Something New

Goodness, it’s already been a whole week since I wrote in this blog! Shame on me. I do have somewhat of an excuse. My husband and I were away for three days to celebrate our 30th anniversary and I’ve spent the rest of the week “catching up”.

We also spent a day helping our daughter pick out a new car. As we advised her with negotiations and gave our input to the choices available, I couldn’t help but think how buying a new car is somewhat like starting a new writing project.

You go to the dealership knowing what you want, but when you get there, you discover the price is beyond what your budget can handle. So, you look at the other choices and modify your expectations. Kind of like having dreams to write a three book series and realizing that maybe you should get a few short stories written first.

There are two different kinds of buyers in the automobile market. One is the impulse buyer, like me. I go to a lot, see something I like, and, assuming it fits into my budget, do the test drive, and sign the papers. My daughter, on the other hand, studies the Internet for days, talks to other people, and makes her choice based on carefully studied facts. Kind of like a SOTP writer verses an outliner. If she were a writer, she’d definitely be an outliner. Even though I do some outlining, I lean more toward SOTP.

What about options? My daughter got some pretty fancy options on her new vehicle, like a sunroof and a 6-CD player and all kinds of things I’ve never heard of. I drive a pick-up that has what I call the standard options, but I don’t go that much for fancy as I do for size. I want something big with a lot of power that represents the wanna be cowgirl in me.

I think our writing reflects who we are, just like our vehicles do. I like to think my writing possesses a certain power, the power that the Lord gave me to influence others with words. I like to hunt for new words when I write, not necessarily flamboyant words that leave the reader wondering what in the world I’m trying to say, but compelling words that draw vivid pictures for my reader.

I did a presentation at my local Toastmasters meeting yesterday. It was supposed to be a “tall tale”, so I took a story, personalized it, and threw in some exaggeration. I was in competition with another speaker to be a contestant at our area contest on October 6th and won. I’m excited to be going into competition with a speech. I’ve been in competition in other aspects of Toastmasters, but never with a speech I’ve written.

The person who did my evaluation yesterday said I had a wonderful command of vocabulary and that some of my words carried a lot of power.

If only I can take that power and channel it into my novel, I’ll be as happy with it as my daughter is with her brand new car.

First Impressions

The past several days, over a week now, have had me under the weather. Combine a case of walking pneumonia with a reaction to the medication I was prescribed, along with a switch to the night shift, and you’ve got someone who feels worn out just about all the time. Seems like I can’t get enough sleep, and when I’m awake, I have no energy to get anything accomplished. I haven’t even written in this blog for close to two weeks.

Still, I did manage to find time and energy to keep a lunch date with a friend a week or so ago. It amazes me how easily we judge people we don’t even know.

The waitress who took our order was not unpleasant, but there was no hint of friendliness in her demeanor either. She presented herself as all business as she placed our drinks and silverware in front of us. There was no "hi, how are you today" or other form of greeting. Simply a "what do you want to drink"and "are you ready to order". My first impression was that she was a young woman who had probably stayed out too late the night before partying with friends and was suffering the effects while on the job today.

She returned with our food a few minutes later and then proceeded to clean the vacated table across from us. In the process, she dropped a glass into the tub used to collect the dirty dishes. It didn’t break, but her expression made it obvious she was annoyed and frustrated.

“Not your day,” my friend offered.

The woman looked up with a tight expression on her face. “No, it’s not, and yesterday wasn’t my day either,” she answered. “Yesterday, I had to put my dog to sleep.” Her granite face softened as she fought to choke back tears.

In an instant, my whole perspective on this young lady changed. She explained how it was difficult enough to make the decision to euthanize her beloved pet, but it was heartbreaking to have to explain to her two children, ages three and five, why she had made that choice. “It was time for him to go be with God, where he would be happy and healthy again,” she had told her little ones. She described the small funeral service they held for their beloved canine friend.

Soon, my friend and I were expressing our sympathy and sharing our own stories of lost pets with the grieving waitress. Before we left the restaurant, we each gave her a hug and wished her and her children well.

Who would have thought when I walked into that restaurant that I’d be giving a stone-faced waitress a hug before I left?

I felt ashamed of myself for judging her the way I had, labeling her as a bored party girl who resented the fact she had to work for a living. Here she was a single mom at work and wishing she could be at home with her heartbroken little ones, comforting them and helping them through their loss.

If only we would take a moment to seek the story behind the supposed boredom, or anger, or despair we see in the faces of others, we might learn that we have more in common with them than we think.

The Light Bulb Came On!

Hi everyone and welcome to Patti's Ponderings. I've been going to start a blog for quite some time now, but to tell you the truth, I found it a bit intimidating. No, it wasn't the fear of putting my words on the Internet, it was the technology! I just couldn't get things figured out and gave up several times. Well, guess what...

I finally figured it out! How to enter a new post, add a sidebar, add the links to my favorite sites, all that neat stuff. I’m so excited! I’m experimenting with colors, titles, and subjects. If I’ve promised to link you to my site and haven’t yet, don’t despair. I have a whole list of folks I want to add. Also, if you would like to be added to this site and are not sure if you are on my list, drop me an email and I’ll get you on there.

I plan to post my feelings about writing, life, and anything else that comes to mind. I will be doing some author interviews and book reviews, and maybe running a ontest every now and again, so stop by and pay me a visit!

Okay, it’s late and I’ve exercised enough brainpower for tonight! Time to kick back with a good book for a few minutes then go on to bed.

Thanks for reading my blog!