W IS FOR WINE BROKER

W IS FOR WINE BROKER

Yes, she was, but that's by far the least interesting part of her story.

I picked her up at her house overlooking the Columbia River.  Big mansion, spectacular views.

And she was hot.  VERY hot.

When I complimented her home, she responded graciously, saying she'd been there two years and had spent most of that time decorating it top to bottom according to her precise desires. As we headed for the airport, she told me she was a wine broker and was flying to Canada on business.  And was looking forward to a champagne tasting that afternoon.

OK, I thought, letting my demons get the better of me for a moment.  I was looking for someone to be droolmouth jealous of this morning, and she's my girl.

Until.

Until we talked a little longer.

And she told me how heartbroken she was to be selling the house.  Nasty, nasty divorce.

And how depressed she couldn't help being, moving into a little two bedroom condo.

And how she was having trouble explaining it all to her developmentally disabled nine year old daughter.

And even as we barreled down the freeway in lighter-than-usual traffic, I could hear the tires squealing in my head.  My psyche just fishtailed to a stop.

Here I was, doing precisely what I wanted, fabulous wife, nice home, income to live comfortably forever... and I was just about to go green-eyed monster on this woman...

... whose life was held together by paper clips and chewing gum.. .which she probably couldn't afford to buy at the same time.

What a cement head. 

Don't judge a book by it's cover, walk a mile in my shoes, blah blah blah.  I know, you've heard the story a million times.  But living it, seeing it, being an intimate part of it for a few minutes... I knew that's what I had to write about today.

What I learned:

Come on.  You know.  Easy as 1, 2, 3.

1.  I have this today.

2.  I have that today.

3.  I have the other thing today.

Easy to count... hard to make yourself stop in the middle of the day and just for five seconds, say, "Here's all the good stuff in my life.  Here's how much worse it could be.  Here's why I'm phenomenally lucky.  Thank you."

So... maybe... try it?  I did.  And I felt... good.

Onward through the fog...