I almost stayed home from BlogHer’s 10th anniversary celebration.  Then, I saw a early bird ticket for sale.  I acted on the spur of the moment.   It was a long shot.  I really couldn’t afford it.  I probably wouldn’t get it.

I did.

Oh my!  Now what?  It’s in San José.  Maybe I can find a room-mate.  I sent out a request on the Women of Midlife Facebook page.  It was a long shot.  I only met a few of the members last year.  Probably no one would want to take a risk on a stranger.  Kay Lynn responded immediately.  She’s a blogger I follow, you might want to check out her Weight Chronicles:  Life on a Journey to Health.

I got a room-mate.

 

The tickets to San José are expensive.  Maybe I’ll wait a bit and see if I can find a cheap fare.  Maybe I should tell Love-One.  I found Cheap-O-Flights for half the price of what I found anywhere else.

Yay. I’m going.  Loved-One says, “Really?  Why not.”

I had a great time.  Met some of my old friends (Denise, Sharon) and made new ones,(Barbara, Anne, Diana, Suzanne, Stephanie, Erin,and many more,) and learned some new things, (the publishing landscape, crowd-sourcing.)

I partied with Reverend Run.  (Remember Run D.M.C?)  Yeah. That one.

I’m tired, but I’m refreshed and ready to re-ignite.

Besides BlogHer14, here’s what I’m thankful for this Monday.  In no particular order.

She Writes.  Kamy Wicoff is such a supportive advocate of writers.  She did a terrific job of describing her third way to publishing.  She’s so generous with her time, too.  I’m not sure how long she stayed after the session, but my patience waned before hers did.

Neighbors.  While I was in San José, a public hearing took place with the planners of the Energy Plant I learned about last week.  Loved-One and neighbors keep me informed and energized. I’ll be there this week.  Hopefully, the public will get a chance to speak this time.  I’m planning my statement, beginning with the difference between “I can,” and “I will.”

Purple flocks and volunteer sunflowers.  Oh you cheer my heart, waving hello in my back yard.

 

 

Mobile chargers.  I got one from the Skype booth.  It’s small enough to fit in my purse or even in a (large) pocket.  Yes!  Now I can always be prepared.  Now, will I remember to charge the charger.  (See what I did there with “I can,” and “I will”?)

Texting.  I kept in touch with Loved-One without disturbing him at work or waking him up.  Okay, that was a bit of a double-edged sword.

Hotter Shoes.  I l-o-v-e, love this brand.  My feet never.  I feel like I’m walking barefoot, only wrapped in some sort of gentle protection

Wildflowers and “Ditch” lilies.  Sometimes they are not all that pretty, but together they are gorgeous.  Plus, I gotta love their persistence.  They just never, ever give up.

UBER AP for iPhone.  I got a ride to the airport for less than half the cost of the taxi.  Actually, it was free with a discount code, but the regular price was less than half.  A pleasant, not overly friendly college student picked me up in his clean car.  He makes more than minimum wage, and I pay less than I would to a taxi company.  Such a win-win, I’m thinking of becoming an UBER driver.

Sleeping.  Oh yes, I needed some of that.  I went back to bed after dropping Duckie at work, and I took a short nap after lunch.  Lest you think I’m a slacker, I already walked six miles and climbed the equivalent of 28 flights of stairs.

Knees.  Oh I’m still so happy mine are in such good shape.  Last week I had a day of titchy ankle. Just a little taste of what it might be like to have bad joints.   So glad everything is back to normal.

So glad to be home.