Go Green

Okaaaay...there are red cones there now. Am I on the right street? There are the meters. Where is my car? I looked at the parking signs. I was okay right?

"All cars that were parked here were towed," said a guy who can tell from my confusion that I'd expected my car there. He must see this almost every night.

I'm in my friend Kurt's car driving to the towing car storage place.

"You're pretty calm. A lot calmer than I would be."

I'd been told to ask the valet at the nearby club about the towing company and then I called the lot to find out that my car was impounded and I needed $243.80 to get it out. Over half of the cost of tuition for the improv class that was the reason I'd traveled to Hollywood on a Sunday night in the first place. We're required to watch at least 8 shows before class ends.


At the towing company I get to my car to find that it has a $60 parking ticket on it. I ask if I need to pay the ticket too? They say yes. Great. That makes the night over $300. *sigh*

I'm still a little confused. To me, the signs weren't really clear. But looking back at my friend's comment it comes as a realization that working for a time in customer service has taught me to take responsibility when I mess up.

It doesn't do to get angry at the service person or the tow company or the city. I'm still going to have to pay. Yes, I can be upset because that's a lot of money to lose but to expend unnecessary energy over something that's done and over with and also for an error that really is, in the end, my fault...it not beneficial in the slightest.

I've spent enough of my time taking the brunt of anger from people who are unhappy because they can't get their way, or they messed up and they don't want to take any responsibility so they blame you. I can now identify when to take responsibility myself when something along the same lines happens to me.

Plus, when you put in into perspective. It's really not worth getting angry over. It's not like a family member has died. It's not like anyone close to me or I, myself, have been diagnosed with life ending disease. It's not as if my car got stolen or I no longer have a job or the means to support myself.

It's lost money which means I'll be very careful for a month or two about where my green goes. It means extra life energy spent at work instead of doing other things. And, it means that I'll be taking the metro like I usually do instead of driving to Hollywood. Whoo hoo! Go Green. In more ways than one.

Pleasant Surprises

The past two days have been filled with pleasant surprises. Little ones that make your day:

My sister tells me to take a look at a recent photo of my nephew that's been posted online for us to view and it's not what I'm expecting at all but I'm so glad to get it because it's the cutest thing.

I look at my planner thinking I've something scheduled for the evening and it's clear which then allows me to say yes to getting together with a friend who's moving the next day.

I take an IQ test for the fun of it knowing that when I was a child I was considered somewhat above average so I'm expecting the same sort of score. And I've always been the dumber one in my family. When I open my e-mail and get my score it's a 155 -- a total surprise. All that "Brain Age" on the Nintendo DS must have paid off.

Taking a walk in the morning with my sister to the post office to drop off mail and realizing they have the change of address forms my friend was looking for so I grab one for her.

I show up at work and a package of chocolate covered donettes is left for me on my desk by a friend. I looove chocolate covered donetttes.

These little surprises help me with the bigger things going on in my life that aren't so fun. And I appreciate them.

The little things go a long way.