Track 28: i like you

Yes, I really do! But I'm not just being cute with my lack of capitalization. i like you is a store in Minneapolis that is filled with handmade crafts and gifts, including local art on consignment (the store keeps a percentage of the sale, and the rest goes back to the artist). It's the first place I'm going when I finish making the photo notecards that I'm going to sell in shops around the Twin Cities. There are so many little boutique stores and cafes in this area. I'm really excited about the prospect of making some money from a project that I can do at home at any time. What have I got to lose? I like my photos, so chances are good that other people will too. And buying a notecard is less serious than buying a print or a framed photograph. Eventually I'd love to sell larger prints, but notecards seem more manageable right now. I'm really excited about it, and I've learned that you've gotta follow your excitement. When you do that, things inevitably go your way. I was in a gift shop near my house, checking out their card inventory and asking about their buying policy, and I found a journal with the word "Passion" on the cover, and down in the corner, "every day." I opened it up to a page with this quote:

"You only lose energy when life becomes dull in your mind. You don't have to be tired and bored. Get interested in something. Get absolutely enthralled in something. Throw yourself into it with abandon." - Norman Vincent Peale

I turned a few pages and found this one:

"At last I've discovered the secret: Do whatever your heart leads you to do -- but do it!" - Truman X. Jones

I put the journal back, because heaven knows that I don't need another journal. But after looking around a little more, I went back to the journal and opened it one more time to this quote:

"When you do not tire within but seek the sweet satisfaction of your life and your work, you are doing what you were meant to be doing." - Gary Zukav

With the goosebumps slowly disappearing from my arms, I took the journal to the cash register and bought it. It's going to be the special journal where I write all the ideas that make me excited.

I'm sorry if all of my feel-good inspirational quotes seem a little hokey to you, but I am telling you, people, that it is an amazing feeling to be excited about life again. I didn't know how drained of joy my life had been until I broke free and went to California. Nowadays, even a good cup of freshly-pressed coffee in the morning makes me so damn happy I could burst, and I don't think it's the caffeine. So I am here to tell you: STOP DOING WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL BAD. Think about what makes you feel good and do it. Don't think about the negative consequences, because that's only going to make them happen. Think about how great it feels to do what you love. Don't sit there and dream about a better life. Go out and MAKE it better.

*Whew* Stay tuned for more pep talks in future posts.

Oh, and I got the job at the clothing store. See, what did I tell you? It's magic.