You knew eventually that song was going to appear in my daily song lineup. It's everywhere, and we can't escape it. But it's so true today. I'm in a great place right now, feeling very optimistic about the future, and it's the only thing I can use to describe my effusive outlook. I'm finally starting to have a clear path forward. Now that some decisions are made, some doors are starting to open up. I still have a million and five ducks to line up in a row before I'm done with all my plotting and scheming, but my biggest source of worry has disappeared. I now know that we won't have to immediately pack up and skip town this winter, disappearing like thieves in the night. I still don't know exactly where I'll be and what we'll be doing in the long term, but the unreasonable time crunch has been lifted. I'm so happy and confident now, I'm fairly certain I could float off into space.
Everyone is talking about college graduations, everywhere I go. My foster daughter is attending her commencement ceremony in the next few days, and my younger daughter is still waiting for grades to see whether she can finally stop paying tuition as well. I saw a news report showing the VPOTUS as commencement speaker at the state university here. A young graduate was interviewed saying that he thought it was something special he could always remember, having the vice president deliver his commencement address. I still think having the world's greatest nanny deliver my older daughter's address last year trumps everyone, but I've always placed Julie Andrews on the highest of pedestals. No matter how hard I try, I cannot remember who spoke at my own graduation. I'd be surprised if I was told it was someone famous. It made no impression on me whatsoever. I tried using the Google to find a list of historical speakers, and failed to get farther back than the late 1990s. I did stumble upon a list of notable alumni--artists, celebrities, scientists, athletes, astronauts, and others. I saw a unique name on there, and thought, is that MY (name redacted)? A little searching found that yes, my old friend is now included among the notable entrepreneurs and innovators, and with persistence, I found a picture of him high in the air above the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, where he's a regular. You know, the last time I went to Balloon Fiesta, I ran into an old friend from high school who I hadn't seen in over 25 years. I'm starting to think I should have spent a lot more time there while we lived in New Mexico. There's no telling how many of my old buddies hang out there. Maybe there's a road trip in my future this fall.
My dear Bonfire friends and I braved the tourists downtown tonight, to celebrate another birthday. (I hope we get to celebrate mine months from now, since I appear to be the only outlier who wasn't born in the first half of the calendar.) As almost always happens when we go out together, the food was fantastic, the company even better. It was beautiful today, and I got to walk around the tourist spots a little to take some pictures in the warm afternoon light. I saw a lot of happy people, enjoying the weather and the gorgeous town. And my friends were all smiles this evening. I can't imagine a better end to the week. My feet haven't touched the ground for hours.
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