"...Makes me want to buy school supplies." - Tom Hanks, You've Got Mail
Okay so it isn't about to be Fall and I am not in New York, New York. But I'm in the state, the weather is on my mind and I still like that line.
It is March (still early march - the 8th) and I am SO EXCITED for spring. The city I reside in had a few scares and dodged quite a few bullets this winter. The weather really hasn't been that treacherous. And the accumulation has been so low / only here and there - we have certainly lucked out. That being said: I am still chomping at the bit for better weather.
There have already been days where I comfortably walk from my apartment to the coffee shop and back. Days where I leave my car windows down as I drive. Days where I wear a tee inside the restaurant's kitchen and can still feel my extremities. It's basically tropical out there. Soon the porch / outside dining will be open and the restaurant will be insanely busy, even on week nights. Obviously this will be more stressful, but this will also be bearable because everything is bearable in the summer time. Infinitely so. At least, for me. And I have gotten to start / train in the slower season, so at least there will be less hesitation on simple things during the rush. I wish my bff was down here to enjoy it with me! (Part of me wonders if they would be happier living down here. More inclusive, in certain ways. Certainly more activities to do / better access to them. If only it didn't cost money to stay in a safe, cozy apartment. You could move to a new city, try it out for a month - if it didn't work out, no harm / no foul!)
This, of course, means I will have outdoor lunches to looks forward to as well. Outdoor chats with coffee. Lazy, sunny afternoons just outside the brewery. Late nights with cigarettes and whiskey at the bar. Everything is better when the weather is warm. Just ask Jonathon Richman. He loves hot nights.
***
Today I was complimented in a very pleasant, artistic / poetic and specific way and it got me thinking: I am very lucky. I am lucky in so many ways, but specifically: this person who gave me this compliment is someone I have only just met. At work. And they didn't have to go out of their way to even meet me, let alone get to know me. This person is completely delightful and smart as a whip, by the way, which always makes the compliment / efforts even more exciting. (*swoon*.)
I thought about how the people who I have met down here; the girls who trained me for the bank and got teary eyed on my last day, giving me a card with the phrase: "you make the world a better place". (It was an absolute killer duo who I loved being around. I was sure to buy a plant and make a card.) The kids at my new restaurant job who take me the way I am and celebrate and appreciate me. The therapist who, after the first meeting, had sent me home with a pocket full kind words and compliments. What is going on?? I don't feel as though I have changed that much, but have I?
Also: It took me a horribly long thirty years to meet my best friend. Because of them, I met my (elected) little sister. When we went out, we would often go to this bar, who's manager was an incredible woman who I would be happy to call my sister (the cool, adult sister who I am incredibly jealous of and who has killer instincts, a beautiful brain and sense of adventure). And somewhere within the madness, I also met one of the coolest cats who I genuinely hope is my forever-date when I get back home and need some thai food and some quality cackles and/or advice.
These four people are people who did not grow up with me, are not beholden to me and who simply appreciate me, genuinely. (These are also people who are so freaking beautiful that I don't even understand how they exist / how we found each other / am so grateful for their well-roundedness and insights.)
What I'm trying to get at is: it feels as though this is a sudden onslaught of appreciation. And it feels incredible, but holy cow does it make me think back to some less-savory relationships. I remember how many years I spent time with people who under appreciated me / did not appreciate me at all. Including but not limited to my romantic partners. All of this has really helped me feel better about myself (when I didn't even have an enormous problem with myself to begin with). After all those years of being in the wrong crowds you're telling me these people appreciate me?? Talk about zero to sixty.
No comments:
Post a Comment