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Monday, April 28, 2014

The Good Luck Of Right Now, Thank You Matthew Quick

I finished Matthew Quick's, "The Good Luck Of Right Now" during my house hunting trip feeling optimistic and open minded. This author is a genius and I feel privileged to have enjoyed his carefully created, rich characters.  I could not have chosen a better book to jump start my trip to find our new home.  Especially considering that I'd had a meltdown the day before.

Most of the time my optimism is a given.  The world is "moldable".  Making lemonade out of lemons is a skill that has been developed by military spouses for centuries.  We don't complain.  We are proud and we spin things into gold, Rumpelstiltskin style.  This is precisely what is to be done when my new address reads Houma, Louisiana.
Yes we found our new house.  It will now and forever be known as "the compound".  We will create a fun and safe environment where my kids will be homeschooled and a new life will be spun into gold.  If you couldn't surmise, Houma is not my dream billet.  I am willing to admit this because I can hardly wait to show the pictures of the areas that made me feel the need to buy a handgun. 

Quick's book contained a theory that is based on Jung's synchronicity theory.  Quick's characters believed that you may have something undesirable happen, while at the same time someone else across the world could have something wonderful happen.  This gave comfort to the characters as a consideration for others good fortune as a sacrifice of your own luck.  It's a way to say less "poor me" and make something bad bareable, knowing that somewhere else something good is happening and that soon enough the good luck will swing back in your direction.

I am not saying that I am a believer.  However, during this trip this book helped me try to stay positive.  We looked at home after dirty home feeling discouraged and stressed until our last day.  Our twanging, Louisiana realtor showed us a "mini" unicorn and we made an offer.  So while we were feeling so down, maybe somewhere in India, someone found a fortune unexpectedly.  While my armpits turned into swamp bogs, maybe someone in Maine got a promotion.  I remain humble that we found a house that will be great for us, as someone else may  have had a horrible day at the same time.

There are countless suggestions and ways to remain happy and upbeat.  Sometimes it takes a little extra effort to push yourself over a barrier to that happy place.  Houma can be a happy place for us, it just may need a little extra elbow grease.  Our new house is something we can look forward to enjoying.  The friendly people we met will lead to others.  The "swamp pits" will take an extra dose of Secret anti-perspirant!  Now the countdown really begins.

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