Ten.One Thousand, Five Hundred & Ninety-Nine

1. The glow of the lights from the neighbor’s house.

2. A better night of sleep, but not by much.

3. More ham and sweet potatoes.

4. Shorter pours of coffee so that I finish a cup before it gets too cold. The Santa mug does not hold heat.

5. I remind myself that I am a good and fast writer and therefore I should be able to knock out this draft quickly.

6. Ticking the boxes.

7. Good energy today. You can feel it.

8. The light is slowly fading away. The silhouettes of bare branches reach out over the road like witches’ fingers. The thud of car doors closing as children slide into the backseats of cars.

9. This salmon tastes different. Oh, it’s trout.

10. Different. Not bad. But different.