I had a dream I was driving Stew (who is no longer with us. I donated him to NPR a couple of years ago.) I noticed that the driver side windshield wiper was broken and made a mental note to fix it before the weather turned. It made me happy to be with my old friend again. He was a little rough around the edges (wasn’t he always?), but as comfortable as a well worn pair of work gloves.

When I awoke I was immersed in a warm sense of nostalgia. I thought about how I used to write about Stew as a metaphor for the blue collar side of my personality. The one that likes to see my hands dirty and feel the strain of a hard days work in my muscles. Is that what I’m meant to take from this dream? A subconscious approval… a sense of relief, really, that I am finally back in that place?

I got a job. I install solar panels for a company called Namasté Solar. It’s hard, dangerous, intensely rewarding work. I love everything about it… except the commute (I have to drive to Boulder every day). But these are my people. (Yes, the same “my people” from the previous post). Everyone I meet either embodies who I am or who I want to be. (Well… except for that minimalist dude who owns two pairs of socks and a toothbrush and forages for food in dumpsters. But other than that…)