Whereupon Our Heroine Has Good Karma

Our heroine went to the doctor's office this morning for a shot (poor dear), which meant she was on a much less crowded bus when she finally traveled to the pier. For 3 stops, she had a seat.

Bliss, she thought. This is great.

She thought too soon. At the 4th stop, a church-going woman from a landlocked state got on, and our heroine quickly stood up.

"People here are so nice," the woman said, and our heroine muttered that it wasn't a big deal.

For the rest of the bus ride, she cradled her new book (Sabriel) in her elbow.

But for the rest of the day, our heroine experienced a series of most fortunate events.

For example, she called a literary agency in New York, and spoke to someone from high school. She ate a chocolate fudge sundae in Park Ridge (which came with two cherries.) Her name appeared in the local paper, and a magazine (with Mayan Ruins, like Legends of the Hidden Temple.) She received lovely emails, and discussed Harry Potter. She biked. She laughed at work. She laughed at home. Her roommate gave her a cupcake. She fed her cats catnip, and they were happy, too. She received a list of books about Chicago, and researched a gigantic flood. Even her sheets were freshly laundered, which she loved.

Yes, when she stood on the bus, she did not know it was the trigger for these events. In fact, she was sure it wasn't. But it was nice, nonetheless, to have good things happen all at once -- a veritable flood of good things, which she didn't want systems engineers to plug with fast-drying concrete.