I have been off from one of my jobs this week so I took the opportunity to schedule appointments to get things done. I started the week off getting my car worked on. Unlike most I actually enjoy going to my mechanic. I know my car is being maintained, they know I need my car to do my pet sitting and they never try to sell me anything I don’t need. I also love that no one can bother me for just sitting and reading the newspaper for an hour or snoozing. I think I am one of the few people left in the world who waits for their car while it’s worked on.

Later in the week I had appointments for the yearly advertising of my business. I had a lovely lunch with my mom and step dad-crabcakes, cantaloupe and potato salad. Yum bunnies. We went to a local ice cream store we had not been to in years. The old owner is now back managing the store for the new owners. The best is the shakes! They have about twenty five different unique shakes you can chose.

The thing that sent my week into a slight tail spin was my yearly doctor appointment. No big issues but I thought I was doing great in certain areas only to be brought down to earth by the doctor. He gave me a rude awakening and gave me some advice. I was in a funk the past few days. I have been trying to incorporate his advice into my daily life and trying to change my thinking to snap out of the slight depression I fell into.

I woke up this morning to a thunderstorm. I like being able to lay in bed and listen to it. I had no pet sitting today and no big plans so I lay listening to the wind kick up, rain fall-first softly and in big drops and then faster and in a deluge. The thunder was a rolling thunder that never got loud and violent. Though a good friend half an hour away had violent winds, hail and much worse thunder. It’s rather hit or miss living near the Bay as to what sort of storms if any hit.

After the storm blew away I headed out to the post office and the local bookstore. The post office tries very hard to be twenty first century but it is still a local gathering place where people hang out in the lobby to catch up on news and gossip. The best part of this visit was I ran into a young local artist who caught my eye at the Plein Air art Festival in town last month. His hair color caught my attention first as it is fluorescent yellow/green but then I saw his painting and it was amazing. I initially admired his style and courage for his hair color but his talent in painting was impressive. I was surprised and delighted to see him.

I then went to the bookstore. After picking up the newspapers I headed to the magazine section. I love to check out the different magazines. I start with the local magazines, head to gardening, cooking, astronomy, dogs, horses, airplanes and poetry. I have been keeping an eye out for a friend’s poetry to be published in the latest review. I kept trading places with two girls who wanted to check out the teen magazines which are right next to the horse, dog and philosophy magazines. I was impressed again when the one girl needed help, rang the bell at the book desk and did not let the woman attitude dissuade her from asking her question about two magazines. The best question she asked was do you work here as the woman stuck her head out from the office to see if she really needed to come see who rang the bell. That immediately brought the woman back to earth and softened her up. The girl was quite spunky and I loved it.

I was feeling better and uplifted when I headed back to check out the children’s books. One of my secret passions is that I love to read children’s and teens books. I am fascinated how the writing differs from that of adult books. On my way to the teen book and children book area I passed a young boy in a stylish fedora hat walking with his hands in his pockets. I felt like I was walking by a young Indiana Jones. He joined up with the girls in the magazines. Their grandmother then came by to see what magazines they got and they all got into spirited discussion over what three books to purchase. I loved when the boy pushed his hat back to chat.

After witnessing the moxie of the kids at the store and the young man at the post office I felt a lot better and was ready to face the world again. I am looking forward to heading to the farm stand tomorrow to try out more of the recipes I received. If the clouds ever clear I hope to see the meteor shower tomorrow night and the space station go overhead. I look forward to reading some of the books I have purchased over the last few months.

What do you do to help make yourself feel better? I have a friend who runs long distances, I prefer to try nature though this time it was kids who brought me out. I hope you have a great weekend. And don’t forget to look up!