On the cruise ship my buddy Philip and I were challenged to see if we could EVER get a free drink out of the charming lady bartenders. Something about the tight mechanics of the ship made this seemingly impossible — you felt as though if caught the girls would be abandoned at the next port and have to find their own way back to wherever.
In LA, I developed an intense antipathy towards (RESTAURANT WHICH WILL REMAIN NAMELESS AND UNLINKED) where I could NEVER get a free refill no matter how much I spent (and spend I did: when we moved there since we had no kitchen, it was three humans and Belle eating 2 meals a day for 10 days). Once the bartender (an actor that I had actually cast in a spec short for a friend’s reel) refilled my glass without asking and charged me for it — Oh the humanity!
Thanks to my 2009 Christmas Miracle of running into Montgomery (and thank you Mario Batalli) once I encountered Mozza and began best-friending everyone there, including hooking Jude up with her job as hostess, everything changed. And yet — for better or worse — this was not enough to keep me in LA.
Last night, however, during only my SECOND solo dinner at the bar reading scenes from the new play — Susan was teaching and so Belle and I ventured out alone — the bartender refilled my Sustainable Parducci Red and didn’t charge me.
Now this glass of wine is only $6 and even pre-national tour and pre-option money for the novel, I can indeed afford the $6 refill.
It’s just the principle of the thing. More accurately, the willingness to be generous that’s so inspiring and gratifying.
There’s also the sense of acknowledgment, that you are a welcome customer. That you are recognized and appreciated.
(This must be what Belle feels like every five seconds when someone stops us and tells me how beautiful she is.)
I am acutely aware of this gratitude vibration (although Abraham says that “appreciation” is slightly more fine-tuned) because I drew the GRATITUDE angel yesterday during transformation. And my $6 Parducci Red refill does indeed fill me with an angelic level of appreciation.
In other news, I taught TWO classes at the Lotus yesterday, the 12:30 and the 4:30. In between the two, I decided to attempt a beach walk in the rain and while my warm rain jacket was perfect, I somehow miscalculated just how wet my shorts would become. Rather than treating the 4:30 students to a drenched pant situation, Susan met me at SPORTS BASEMENT which was pretty awesome and bohemian — like a coffee shop with mismatched furniture except one that also sold lots of sweatpants and free-weights, too.
Given that we are debated between two offers for a yoga clothing sponsor (shhhhhh), I couldn’t tolerate the thought of buying “real” yoga clothes but opted for a pair of $10 shorts instead.
Between that, and my savings on wine refills, I have to say I’m feeling VERY appreciative of life indeed!
Finally — two hours spent moving addresses from one program into another in order to send out the CONSTANT CONTACT invite to the 3 signings we have set up in San Francisco.
Excited but interesting feelings about “going public” with the book — or maybe that’s just because I lost M-R at one point and had to re-enter those folks.
Nonetheless, thrilled to have sent a mass email out into the ethers before sleeping soundly in the Magic Cottage, dreaming of publicity triumphs and free refills!
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