No I’m not referring to the recent election; especially since that really can’t be termed simply a small victory in my opinion. I’ve sort of had a few recently, although they may not have seemed so at first.
The other day I realized that I have the ability to skip the endless waiting for a W-2 and file my taxes early based on my last paycheck for the year. Having filed taxes at THS before I happen to have the ID number which is pretty much the only thing missing from my last paycheck of 08. Curious while at work the other day, I rummaged through my drawer of paycheck stubs for the all important one I was seeking in order to check out my tax withheld. Oddly though, I couldn’t even locate my year to date income on it. I immediately became frustrated and shoved it back in the drawer thinking that someone must have messed up on my typed out (literally, it’s a typed piece of paper) paycheck stub. Today I happened to be talking with a friend at work on our break and I mentioned my frustration. She shared with me that her total income, etc. was certainly on her last paycheck. That’s when it hit me in a most overwhelming wave of realized idiocy.
I was looking at the wrong check.
OF COURSE my first check from 09 is not going to hold the answers I was seeking. It worked out well though…I was able to provide the employer ID number to my friend and she was able to provide me with an epiphany of how stupid I had been a few days ago. Yes. Worked out well indeed. In the interest of self-image, I was thankful to be more relieved than embarrassed. Small victory…I will have my tax return soon.
Not all victories are so easily won though. I made it to work today…and while that shouldn’t necessarily count as a tremendous achievement, it did for me today. I got on the wrong bus. Really. I did.
I have been riding the joy of public transportation for many, many months now. There is one bus that journeys from lower Queen Anne right to the front door of my work; it vacilates between route 13 and route 2. Sounds pretty easy right? (On a side note, I learned the hard way to avoid route 2 express when I first began my public transportation era…I learned that it certainly is an express route since it completely avoids going up the hill which is where I need to go. In my defense, it had been a while since I was required to battle with Metro.) Apparently the wool had been pulled over MY eyes because maybe it’s not that easy. This morning while waiting in the cold I spied a route 13 coming down QA ave. In hindsight I realize that I did notice a millisecond of hesitation since it just said ‘downtown’ when it usually says ‘madrona park via E union’. However, in all these months I had only seen route 2 with just DT on it because they also say express. I boarded it on my happy way to work.
It didn’t turn on Spring st. That’s when I got that horrid pit-of-the-stomach feeling of ‘where the hell am I going?’ Sooo…I had to get off the deceitful bus in order to get back to where the honest 2 would get me to work; and I was really late. But at least I got there. Recent victory number 2.
The last one is actually not that small of a victory in the grand scheme of things, but at the same time it is. I am hard pressed to accurately describe it. There are situations that have the capacity to cause great cracks in our strength and durability. For me, they have that capacity especially when intertwined with men somehow. To be specific, when they are intertwined with a man who has behaved destructively and poorly about something which resulted in pain on my part.
Sometimes though, there are little angels that have the capacity to do little things which help with a healing process even when they don’t realize or even intend to help do so. Sometimes the smallest thing such as someone holding you, making the smallest effort to dry tears, refrain from judgment and asking anything of you is enough kindness and caring to get over some of the huge hurdles of letting something go that might seem too big to let drop. Real friends do little things like that which sometimes in the long run are actually significant things, and I’m grateful to have people like that. Small victory number 3.
THIRTEEN MOVIES I OWN THAT I ALSO HAPPEN TO BE IN LOVE WITH