My pal Gail is pining for fancy purple shoes she spotted online.

I have shoes I love and shoes I can wear, but these remain my all-time favorite shoes of all time. As I type this, I am wearing the most wonderful red ones and dreaming of the ranting. (also found my tiddlers)

I tried to go shopping Saturday (it was a brief moment of being out of my mind for sure). Got out pretty darn early and it was so mobbed in Colonie Center that it was both annoying and a little freaky. There was too much loud music, too much bad music (including bad live music in Barnes and Noble), too many people, far too many weird and mean people. Too many people on the phone. Lots of happy people making happy holiday memories by taking dressed up kids to meet Santa (photo op!). I finally got back in my car and came home being ridiculously unsuccessful.

Well, I did buy a few things for myself LOL which wasn’t exactly the point now, was it? And I ordered a couple things online yesterday and heard today that they were shipped. I’m good with it.

I am about halfway through The Hobbit. Oh yes, I saw that the 50th anniversary edition of Lord of the Rings that I have in paperback is actually available in hard cover. How nice. My old copy of The Hobbit, I don’t remember when I got it, but all the words are there. I’m enjoying the spareness of the words.

I worry that my own writing isn’t descriptive enough and then I read things like the Hobbit and feel better about the whole thing.

For grins, tonight I copied the three parts of my NaNoWriMo story into one file. Holy cow: 132,427 words.

In other “what I did today” news, I tried to get out and do a little shopping but the place I went to was mobbed to the point where I was uncomfortable, there were people playing really bad versions of pachabel’s canon… how festive! and everything I was drawn to was for me.

For example, I went to Barnes and Noble and while I did get a couple other things, the very first thing that leaped into my hand was The Poetic Edda translated by L.M. Hollander which has such fine things as:

(Frey said:)
“From on high I beheld in the halls of Gymir
a maiden to my mind
her arms did gleam, their glamor filled
all the sea and the air.

“This maiden to me more dear
than maiden to any man;
but Æsir and alfs all will have it
that strangers ay we stay.

(“In my behalf her hand shalt ask,
and home bring her hither,
her father let or allow it;
good shall thy guerdon be.”)

(Skírnir said:)
“Thy steed then lend me to lift me o’er weird
ring of flickering flame,
the sword also that swings itself
against the tribe of trolls.”

From the Lay of Skírnir

Let’s just put our cards on the table, shall we?

This is it for the week and anyone who thinks otherwise, well…

It’s easy to be cynical and negative. We all know it. It’s easy to get sucked into the negativity. Totally true. So it’s important to keep your eyes open and look for the magic bits and roll them around in your head and hold onto them with both hands.

While I was talking to one set of customers, there’s a tap on my shoulder. I turn around and it’s a very long-time customer who ducked in to give me a hug and personal ‘grats’ on making my NaNoWriMo goal. Wasn’t that nice? I got hugs from him and his nice wife. Confused the heck perhaps out of the other customers but what can you do?

Last time that happened the other customer (who didn’t have any questions, she told me) was so confused by this fellow who came up to me, hugged me and chattered away about how the writing was going for me and his latest projects that she was quite convinced he must be some big celebrity. she hung onto every word of our conversation. After he left, she couldn’t quite ask me ‘who was that?’ but I explained – long time friend and supporter and a bit about what he did. She didn’t say anything. I said – do you need a hug too? And she held her arms out. And that’s how I got this weird moment (me of the frequent huge personal space issues) of hugging a random someone.

Anyway, unexpected visit from excited supporter – awesome.

Then I was off to lunch. Stopped on my way to say hello to a co-worker I’d heard over the headset earlier. She said something funny, but very nice to another person. I said how I’d ‘felt the love’ – a nice thing to hear between co-workers. She said that she liked my funny takes on things and that we didn’t get enough time to really talk. awwww. back at ya.

Sat down at lunch, wrote the synopsis-outline thing and felt really good about it. A few sketchy words on a bare page, feeling like solid progress.

Planned out a little surprise for some folks tomorrow and found a way to execute it. Put it into play. Woot!

Gave myself the night off. Now I’m going to pour myself a little wine and eat the corner of a piece of cheesecake I saved. Livin’ the good life here!