Happy Saturday! It’s wonderful to see you here!
The winners of the Dude bookmark chosen randomly from the comments left in my last newsletter are:
Congratulations!!! Message me here or send an email with your mailing address to jennmck at yahoo dot com and I’ll mail out your bookmarks!!!
Right now my world, of course, is all about promoting my summer books. I have several that are just perfect for an afternoon read on a hammock, lounge chair, or beach blanket!
A few things to note: Paris is Always a Good Idea has been adapted for a limited series on the Hallmark Plus streaming channel and will star Lacey Chabert. First two episodes drop on July 30th! Very exciting!
I Can’t Even is on summer sale on Kindle, meaning the e-book is FREE with your Kindle Unlimited subscription.
And, for those of you counting the days until we’re back in sweater weather, Love at First Book is set in Ireland during November through March, so you can escape the heat…fictionally.
Many years ago, when I was teaching Hooligan 2 to drive, we borrowed his brother’s car to head over to the home of one of his friends where his squad was gathering.
Photographic evidence of my driving instructor days. You’ll note my hair has gotten much grayer. Hmm. Can’t imagine why.
I had H2 do the driving because any chance to practice helped us get in the required 100 hours for his driving school. H2 was hugging the curb as he drove and I encouraged him to center the car in the lane to no avail. This is why the Hooligans went to driving school. We had reached the joyous age where despite my many years of driving, I clearly knew nothing about it and a stranger with teaching credentials obviously knew more. I mean, yes, but whatever.
H2 parked in front of his friend Jordan’s house and disappeared with a wave and a shouted, “Love you, Mom.” Cool. I got out of the passenger’s side to take the driver’s seat but stopped when I heard a hissing sound. I live in Arizona, so hissing sounds (rattlesnakes!) do make one pause. It was not a snake. Yay! It was the front passenger side tire doing a slow deflate. I stood there, stupefied, until it was just a puddle of rubber. I desperately did not want to call H1 and tell him his brother had popped the tire of his new-to-him car. Boo.
As it turned out, I had forgotten my phone and couldn’t call H1, the Hub or AAA. Darn it. I’d changed my share of tires in my life and knew that I could do it if I was stranded in the middle of nowhere and absolutely had to but this was not that situation. I knew H2 had his phone, so I headed to the house to borrow his. I knocked on the door and was greeted by seven dogs of varying sizes, a harried mom, and a squad of teen boys. After greeting all of the critters and the people, I explained the situation and Jordan, much to my surprise, leapt into action.
Now, I don’t know about you, but I do not generally greet flat tires or any other inconvenience with anything but annoyance. How dare the dryer not actually dry the clothes? Why is the train late? How could the bakery run out of my favorite cupcake? None of these life glitches elicit a positive response from me to put it mildly, but I got schooled that day on how to rise to the occasion.
Instead of just allowing me to use my son’s phone to call for help, Jordan rallied the boy squad and the next thing I knew I had five teens outside jacking up the car, taking off the flat tire and putting on the spare. They didn’t process it as an interruption in their plans but rather as an opportunity to check their tire changing skills, teach the ones who’d never changed a tire how to do it, and share a lot of sweat and laughs while helping someone (me) in need. The neighbor came over to inspect the boys’ work and nodded his approval so I gave the boys pizza money and headed home, feeling amused and thoughtful.
What could have been a super irritating hiccup in my day had somehow become fun. When the tire problem was met with a can do attitude and teamwork, it was vanquished. Even when the lug nuts on the tire were uncooperative and it took multiple attempts, the squad didn’t quit or whine. If anything, once they started, it became a do or die situation. They were determined not to let me down and they didn’t.
I still think about that incident a lot. The glint in Jordan’s eye when he heard I had a flat tire and his enthusiasm as he shot out of the house ready to save the day, bringing his entire squad with him. My son and I still laugh about it and when we witness someone pitching a fit about an inconvenience we share a knowing look. Because it wasn’t just a tire change that I got that day. What I learned was that the annoyance is only as big as you let it be and even when things go wrong you can gain something out of the experience, whether it’s renewed grit and determination or laughs with friends. Simply put, and we all know this already but it bears repeating, attitude is everything.
Wishing you a summer of endless ice cream and barbecue, cool breezes, and mosquitos that don’t bite you.
Happy Reading!
XO, Jenn
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