it's clear now

I drove to UPS earlier tonight to pick up a Christmas package. I waited in a long line of people. An older woman told me stories about how her children were the only ones without cavities in kindergarten because she didn't let them eat much sugar. The security officer had handed a young girl a candy cane, sparking the conversation. I checked out everyone around me, men and women, young and old, up and down. It was an eclectic group. I was most entertained by an older man with a fake Burberry scarf and wallet. What made him entertaining was not the knock offs but his flashy gold Razr phone, which rang in a goofy galactic style about every couple of minutes. Oh, people, sweet people.

The package was from my best friend in North Dakota. She's a thoughtful and good gift giver. I made it to the car without opening the box but used my keys to tear it open once I got in the car. Peanuts, tons of packing peanuts. In an effort to not make a greater disaster of my already disastrous car, I decided to wait until I got home to dig in. Well, I almost made it out of the parking lot before I had reached into the box and grabbed the wrapped gift from the middle of the peanuts, sending them everywhere. It felt good letting those white puffs fly all over. The gift was nicely wrapped - no surprise coming from a former intern at Martha Stewart Magazine. I held it in my lap the rest of the way home. The ribbon and paper were not devoured by my hands until I hit my driveway.

There was a beautiful, sleepy fog as I drove around the South City area. I thought about taking some photos. When I finally got around to making the photos, the fog was gone. Clear alleys are still pretty cool. Let the four day weekend begin.