#365Gratitude Day 229: Grownup Leftovers

Monday morning I was a little rough.  (Round tripping 900 miles in two days will do that to you.)  I was super pleased to see we still had a poppy seed roll left so I used it to make myself a very nice little breakfast sandwich. 

Then I packed my lunch for work.  That apple came from a rest stop somewhere in Connecticut.  That salad was leftover from one I had made on Friday.  I love leftovers.  They push a few buttons for me.  On the one hand, it's like found money, sort of.  On the other, they're sort of the Ghost of Good Meals Past or something.  

It's probably not very grown up that I thought I would enjoy that apple for my mid-morning snack just a little bit more because I got it on the way to see my friends.  

But you know what? It was absolutely true. 

#365Gratitude Day 228: Birthday Bagelry

Sunday after the Littles Invasion, we all got breakfast at a great diner.  The invasion was lots of fun - there were a ton of littles there.  I got to meet some folks in person who we've had on the podcast, bumped into old friends I hadn't seen in almost a decade, too.

But the very best part was surprising Maddy.  She had no idea we were going to be there.  We sauntered into the playspace and found her and Devin, and tapped her on the shoulder.  She sort of spontaneously combusted into a pile of affectionate melty goo.

This makes me very happy.  I'm total rubbish at surprises and secrets.  Not three days before this, she had messaged me saying how much she missed us, and wanted us to visit sometime.  I said, with as straight a face as I could manage (which was to say not at all) "Oh don't worry, Maddy, I'm sure we will see one another sooner or later."

Good thing it was a texting conversation.  I have like no poker face whatsoever.

Anyhow, as I was saying, the next morning, we went out for breakfast.  The diner was really, really good.  They had amazing challah french toast, and they had bagelry.    The item on the menu struck me so funny, I had to take a picture.

After breakfast, because I suck mightily at goodbyes we lingered in the parking lot for way too long, and took a happy, schmoopy picture with Devin and Maddy.

I love them so much.  Sure, this was a surprise for Maddy, but it was really a treat for me, too.

We'll have the schmoop to go, please.

#365Gratitude Day 227: Mugshot & Review

Saturday was a very busy day.  I got up early, and went for a long walking workout.  Along the way I passed a broken mug in the gutter, one I've seen for several days now.  (I think if it's still there the next time I go, I'm bringing a trash bag and just picking it up myself.) 

Then I came home, finished packing my suitcase, and drove with Missy to Connecticut. 

Yep.

It was around a 450 mile trip, that did take a VERY long time, but it was for some very good purposes.

1) To get to see Little Ella and Wundertom, who were doing another awesome Littles Invasion at The Society.  I super especially wanted to do this because we had to miss their wedding ceremony due to scheduling conflicts earlier this summer.

2) We were going to get to surprise our friend Maddy, who was going to be there celebrating her birthday!

The trip was long.  But, along the way I asked Missy if she wanted me to read to her all 18,000 words I had so far of A Little Patch of Sunshine.  She did.  It took a while.  When I finally reached the current chapter, and stopped midway through a scene, she said, "THAT'S IT?! WHERE'S THE REST?! WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?!?!?!"  

She asked me if maybe I could get a little writing done right now so she could hear more.  I gave it a good try, but juggling a bluetooth keyboard and a tablet on your lap in the car is pretty hard.

Still, that seems like a pretty great review from the person whose opinion means the most to me in all the world.

Lap. Top.  Literally.

#365Gratitude Day 226: Writing again for real

I had this long dry spell working on my new novel, A Little Patch of Sunshine.  I was about 18,000 words in, and had a bunch of difficult life stuff happen, starting back last September.  It was like someone came into my personal spoon drawer and picked up all the creative ones and just chucked them away.

That time's over.  About a month or so ago I went to check in with my old therapist, who gave me some advice I really needed to hear.  I started doing a very particular form of daily meditation, and it's yielding results.  Besides getting back to regular exercise, my creative mind has flared up and caught fire again.  First, there were the two "Littleton Somethings" I wrote recently, Passenger Seat and its sequel, Gear Shift.

But both of those were in preparation to resume work on my 3rd novel.  On Friday I started work on it again.  First I re-read my synopsis and character bios, and then re-read all 18,000 words I had previously written.  Then I went back and edited some things in earlier chapters.  All this is easy for me to do because of a system I have in place that allows me to get to my writing from my phone, tablet, or computer.

As I was doing all this, I stumbled across a scene I really love, between the main character, Sunny, and her Uncle Norman.  They're sharing waffles at a diner that will be very familiar to Concerning Littleton fans, before they go on a long trip.

I love this scene.  I love these characters.  I love that I'm writing again.

#365Gratitude Day 225: How about a 100% discount?

Not me, not Missy, and who even uses paper tickets anymore? But this is the general idea.

A while back I won a gift card at a company casino night function.  I put it to good use, buying plane tickets for Missy and I to go on vacation later this year!  

I had to register the card so I could use it, and the process for doing so was just AWFUL.  You call this phone number, and talk to a mechanized voice in order to give it your purchaser details.  I had to call three times, and slowly repeat myself.  Eventually, something during the 3rd call must have pinged the system to get me to a live operator.

I had to be a bit flexible getting the tickets, because everything had to add up to under the value of the gift card.  So, I wound up picking a flight a bit later in the day that was just a bit cheaper.  We still have to buy our baggage allowance when we get to the airport.  

Who cares? Not me!  Because FREE AIRLINE TICKETS!