Is the universe trying to tell me something?

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Heather Lewis

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I got a request for a partial of my romance manuscript at the end of the day yesterday (yay!), and I dutifully printed it out and got it ready to pop in the mail first thing this morning.

I decided to combine my post office trip with a grocery run this morning, and I got about halfway there when someone zipped past me and gave me the universal high-speed out-the-window sign for "you have a flat tire." D'oh! I pulled into the closest parking lot and called CAA. They said it would be an hour.

I am in a crappy little plaza (with offices like "business tax accountants") and I don't have a book with me or anything. Not so much as a pamphlet lying around in my car -- gack! I hate having nothing to read. I decide to make the most of it and sit on the crusty little patch of grass beside the parking lot, soak up the sun, maybe meditate a little. However, all that floats to the surface of my mind are long-buried memories of driving training..."always circle your car and check your tires before you drive anywhere"...who does that, anyway?!

At this point, someone backs out of their parking space and bumps into my car. Double d'oh! I run over and memorize the license plate in case they drive off, but they don't. A woman gets out of the car, apologizing profusely. We look for damage, and thank god (for me), it is only her car that is scratched.

Forty-five minutes later, the tow truck arrives. The guy's compressor isn't working properly, so he can only refill my tire partway. He tells me I can drive for a short distance, but that I should really go to a gas station and fill it up the rest of the way. Yeah, right! Sorry, but I don't do tires. That's why I have a CAA membership. I decide to just go to the post office, mail my partial, and go home.

So I drive to the post office (outlet) and guess what? It is CLOSED! They are moving to a new location. Clearly I should have read my horoscope this morning, because it probably says "do not leave your house today for any reason." Anyway, I drive to the new location (a couple of blocks) and manage to Expresspost my envelope. Right after I'm done, their entire computer system goes down.

Now...is it just me, or is the universe trying to tell me something? Do I have a reason to worry that my partial will never reach its destination? LOL.

Here's my real question: Usually when bad or weird stuff happens to me, I think "Great. Material for my next book." Does anyone else do that?

MelRandall

p.s. Mind you, if I read this little anecdote in a novel, I would probably think "oh, come on, that would never happen"! I'll have to tone it down a notch for fiction. :tongue
 

L.Jones

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Congrats on the request for a Partial!

Sounds about the way things go for most writers, so take it as a good sign!

annie jones
awa Luanne Jones
 

Julie Worth

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What the universe is telling you (beating you on the head, actually) is that there's something amiss with your partial. Maybe you spelled the agent's name wrong, maybe you left off a page, or the postage on your SASE. It's something, and this is your second chance!
 

PODLINGMASTER

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MelRandall said:
I got a request for a partial of my romance manuscript at the end of the day yesterday (yay!), and I dutifully printed it out and got it ready to pop in the mail first thing this morning.

I decided to combine my post office trip with a grocery run this morning, and I got about halfway there when someone zipped past me and gave me the universal high-speed out-the-window sign for "you have a flat tire." D'oh! I pulled into the closest parking lot and called CAA. They said it would be an hour.

I am in a crappy little plaza (with offices like "business tax accountants") and I don't have a book with me or anything. Not so much as a pamphlet lying around in my car -- gack! I hate having nothing to read. I decide to make the most of it and sit on the crusty little patch of grass beside the parking lot, soak up the sun, maybe meditate a little. However, all that floats to the surface of my mind are long-buried memories of driving training..."always circle your car and check your tires before you drive anywhere"...who does that, anyway?!

At this point, someone backs out of their parking space and bumps into my car. Double d'oh! I run over and memorize the license plate in case they drive off, but they don't. A woman gets out of the car, apologizing profusely. We look for damage, and thank god (for me), it is only her car that is scratched.

Forty-five minutes later, the tow truck arrives. The guy's compressor isn't working properly, so he can only refill my tire partway. He tells me I can drive for a short distance, but that I should really go to a gas station and fill it up the rest of the way. Yeah, right! Sorry, but I don't do tires. That's why I have a CAA membership. I decide to just go to the post office, mail my partial, and go home.

So I drive to the post office (outlet) and guess what? It is CLOSED! They are moving to a new location. Clearly I should have read my horoscope this morning, because it probably says "do not leave your house today for any reason." Anyway, I drive to the new location (a couple of blocks) and manage to Expresspost my envelope. Right after I'm done, their entire computer system goes down.

Now...is it just me, or is the universe trying to tell me something? Do I have a reason to worry that my partial will never reach its destination? LOL.

Here's my real question: Usually when bad or weird stuff happens to me, I think "Great. Material for my next book." Does anyone else do that?

MelRandall

p.s. Mind you, if I read this little anecdote in a novel, I would probably think "oh, come on, that would never happen"! I'll have to tone it down a notch for fiction. :tongue

I think the universe just said, "Pick up a can of FIX-A-FLAT, and carry it with you."

Sorry about your trouble,

Podlingmaster
 

Sonarbabe

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Oh! You've had one of my days, I see. I hope that you're at least asked for a full out of this.
 

Provrb1810meggy

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Maybe the universe wasn't telling you something bad about your partial. Maybe it was telling you not to go to the grocery store. If you went, maybe you would've brought something stale or spoiled.
 

brainstorm77

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Wow that is a bad day!!! I had a bad year in 2003....Relationship broke up horribly, my new car was broken into and vandalized big time, and then i lost the car because i could not afford to keep it..... But yeah LOL it could make for a good story :)
 

Heather Lewis

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LOL. Thanks for your comments. If something is amiss with the partial (ahhh!) then it's too late! So I'm going to try not to think about it....apart from checking the tracking number on the Internet every five minutes. :tongue

I survived yesterday with no further mishaps, and today is a new day! So I will try the grocery store again this morning. Note to self: check tires before getting in car.

MR
 

IHeartWriting

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Hope today goes much smoother.

Because of your post yesterday I actually DID walk around my car and look at the tires, something I hadn't done since I took Driver's Ed. ;)
 
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