That Special Glow

Technical difficulties at home have driven me to live out a cliche for the first time (well, this particular cliche anyway): I am blogging in a coffeehouse with a decaf soy latte at my side.

I was a little nervous at first. Is everyone else doing it right except me? Is no one doing it in coffeehouses anymore? Am I a joke?

Now that I'm all "set up" (as the kids today say), it's fun -- except for the noisy, space-invading, talking-to-self, somewhat disturbing suitcase person who just sat down next to me (of course next to me).

I should add that I used wi-fi for the first time ever during my writing retreat. It's magic! (Am I sure I'm not in my eighties?)

I got through my return to work today, with as many tasks on my desk as I feared would be awaiting me. But on the bright side, I received some genuine-seeming compliments on my new beard from two female Gen Y-ers. One went a step too far, though, and tried to convince me that the beard, which contains a startling amount of gray, makes me look younger.

Later in the day, another female Gen Y-er said, "Welcome back! You look . . ."

I said, "Hairier? Furrier?"

". . . glowing!"

I think she was grasping at straws in that caught-in-the-hallway-with-coworker, must-make-witty-remark-in-breezy-way-that-I-want-to-seem-natural-but-is-actually-desperate way.

I know because I was doing it too: "Hairier"? "Furrier"? Where did I think I was?

Should I mention that this was the boss's daughter I was speaking to?

My friend Diablo, who knows a thing or two about beards and is, um, not a member of Generation Y, also complimented me on the beard as we enjoyed a spur-of-the-moment dinner at one of our favorite spots last night, so I feel comfortable that it has sufficiently wide appeal that I will keep it for a while.