February 25: Blessings Abound

What a difference another day makes!

Last night’s host recommended a place to get my oil and filter changed ... and they not only took me without a wait, it only cost $110. That's not even an hour's worth of labor at the last place I had work done. (They charged $160.) When I sought a referral for body work, people at the garage recommended Vin’s that also took me right in. (The last body shop in Georgia, I waited a week for an appointment and spent four days there.) When the estimate came to about $1,200 for a new quarter panel, paint, and realigning the mirrors, I must have looked as upset as I felt because the woman took pity on me. She asked if I could wait while she checked on something. What she did was arrange for mechanics to bang out the dent and reattach the mirrors ... for a whopping total of $130 with tax. Looking at the work they were doing on other shiny classy vehicles, "functional is good enough" is not their slogan. I practically danced back to a happy, healthy Karmalita. Part of that joy came from leaving tips at both places.

I also made a friend. The woman who saved me $1,070 was moved to gift me a crystal and an anklet for luck. I had her pull some cards from my box of broken decks to keep. When I learned she was interested in the Craft and her daughter was Wiccan, I gave her the extra copy of a book by one of my favorite witches. I think we'll be staying in touch.

The winery I was supposed to visit today was very kind, and I'm pretty sure I'm all set to go there tomorrow for two days. Tonight I came to a Cracker Barrel to chill and, unlike every other night I’ve spent at a Cracker Barrel, I stuck up a conversation with the nomad in his 60s parked next to me. That led to him treating me to dinner, and plans for me to get him a shower at Planet Fitness as my +1.

I credit all these blessings to the powerful magic of extreme gratitude I put back into practice on my birthday.