Yesterday was (mostly) bad...

...but today was exclusively good!

Maybe it came down to simply waking up on the wrong side of the bed, but yesterday wasn't great. My fuse was pretty short for the majority of the day. In fact, my fuse was nearly nonexistent until about 2:45... which is when my very favorite student of all time, Nate, showed up in my classroom. (Nate is my coworker now, but he is and always will be the greatest of all students; he could probably tell me that my cats are ugly* and I still wouldn't demote him.)

Anyway, Nate showed up and we had good talks and he just generally improves my mood no matter what it is. He made me laugh a LOT because he's funny and kind and just... Nate. He's an awesome person.

Because I was in a good mood when I got home, I decided to work on some art. My new friend James suggested that I make a piece for my upcoming art show (Thursday, 12/7, 6:00-9:00PM at the Garryowen in Gettysburg -- put it on your calendars!) that's Ruby Gallagher's house on top of the hill by the lake. I liked this idea and pondered it for a few days, and then I got to work. Here's a sneak peek at how it's coming along; once I finish this blog, I'm off to work on the rest of the landscape.

Then I went to bed.

I woke up today in a much better mood. Maybe because it's Halloween, but more likely because it wasn't yesterday. However, because it in fact was Halloween (and still is as I write this!), I decided to treat myself to some coffee at Bantam Coffee Roasters on my way to work and guess who I saw there... My former student Ellie! She's great and makes a mean latte. We caught up about life and it was a good little visit.

At school, my students were really a lot of fun! Things started out with Percy, who showed up in my room during advisory to share a ridiculous story about his parents going to Bantam Coffee Roasters on Sunday. (I absolutely adore Percy and he will be providing music on Friday night at Bantam... Read on.) Then the sophomores had so much to say about Ordinary Grace (the second-greatest book ever written) and the freshmen were well-behaved despite it being Halloween and everyone was just really sweet. I think a lot of them might show up at my book-signing on Friday at Bantam Coffee Roasters in Gettysburg from 5:00-8:00PM. (That was a little plug for my book-signing...) Anyway, there will be free hot chocolate and if you are 21 or older, you can add vanilla vodka to your cocoa, so there's that.

Oh! Here's something nice too: My new Christmas novella The One You're With is officially being released tomorrow. I'll be selling and signing copies of it at Bantam on Friday. You can purchase a copy when you stop by to snag some free cocoa!

Speaking of events that are coming up in my life, though... Let's revisit the December art show, shall we?

I had some invitations printed because I wanted to invite my coworkers and today after school I walked around the school delivering them. Here's a wonderful thing: I work with wonderful people. Let me give you some highlights from my travels today:

• I saw Juanita at the copier and she has the cutest dog named Winston and even though Winston can't come to my art show, I am hoping Juanita will be able to make an appearance because she is someone who is a constant surprise. I didn't really know her all that well until a couple years ago and do you know what? She's a really cool person.

• Pam is going to come, I think! Pam who hooks me up with things from the supply closet and donates her own money to the Friday Favorites fund for my freshmen and sophomores! Pam who loves cats as much as I do!

• Beth, my principal, put it right into her phone calendar and is going to bring her people. Maybe even Olivia!

• Jared, my new assistant principal, who is insanely kind and humble and genuine and exudes goodness might be there! I hope he shows up; I want to introduce him to my mom.

• My superintendent is probably going to come! He's an artist and I usually call him by his Dr. name but I only really use first names in my blogs so for this purpose we will call him Dr. Wes. Dr. Wes is going to come and he might bring his younger daughter who loves art!

• New Kristin! She's so quiet and chill and was just like, "Yeah, I'd love to attend." She'll be there.

• New Holly! She greeted me on the second floor hallway and said, "What're you doing up here?" And I said, "Looking for you!" She loved that she got an invitation.

• New Dawn! I told her I do art and that there was a show at the GO and she was like, "I love that place! I'll bring my husband." So I'm gonna meet Dawn's husband on December 7 and so can you.

• Sharon is likely going to attend! Sharon who is new this year and whom I'd never really spoken to before, but who has a son who graduated with me way back in 1999! (I had a smidge of a crush on him...)

• Lynn! She's an author herself and is such a savvy dresser. And she's a tall woman, too, so I have real respect for her fashion sense.

• And Hanna! Talk about savvy dressers... That girl knows how to put together an outfit. Hanna is our college advisor and she is killing it at school.

• My dear sweet kindred spirit friend Heather will be there and December 7 is her birthday eve so everyone who knows Heather and sees her at my show should buy her a drink. And give her a hug. Heather taught me about the importance of oxytocin so you should actually give her a very long hug.

• Kathy! I am excited that Kathy will be there. So excited, in fact, that I put an exclamation point on her invitation. I think she was the only one who got an exclamation point, but she's just a joy and an appreciator of art and she boosts my esteem so much when it comes to all my creative endeavors.

• Maggie was so excited to get an invitation. I love Maggie. Maggie is another one who exudes kindness and calmness. She's just... Well, come to my show and experience her. She's an old soul with a lot to offer.

• Dee and Michelle will likely attend together. I gave Michelle her invitation and she right away said, "Is Dee invited? I'll get her to go with me." And I said, "She's already got her invitation. I'm sure she's planning to talk to you." Those ladies together are a lot of fun.

• Stu! I love Stu. His brother is Marc of trivia fame and I am really hoping that Stu will make an appearance because he is a little bit like a celebrity. Plus, he has the BEST voice.

• I am really hopeful that both Lisas will be there. I told Lisa L about it first and she was like, "Absolutely." And then I told Lisa S about it and she's like, "You know, can you believe I've never been to the Garryowen?" So I think she might experience the GO for the first time on December 7.

• Terri, I believe, will be there. Terri is always cold and she also always reads my books. Like, ALWAYS. And I love that about her. I hope she knows how much it means to me that she always reads my books. She's a wicked smart lady; one of the smartest ladies I know.

There's no way people are still reading... but just know that I invited pretty much the entire staff, and if I forgot someone it's because a student interrupted me while I was going down the phone list and addressing envelopes at my desk, and if you are my coworker and are reading this and thinking, "Where is my invitation?" just come to my room and ask for one because I have them. But I guess the point I was making is this: Walking around the building and talking to my administration and faculty friends was really, really mood-boosting today. I think I should walk around and visit people more often. Also, I am lucky to work where I work because not every school district is as cool as mine.

Okay. That is all. I now need to make art.

*Nate would never call my cats "ugly," for the record.