Relishing the past. Or maybe passing the relish.

Ha, terrible punnage ensues!

There are parts of my past I don't miss. Like sixth grade. Boy, I hated that year. My mom had gone out of town to "fight" in the gulf war (she actually was stationed in Germany, as she was a medical doctor and was waiting to receive wounded that never showed up), I had just switched to a new school, and had not yet really made any long lasting friends, and things started getting really strange chemically as I entered puberty. In short, it sucked. It sucked very hard.

But there are parts I think back to and smile.

Tonight, I was in a coffeeshop with an old old friend, and I ordered a Café au lait -- basically a latté made with coffee instead of espresso. It's a drink that, when done right, is delicious. Much smoother than a latté, but better than simply adding milk to your coffee. I commented to my lovely and beautiful wife that I hadn't had one of these since I was first working in a coffeeshop.

And that reminded me how much I enjoyed those early years of that job, before Mr.mike and Ali moved, and before lissa quit, and definitely before the managers got a bee up their bonnet and started firing everyone in sight.

Back then, I was surrounded by writers and creators, and spent my time at work thinking about writing, and often scribbling stories and poems on paper while I was there, and there were so many awesome people to interact with on a regular basis. So many awesome coworkers and great customers (well, ok customers).

Those days, I miss.

I like to think I'm in a pretty good place right now. I've got a job I enjoy, I'm doing something I enjoy (comics and writing), and I'm not struggling at all. I've got short term plans and long term plans and everything's just moving pretty solidly along... but I do miss the constant company of all those creative, intelligent people.

Ah well.