Everyone Says Don't

I ended up compromising. It was a gloomy, damp, chilly day...but it never rained harder than a nice, steady sprinkle. I picked up a ride from Uncle Ken and his girlfriend Dolores going to Collingswood and walked back. Actually, I would have turned down the ride, but one of the things I've wanted to do for a while is bring two big bags of unnecessary junk to the Friends In Deed Thrift Shop in Collingswood where I used to volunteer. The bags were too heavy to take on the bike...but whatever else it was, this definitely was NOT a bike day. It's only about a 20-30 minute walk anyway, longer than biking it but not too horrible.

I took today off for counseling, which I made it to on time. Scott complimented me on the weight I've lost and my good mood. I told him about applying for Staples and everything that's happened recently with work and trying to gain enough confidence to meet more people and send out more of my stories.

I'm really nervous about doing freelance work. I'm not sure I'm really all that GOOD, I've never done any ad writing or contract work or editing, and I haven't written for a newspaper since college. People want EXPERIENCE. I sent my stories out once, but I thought a woman's e-zine would be interested in girls' stories, which was silly - of course, they're not. I'm just not sure of what I can do, and all that formatting is such a pain! Double-space this, put this up there, include that! I know I'll never remember it all.

I stopped in a little coffee shop in Collingswood, the Tree House Cafe, for delicious hot cocoa with (canned) whipped topping and a piping hot cup of Hearty Pumpkin Spice Soup (which tasted rather like spicy pumpkin and onion soup with huge onion and pumpkin pieces and not nearly as bad of a combination as it sounds). Though the Cafe is a popular spot for poetry readings and local musicians, only a pair of teenagers just out of the high school down the street, a father and his adorable toddler son, and a few chatting friend-pairs joined me for a late lunch.

The rest of the day was pretty quiet. I did Pilates and made a simple but hearty dinner of Mashed Sweet Potatoes, a chicken thigh, and steamed green beans. They turned on the DSL signal for Verizon, but haven't sent the DSL modem - I'll have to wait until tomorrow to set up my new browser.