Absence Makes Kelli Fail.

I've been AWOL for a few days. Sorry! I've been grateful for a lot of things in this past few days, and I've caught myself thinking more clearly about what makes me grateful. I've also caught myself using the word grateful more, which is interesting. Is this little experiment of ours working? It just might be starting to have an effect. So here's a few things that I have filed away in my head.

-Fort Nisqually. I began volunteering as a reenactor there my junior year of high school and it's one of the only things from high school that I've kept doing. There's something magical about going to the Fort. It's changed a lot, even in these past six years, but most of the old faces are still there. We're all older, and we can't always make it to every special event, but when we're all together, it's wonderful. This weekend was our annual Brigade Encampment, which was just as wonderfully fun as it always has been. Once the public leaves and we start the potluck is when the fun really begins. We eat, laugh, play music, dance, and as the night gets later, we sit around our campfire singing old songs before curling up in our wool blankets to sleep while the wet logs crackle. It's comfortable, mostly peaceful, and it always helps remind me of who I am. It sounds weird, but leaving behind the world of technology and constant stimulation for two days is amazing.

-Listening to music with friends. Just curling up with blankets and putting on a good acoustic album, talking through some tracks and just listening and humming along to others. Peaceful and comfortable. (In an emotional way as well as a physical one.)

-Finding a publishing house in Seattle that's hiring. I applied this afternoon and am insanely nervous about it. But at least I've gotten my first publishing related job application done. Gah! So nervous!!!!

-Running. It can be torturous, but at the same time, nothing else quite gives me that full body, tired from exercise feeling. Getting to run around a lake and pass a cute guy running the other direction was a bonus this morning.

-The internet. Need I say more?

-Creativity. I've got an idea for another story forming in my head right now, and if it forms up like I'm hoping, it's going to be pretty kick ass. I love that feeling. The last time I was this interested in writing a story, it ended up as my capstone, which got a great reception from the people who have heard it.

I'm sure there's lots more, but I got up early for the aforementioned run and the 3pm coffee has long worn off. I'm tired, and I think I'll go to bed soon. I promise to be better about posting now. I don't want to continue to fail at blogging. I'm going to end with a quote, picked specifically to drive Lauren crazy.

"IIIIIIIII'M A SPY!!!!

And it's really fun.

And I wear a cape."