael J. Fox which was a fun take on the hotel industry, especially the concierge grind. Finally, last night I finished up “Donnie Brasco,” which I found to be your pretty typical mob movie although Johnny Depp was pretty good in it.

I thought “Hamilton” was superb.

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I am going to skedaddle. End your week strong and as I plea at the end of all my Thursday Rundowns, please pray for a coronavirus vaccine. Don’t Blink.