"Remember how I said I'd only call if there was a problem?"

"Yes?" I said, nervously.

"Well, there's no problem, but I decided to go ahead and call you anyway, to let you know that I put the address through, and it went through just fine. Your concert tickets will be sent out to you either today or tomorrow. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"No, I don't think so. But thank you so much for calling! I really appreciate that!"

"You're welcome, ma'am. Thank you for using Ticketmaster."

Now that is a wonderful way to be woken up in the morning!!!

Next on my list of things to do was breakfast. I made myself some instant oatmeal with banana and raisins mixed in. This has got to be one of my most favorite breakfasts of all time. I didn't want to sit in front of the t.v. or computer, though. Television too early in the morning just irritates me, and my wrist has been bugging the hell out of me, so I've been trying to reduce my computer time (except for, obviously, right now). So I did something a little odd, but definitely fun -- I had a candlelit breakfast all by myself. Sure, the sun was already out, but that didn't take away from the charm of my three candles glowing on the table. After I'd eaten, I left the candles burning, while I got out something I haven't looked at in a very long time - my Osho Zen Tarot deck. I realize that must sound kind of kooky and weird, but what the hell -- that's me! The thing is, for all you people out there thinking, "Tarot cards are crap. Anyone can infer anything from them!" Well, that is entirely the point! I just like to pick a card from the deck and see what it makes me think of in my life. Then I reflect on it throughout the day. I like to believe that the card I pick has to do with something I need to learn in my life that day. But even if that's not how it works at all, and I just pick a random card? Then I'm still reflecting on things in my life that I might not have, otherwise. It's just another means of reflection and by extension of that, hopefully growth. All that just to say, Tarot is not a weird, crazy scam. Tarot is really interesting, and can be very, very beautiful (I love the Osho Zen deck), and I think it's a great way to meditate on various aspects of life.

I took some time to meditate before snuffing out my candles and going for a walk. I took my pedometer out for the very first time! I decided to walk the exact trail I'd walked with Misti, just to compare pedometer results (there actually ended up being a 0.75 mile discrepancy - damn!).

In order to get to the trail I wanted to be on, I had to pass the kiddie area of the nearby park. It was weird seeing all those women and toddlers and babies. It instantly brought back memories of being in the park with Victor last summer. I smiled, remembering how fun it was, back in the day when the park was still a Tantrum Free Zone for him, and an escape from Toddler Angst for me.

After he started having tantrums in the park on a regular basis, going there lost all its charm. For a little while, though, it was lots of fun. He'd push cars all over the place, and I'd sit with my feet in the sand, just watching him, usually eating some lunch, while he played and played, and I talked with the other nannies or the moms. I found myself wondering what those women were up to now. At the same time, I felt good walking past the playground chaos onto the much quieter trail beyond, feeling rather lucky to be independent and on my own, not having to keep track of anyone but myself. Walking alone can be a really great experience! I love walking with friends, too. I think it's nice to just mix it up.

It was a really hot day out, so I started making up songs to keep myself calm and really concentrating on trying to embrace the heat of the day, instead of resisting it. I won't go into huge details about it (well, not now anyway), but I had some serious heat exhaustion issues when I was a kid. Which is why, to this day, being in the heat feels kind of scary. Like I said, though, I'm working on it.

I walked over the bridge and onto a little pathway, when I suddenly heard a loud song chiming in the distance. I knew it must be noon, and a moment later, the gongs I counted confirmed that. Then something really cool happened! The clock, wherever it was, started playing a song that The Today Show used to have (still does, maybe?) as its theme song.

A huge smile spread across my face, as I just stopped and stood there, listening, thinking the lyrics in my head, and realizing that that's exactly how I felt. I also felt bad for all the folks in cars with their windows up. They missed it. Being all alone on that trail at that moment made it seem like that song was meant just for me. I know, how very egocentric of me. But whatever, it was a nice moment, and I'm glad I was there to experience it!

On the way back, I saw a man and his dog. The dog's face was totally white, and she looked almost like a wolf! I began talking to the guy, and he said his dog was a Siberian Huskie named Winter. Then we just began chatting and since we were both headed the same way, I ended up with a surprise walking partner! How 'bout that? I love that spontaneous, pleasant things like that just happen sometimes. I had a really nice gut feeling about him, too, so I wasn't worried about walking with a stranger. Eventually, he headed off to the left, when I still needed to go straight, so we said a quick good-bye and wished each other well as we parted ways. I thought the whole thing was really cool!

Back at my car, my pedometer told me I walked three miles. Nice! I headed home to cool off and shower before going out to do a bunch of car stuff. First was the smog check, which my car passed with flying colors. Hallelujah! It was almost worrisome how excited my dad was to hear that news! He'd thought I might need new pipes and engine stuff to pass a smog test, but luckily, that was not the case.

However, I went to Midas next, and my car does need a lot of work. Damn it! Anyway, at least I got the oil changed there. The rest is too expensive to do now, and will have to wait. Bah! I thought I told my car to stop being such a pain in the ass?

The good part about spending a while in the lobby of Midas (well, besides the lovely air conditioning) was that I got to read a good chunk of Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris. Goddamn, is that man funny! I was sitting there giggling to myself the whole time. I'm currently halfway through it. It's the perfect book to take to appointments, because it's so small and it reads really fast. Not to mention, it's entertaining as hell. I think I'll have to go on a David Sedaris reading spree in the near future.

Then last night, Joe and I conked out shortly after he got home. We woke up around midnight, had dinner (soup and an english muffin for me!), stayed up until 5am, then went back to sleep! We are nuts, I tell you.

Then today was incredibly fun, because Bobbi and I went on a hike with Loki. We were out for a few hours, though we weren't walking the entire time. Loki discovered a body of water for, we think, the first time in his entire life. At one point, he'd gone in to the deep end, and had to swim out, which seemed to freak him out a little! He's never had to swim before! He spent a good while dragging sticks out of the water and leaving them on shore. Bobbi said it best, when she said it was like Loki was saying, "What's all this shit doing in my water bowl?!" Too funny!

    

We met lots of other dogs and people. Everyone was so friendly, and the scenery was so beautiful. Being out in nature, having a nice walk, is an incredibly wonderful way to spend the day. Bobbi, Loki, and I have decided to make it a regular event!

To tell you the truth, I'm not sure why I wanted to tell you all this. I guess I just wanted to write it out to reflect on how nice things are going lately, and to remind myself and others that there is a great deal of fun and serenity in the simple things in life.