Is there anything more decadent than the combination of books and waffles? There is if you add in a sunset drive home with your fella while listening to a podcast about a book.
He and I made a spontaneous trip for books and waffles last night. There’s something about Barnes and Noble that feels so calming and civilized that I immediately feel my blood pressure start to drop. I prefer a good independent bookseller but I like the larger inventory and spacious aisles of the B&N.
I finally bought something I’ve been picking up and putting down for a while.
Waffle House was a little noisy for my taste as the young men running the place had their tunes cranked up. But I couldn’t be upset when they started dancing while they worked. How can you be cranky when you see people having that much fun at work?
On the way home, the sky began to shift from a pretty blue to delicate streaks of pinks, peaches, and lavenders. It was a perfect ending to a perfect evening.
This is the sky over Vinton County Ohio’s Bicentennial Barn. Isn’t it lovely?
Incidentally, I was a cub reporter when the Ohio Bicentennial Commission was painting these barns many, many years ago.
That’s actually how I connected with my Pittsburgh friend Nichola. She was working for the state at the time, the liaison connecting people and rallying communities behind this project to paint a barn in every one of Ohio’s 88 counties. She is a southern Ohio native about my age.
She and I hit it off after meeting just a couple of times. Alas, life took us in different directions and her husband’s job caused them to move to Texas before settling down in her peaceful Pittsburgh neighborhood.
It was a chance encounter on Facebook that reunited us several years ago. Since then, she’s seen me through some challenging times, we’ve traveled together, and shared a lot of laughs. We’ve also shared a few sunrises and sunsets.
It’s funny how people come and go from your life but the right people return exactly when you need them.
I thought about that on my way home and how lucky I am to have good days like this and people who understand me to enjoy it all with.
In case no one has ever mentioned it, try to catch a good sunset or sunrise once in a while. It’s good for your health. And while the waffles aren’t great for your health and maybe another bookstore trip isn’t good for your wallet, they’re good for you too – in their own way.
Friends, pay attention to the comings and goings of the sun, connect with the old friend, take the drive, eat the waffles and do all the things that make your heart happy.
