Friday, June 09, 2006

Happy Happy Bay Branches

Ohmygosh, words will not be able to describe how happy I am today! Four lovely things have happened recently--I am putting them in chronological order because they ALL make me happy!

First of all, my DSL came back a couple of days ago and I finally have a decent internet again! How on earth did we survive without DSL? I am able to research topics and waste time so much more efficiently now! BONUS: WE HAVE KILLED EARTHLINK. Huzzah!!! We went with a local ISP that does their tech support out of SANTA ROSA. Can't get much more local than that. AND, the phone rings twice and someone comes on to help you. OHMYGOSH. *swoon* They are called Sonic and to anyone in the San Francisco Bay Area--I highly recommend them. I really think if you can swing it, a local ISP is the way to go. Let's boycott Earthlink, AOL, and all the other shoddy Internet providers. I'm sick of corporate Internet! Die, Corporate Internet, DIE!

Second, I was the featured speaker at my recovery group meeting the other day. It went really, really well. I have never spoken at one of these meetings before (at least, not as the "Speaker") and I was scared, but as they say--maybe you are shaking so hard just to shake your whole true story right out of you! Honesty is so important, isn't it? And the first honesty is being honest with yourself. I think this is true not just of recovery, but life.

Third of all, MY AGENT LIKES MY NEW BOOK! She likes it a lot, actually. *Cue music for me jumping around the room like a dork!* The one thing though, since it is a nonfiction, I need to write a proposal. *Whew* I just started working on it, and it reminds me of school. It's not a type of writing I normally do! But in a way it will be a lot of fun to look over the 'complementary' titles. Any excuse to go book shopping, eh!

Oh, and the BAY BRANCHES thing. Yes, somehow I got roped into leading a "Dreamcatchers" workshop at the 3rd grade campout next week. All would be well and good except for the fact that the workshop leader needs to HAND-MAKE the hoops for the dreamcatchers out of bay branches. Even that is ALL WELL AND GOOD, except the workshop leader also has to go up to the ridge of Mt. Tamalpais and HARVEST the bay branches (for 88 hoops). That, too would be ALL WELL AND GOOD, except that the esteemed Brownie leader who tipped off the workshop leader as to where the good bay branches could be found... had, of course, harvested 150 bay branches already for the Brownie campout a month ago! Imagine me hanging out over cliffs, taking my life into my hands, in the search of bay branches! While I did not tumble into the canyon and die, I did fall on my butt right into a patch of poison oak. However, since I was wearing clothes at the time, I didn't come down with it... YESSSSS. So THAT was good, and here is the BEST PART OF ALL! I got to sit out with my adorable daughter and together we bent about 35 of the 88 bay hoops. It was really some great mother-daughter time. LOVED IT. It makes the whole thing worthwhile. She is a great help too!

That said, it's back to my proposal!

XO, Martha :o)