2. an easy drive from Placitas to Flagstaff yesterday (gaining back the hour I lost as time changed from Mountain to Pacific) … with gentle showers along the way that paused for me to carry in my luggage before starting up again & falling through the night … another wonderful night’s rest … and morning pause in the rain for me to load ‘stuph’ into the Explorer … followed by an easy drive today from Flagstaff back to Corona where I picked up Molly who was ‘tired, clean, sweet-smelling, & happy to see me’ … then home again where we’re happy together.

3. for time to transition back into life as I live it while holding on to the energy & ideas from the retreat … telephone connections with friends ‘C’ and ‘S’ … making plans to connect later this week … a lovely visit in the blue chairs on the patio with neighbor ‘B’ who looked after the yard & Ms. Kitty in my absence …

4. for another restful night … writing while getting laundry done this morning … checking out & listening to the first 3 of 21 ‘Successful Authors Secrets’ talks after Jen shared a link in a follow up email … being reminded of ‘abundance & support’ … realizing I don’t have to do anything alone.

5. I picked up mail yesterday afternoon so I could pay bills electronically this morning after doing some writing because this afternoon I’ll be driving with friends to the Laguna Playhouse to see ‘Life Could be a Dream’ …

6. for a lovely long visit with ‘C’ to catch up over lunch … sharing a bit of my Taos experience while learning what’s being going on with her.

7. I could help out neighbors with guest parking issues on this BUSY ‘surfing contest’ weekend

8. I responded to Facebook ‘friend’ requests and sent friend requests of my own using the ‘retreat roster’ (along with ‘invites’ to retreat participants without FB accounts) as a way of reconnecting after being back home almost a week … then added links to recent blog posts.

9. for a lovely & longer than usual visit with friends at this months Retired Gals Lunch.

10. fascinating & practical information from the daily Successful Authors Secrets calls this month.

11. I managed to share some photos from the Taos Writers Retreat with other participants at the Google Group & Facebook today.

12. for a delicious ‘taco meal deal’ at Mimi’s Cafe for $9.99 … starting with salad & ending with a petite dessert (bread pudding) currently in my refrigerator waiting to be enjoyed later along with a free 4 pack of muffins in my freezer

13. the Verizon Wireless store in Newport Beach had a Palm Pre Plus I could look at … even though they couldn’t give me the low ‘online price’ of $29.99 in the store.

14. for leftovers from Mimi’s Cafe, time to write & organize photos to share, and sunshine finally here at the beach!

15. I ordered a Palm Pre Plus online this morning and learned it was FREE with a ‘smartphone’ upgrade & 2 year contract renewal (rather than the $29.99 online deal I saw last week that seemed pretty good at the time especially considering it lists for $699 and I’ve always liked Palm OS products)

2. both men’s semi-final matches at Wimbledon were competitive and fun to watch … especially the one with Nadal and Murray.

3. Serena Williams has played beautifully throughout the entire tournament (setting a new record for ‘aces’ served, dropping only 3 games in 7 matches) … winning the Ladies Championship match at Wimbledon … surpassing the Grand Slam totals of Billie Jean King.

4. the Rafa Nadal-Tomas Berdych final match at Wimbledon was competitive for the three sets it took for Rafa to win the Championship for the 2nd time, though I confess I was hoping for a 4 or 5 setter.

5. this year’s 4th of July weekend was less chaotic & disruptive than the norm here at the beach in So Cal … (probably because the weather was cooler driving loud party-goers indoors earlier than usual) and the fireworks (provided by Disneyland this year) were quite spectacular!

6. the sun came out … FINALLY this afternoon around 4:30.

7. for Lee who keeps my hair ‘care-free’ … although this time he cut it quite a bit shorter than ever before & I’m not quite sure I like how it looks at the moment.

8. to be writing regularly again in my journal, even though I’m not blogging much these days.

9. my season tickets for the Laguna Playhouse arrived in the mail this afternoon … finally.

10. an email coupon from Mimi’s Cafe for $5 off my delicious Blackened Salmon lunch today … and another to use at dinnertime in the next couple of months.

11. for a long (2 hour) catch up call from my sister (currently just outside of Glacier National Park) last night.

12. that today is Retired Ladies Lunch because it’s always fun

to reconnect with friends

13. for late afternoon sunshine after another overcast day.

14. the folks at Allen Tires take such good care of my Explorer … checking & rotating the tires at no cost … letting me know when work needs to be done.

15. for trustworthy mechanics at Gustafson Brothers who keep my car running safely and well.

16. for last night’s fascinating skies and this morning’s beautiful double rainbow

17. for beautiful sunny mornings and warm weather at the beach … finally!

18. life with Molly — especially the joy-filled way she delights in simple things each moment … reminding ME to do likewise.

19. for good friends who help me remain calm in the face of challenges, reminding me to breathe & relax.

20. I got everything packed for my trip to the 2010 Writer’s Retreat in Taos, New Mexico … though it took longer than anticipated and I was watering the yard until rather late this evening.

21. I made it safely from Southern California to Flagstaff, AZ and found a room for $69/night … more reasonable than the $130/night I paid in 2007.

22. for a good night’s sleep in Flagstaff (from 9pm until 6am) with no train whistles disturbing my rest every 15-20 minutes all night long (as happened at the more expensive lodgings in 2007) … and a safe drive from Flagstaff to Santa Fe, New Mexico today where I’ve secured lodging at the lovely old El Rey Inn for two nights so I can do some sight-seeing with my Nikon D60 in hand this evening & tomorrow … (snapping photos to share when time permits) … before driving up to Taos on Saturday morning

23. to be in Taos at the Mabel Dodge House connecting with other writer-participants and beginning our journey together this evening.

24. for the delicious Southwestern meals prepared & presented with love, art, and attention to detail in addition to the Dance of Shiva shaking up & altering the patterns in my brain … opening me up to new possibilities.

25. for cool gentle rain showers moving through the area and LOUD cracks of thunder now and again.

26. to be writing in this awesome place … surrounded by energy & support.

27. for fellowship with my house-mates … sharing & responding to our writing … asking & answering questions leading to new insights & directions for my writing.

28. I talked with Jen today … (following up on conversations with Luna & Jill last night) … leaving with a ‘theme’ for my project … running into Luna at the gardens & taking in her suggestion for a book title … wandering with my camera taking photos … eventually settling down near Kara to write before eventually heading back to MDL for lunch … then on to Jen’s afternoon session on ‘structure’ … just what I needed.

29. I’m HERE now … on retreat … learning, writing, connecting with others, listening and sharing … growing, accepting, grounding, receiving, sensing, giving, protecting, opening with the Dance of Shiva … practicing a bit of gentle Yoga … savoring delicious Santa Fe meals … wandering the MDL grounds & Henningsen Gardens, snapping photographs … taking everything in with gratitude … exhaling to breath in when I find myself holding my breath too long.

30. for the authentic emotional validation received in K’s response as she listened to me share a bit of writing from this morning … suggesting the path ahead may be precisely correct in this moment. What a delightful & surprising gift as I prepare to head toward home …

31. to stay in Santa Fe at the El Rey Inn again last night where I slept long & soundly … enjoying delicious warm home-made flour tortillas with breakfast this morning … meeting & chatting with ‘Midge’ (an early-riser like myself who was traveling with ‘late-rising’ friends) … before walking Canyon Road to see & photographic public art … finding & purchasing lovely ‘basket photos’ as gifts … then shopping at Keshi for ‘fetishes’ to give friends back home … and finally driving to Placitas to stay with K & her husband overnight … getting a guided tour of their lovely home … wandering later alone to take pictures … walking K’s labyrinth with her & having R take photos of us, then taking pictures of them together … sharing a delicious meal on the patio and tasty ice cream later in the living room over pleasant conversation as we watched & listened to the storm before turning in for the night! I feel blessed and oh so grateful