It has been a Twilight Zone couple of days. First? Yesterday I went to a specialist because my optometrist, bless him, thought there was something “a bit funny” with my optic nerve. The specialist, an ophthalmologist thinks I’m losing vision. Um, depressed? Perhaps! And could the examination have taken ANY LONGER!? I got there for a 4 pm appointment, and we didn’t get home to dinner until 7:15. AND I was practically blinded from all the lights flashing in my eyes. On the up side, though, who else has a color photograph of the backs of their eyeballs like me?
So, today. More tests, an hour wait, a lost chart, etc. etc. etc. Home from another grueling session of Waiting on Doctors (TM) and found the message from S.A.M. that I expected, in the voice he uses when he’s suppressing giddiness. He is so excited that we have finally sold my novel to Knopf. Well, heck, I’m excited too, somewhere in there. Of course, it’s my sister’s ridiculous shindig this weekend, so I can’t feel happy until somewhere around Sunday at 2 a.m. This should be Monday around, oh, say, 9 GMT, and I expect the world will shift, people will ask each other, “Did you hear that?” and people in my neighborhood will think someone just let all the air out of the tires of every car in a sixteen block radius. It will be me, sighing … trying to release my stress and center or something genteel and yoga-esque.
The funny thing is that S.A.M. is so nosy. “Why are you at the doctor?” he wanted to know. “Hope it isn’t something out of the routine.”
Oh, yes. Did I mention that, failing to find me at home, he actually dug out my mobile number? And called me in the middle of a doctor visit? At 6 p.m. Eastern time, after office hours? He really wanted to tell me this, folks. And then we made small talk about various ailments… turns out he has what I may have, and his partner has it, too. We’re all going blind from glaucoma. Cheers!
So, blessings on all of you who have thought positive thoughts my way… keep them coming! For me, writing is the easy bit. Talking about things — the book, why I write, doing all of the PR — that’s the hard part.
I’ll let you know how it goes. In the meantime… wait for the cheering to start on Monday-ish.
Can I just interject here that I am NEVER going to take responsibility for little old ladies looking at ANYONE with greedy eyes!?
STILL glad my sister’s shindig is over. And dear ones: if anyone else wants to get married? Elope, okay? Thanks so much…
You won’t go blind. Feel the force of will being applied here.
You realize that someday S.A.M. will find out that you have a blog, and will want to read it, will devour it in a weekend, and will find these things about himself? He’ll perhaps do a search on where he’s mentioned, dig out the page or two in your blogs where he is … and let’s just hope that you’ve gotten to know him a bit more before then.
Regarding your sister’s shindig? If I have to play the piano in public, you have to sing solos. Just saying. It’s all your fault that little old ladies are looking at me with greedy eyes. 18 years of anonymity… down the tubes.
So, it’s Tuesday. What’s the news? Updates? 🙂 Hope your sister’s shindig went well. Glad it’s over, no? 🙂
As I have no consuming weekend plans, I’m going to cheer a little bit now, if that’s alright:
SUPERSWEEEEEEEEEET!!!!
And congrats!
This comment is clearly not about the blindness. That’s bad and blechy. I am reflecting on the very, very good, which is SUPERSWEEEEEEEET!