What made your day so great?

I started the day on New Year's Eve with no concrete plans. All I wanted was to be in Carlsbad going to dinner with my cousins, taking a walk on the beach and then fast forwarding through Dick Clark's Rockin' New Years Eve (with Ryan Seacrest) barely being able to make to midnight - I looked at plane tickets with no money in my pocket with hopes that there would be some sort of miraculous special to San Diego. No such luck. I then considered driving to Florence to at least get the beach part - too wet. What's a girl to do?

She is to live large with the blessings she's got here at home. I spent the early evening bowling with my mother, Jen, and church friends. That group of people have got some life in them. I had an incredible time. Didn't bowl too well, but still worth every minute. The best part however was after bowling, I went to the grocery store to buy some food for the next evening event and while checking out the cashier asked how my day was. I replied with great, a normal, don't think twice about it response. He then shoots back at me:

"Oh ya, what's made your day so great??"

Wait, what? That's not the way this goes. It's supposed to go, "How are you? Good. How are you? Good." And then on with your day. I was so surprised by his questioning that it made me really stop and think, has my day really been great so far? Do I have to tell him my day really hasn't been great and I just said that to avoid any further conversation with him? But to my wonderful luck my day had been great. It took me a few seconds to respond, but then I got to tell him, "I went bowling with my mother!" He was genuinely surprised, happy and I could tell, a little jealous, of what I got to do. It then lead to great discussion after that, I mean for as much time as you get in a grocery check out, but how often do you really ask details beyond the surface level "good"?

Shortly after that encounter, I went home, made some artichoke dip from scratch, shaved my legs, put on a party dress and went to a friends house for some good conversation, drinks, Rockin' New Year's Eve, and a snow ball dance!!

Great way to end the old year and bring in the new one. Who would have thought?