Remember Ten Good Things?

Back in, I don't know…2005? I began a weekly series I called "Ten Good Things." It was a marginally successful attempt at training myself to recognize good things that were going on in my life, at a time when bad things seemed to outnumber good by a ratio of 100 to 1.

Then we bought the café, and "Ten Good things" went the way of…all good things. In fact, I think I've only posted one or two half-hearted lists in the past twenty-eight months. From July 2006 through about February of this year, I was way too lost in the weeds to think much about good things. I had tumbled headlong into the abyss of stress, fatigue, disillusionment and second guessing that is the world of the neophyte entrepreneur. Now and then I fought my way to the surface and gulped some air. And if I was feeling particularly smug, I might decide that I had turned the corner, and it was time to sit back on my heels and breathe a little. For about five minutes, until the next glob of excrement made contact with the oscillator.

I am no longer suffering from that chronic sleep-deprivation, no longer wrestling that feeling of trying to navigate in an atmosphere the consistency of half-set jello… The rusty capabilities of this old warhorse have finally caught up to her dreams. Running the restaurant has at last become a matter of employing systems, habits and muscle memory, rather than fielding a daily barrage of physical and mental challenges that nearly did me in. It has not escaped my notice that I'm beginning to feel like a bona fide human being again. And now that I'm able to pay attention to something besides the daily grind at the restaurant, I've noticed that quite a few good things have been smacking me upside the head, without my even having to go looking for them.

The last few days, in particular, have presented a veritable feast of delectable occurrences. I feel like a little kid on Christmas morning, being handed package after brightly-wrapped package, each one filled with something chosen by someone who knew exactly what would make me squeal with delight.

Let's open them, shall we?

1. Autumn leaves—though the season is drawing to a close, the trees in my own yard continue to burn bright yellows and reds. And my fuchsias, geraniums and begonias are still blooming, since we've had no frost yet to speak of.
   
2. A walk on the dike yesterday seemed to correspond with the nightly sandhill crane flyover. I stood rapt as flock after flock flew low over our heads, punctuating silent wingbeats with calls of Crrroooo-crrroooo! Crrrroooo-crrrrooo!
   
3. Another trip to Oregon wine country yielded a bottle of locally bottled Methode
   Champenoise; and this time I remembered to bring a camera.
   
4. Pouring coffee this morning, I looked out my kitchen window and spotted not one but two woodpeckers enjoying birdie buffet. I have never seen a woodpecker at my birdfeeders before, so this was indeed a red-letter day. (In case you're wondering, they were a downy [hairy?] woodpecker, and a red-headed sapsucker….)
   
5. Business has been exceptional this week, with three days up over the magic $1000.00 mark.
   
6. I was able to connect my new ipod to my old cd player at the restaurant, and it played over eight hours of my continuous favorites.
   
7. I was able to return the $150 fancy radio/docking station I had thought I needed, after I found all I really needed was a $15 cable to connect my ipod to my old cd player and be able to hear my music.
   
8. We finally have two lighted signs on the front of the café…so that traffic coming at us from that direction might know who we are and what we do. For the first time.
   
9. I found the 8-dvd "Hornblower" A & E series for $40 at Best Buy, and we have happily immersed ourselves in the adventures of Mr. H and the Indie for the past three nights.
   
10. All this, and President-elect Barack Obama.
    

So I'm all smiles tonight… J
J
J