Good things are happening right along. I got the job as a substitute teacher. The IRS investigation turned in my favor. I got money back from them because they charged me penalties I didn’t actually owe. It was THEIR fault that they didn’t register my previous $400.00 check. I dutifully made demanded payments during the 90-day investigation. Even though it hurt economically. And, miraculously, they admitted the mistake was theirs. I have been able to write more fluidly and well than I have in a long time.
You can see that I have had some success making illustrations for the next AeroQuest re-write book in spite of arthritis in my hands.
But everything has a price. I have had to scramble to do the online testing for qualifying to be a substitute teacher while the internet access in our house has been going in and out of order. I called the provider and scheduled a technician’s visit. But the thing fixed itself mysteriously before the date of the work arrived. I finished my testing even before I called Spectrum to cancel my appointment.
I ended up having to split the refund check with my wife. The bank would not let me put the check entirely in my personal account unless she was there in person to okay it. So, even though the penalty payment came 100% from my account, I had to give her 40% of the money because her bank will let her do what my bank would not. It’s not like that was a major fight between us, or anything. But she had originally agreed to sign the check over to me 100%, and then bank rules fudged up that agreement for me.
And this morning, the Princess had a nosebleed on the way to school. I was picturing a major emergency-room expense wiping out everything. There were, after all gushers of blood enough to soak five paper towels before the bleeding stopped. She made it to school on time in spite of the necessary clean-up-and-stop-bleeding time we had to put in.
So, I am not cursed with only the blackest of bad luck. But I am not blessed with purest white of the good luck either. And for those of you who will remind me, “Mickey, you don’t believe in luck!” I will remind you that, “Yes, I don’t, but you have to explain these bizarre random rewards and punishments somehow.”
Catch a Falling Star 
It seems to me that luck was not a factor. These good things happened because you worked to make them happen despite the obstacles. They didn’t just fall in your lap. The explanation is that you were presented with problems to solve, and you successfully solved them. There were obstacles that manifested due to variable factors that are out of your control ($hit happens), but you dealt with them in a way that allowed you to be successful in your endeavors. The best anyone can do in this world is do what you can to be in a position to deal with the bad things and never stop working to achieve the good things. When good things happen with minimal effort on your part, just be grateful and consider the possibility that being prepared to deal with “bad luck” was preventative in its own way.
BTW, congrats on the job.
Thanks. You saw right through my attempt to spin the good things as a cautionary thing that portends the bad. I did label this post as a celebration too. And I am happier now than I was.