What's Up Wednesday :: Early Spring Edition

What's Up Wednesday hails from the blogs of Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk. Join the fun on your blog and go to Jaime's to add your link - it's a great way to share what's going on in your life and get to know other bloggers! Here's what's up:

WHAT I'M READING
I'm pretty happy with my reading choices this week. Still enjoying SAPPHIRE BLUE for the #SapphireBlueReread. I am also reading RED QUEEN by Victoria Aveyard for Tracey Neithercott's YA Book Club. Check out all the details here.

WHAT I'M WRITING
Well, um, honestly, I'm kind of not writing. I'd hoped to get caught up on my word count for IF YOU WERE HERE but instead I've been reading and doing freelance editing work. It's cool. But I do need to get back on track. I'm going to pick up on some minorly major revisions I need to do for the Manuscript Formerly Known as KEYS. Starting tonight. Yeah, tonight.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW
Spring! Spring is new! When I called this the Early Spring Edition, I didn't mean that this was like an Early Spring catalog or something. I mean that SPRING CAME EARLY! It's in the 60s this week, my daughter is wearing skirts and flip flops, she claims she was bitten by a mosquito, and it's BEAUTIFUL. After going directly from late winter to summer the last couple of years, this is perfect and amazing.

The last few days have been a little cuckoo - starting on Friday afternoon when my phone slipped out of my grasp and met with the asphalt of the driveway and the face shattered. I continued to use it all weekend (sometimes getting little shards of glass in my swyping finger). But that leads me to this:

WHAT WORKS FOR ME
Helping others get through a MOOD works wonders for my own MOODS.

Because of the shattered phone, I made a trip to Best Buy #329, where I ended my career as a Blue Shirt several years ago. Of course I'd purchased the service plan on my shattered phone because this isn't my first rodeo, you know what I'm saying?

I have been on the other side of the counter - for twelve years and the occasional seasonal holiday - and so I typically do not pitch fits. I try to maintain a positive attitude and make jokes and take everything in stride when shopping or eating at a restaurant. Because I've been there. I've had DVD players thrown at me. I've been told to eff right off. Customers have threatened to sue me. My car was keyed (by a former employee, but still). Retail can be ugly, so I do what I can to keep it pretty. I'm your favorite, easy-going customer (usually).

But Monday, everyone's least favorite customer was in the Geek Squad customer service line behind me.

My good friend Rebekah Faubion told the story on her blog yesterday, so I'll let you wander over. (She did, however, forget to mention how JUDGY I was to the woman before I made my cheery little comment.) I'll wait while you read about it HERE.

My point in telling Rebekah this story is that we could all use a little shift (or shove) in perspective. That woman flapping her little paper with her appointment time needed to be reminded that we're all in this together, as the kids from High School Musical would sing, and she needed to sit her butt down on the chair that was provided for her comfort and WAIT HER TURN. I didn't care if she had an appointment or not. She was expecting service immediately over the Monday lunch hour. And the Geek Squad customer service line on a Monday at 12 noon is a little like publishing. Unpredictable and long and sometimes frustrating (and if you're patient enough, with glorious results, like a new phone or a book deal!). Your turn will come, whether you have an appointment or not, whether you have the service plan or not, whether or not you are eligible for an upgrade.

It's all going to work out. And sometimes it works out better than we could have imagined.

All this beauty needs is some Caribou Coffee stickers

I'm happy to help other writers work through some of the same thoughts swimming around my own head while I wait and doubt and wait some more. It helps me at the same time.

We're all just doing the best we can, waiting for our turn, even the Geek Squad Agent behind the counter.

(The next time you're out shopping, waiting for the back-up cashiers to make their way to the registers, or your order at the restaurant isn't exactly the way you'd requested, remember this story. Be everyone's favorite, patient customer. It doesn't mean you don't have to send your food back, but for the love of Pete, be nice about it.)


So what's up with you? Have you read RED QUEEN yet?