Rising Sun, Here I Come ... In Two Months

A week ago I got the email at work. In it, my boss stated simply "I decided to give it a try."

... meaning that something I've talked people's ears off about for four years is actually happening. I held on to my ergonomic office chair and fanned myself like a girl who just won her local beauty pageant.

Maybe, being in the New York Times office, it was because I didn't have the immediate opportunity to jump around and scream, or maybe longstanding dreams finally becoming reality take a while to sink in, but I didn't experience the full effect from what this email implied until last night.

I had gone over my ex-editor/boss's house for a delicious diner and we talked about doing interesting things, and New Orleans (her sister lives there).

She didn't look at me funny when I said I love damp heat and helped me revel in my memories of soggy blues bars and New Orleans grit from last summer.

In the taxi on the way home, I actually smiled at the cab driver and didn't roll my eyes when he accelerated over a pothole. Through my Pinot Grigio buzz, I realized where I'm going and I like it.