Reasons to Get Out of the House

Struggling with writer’s block,  I decided to get out of the house yesterday. 

I ran errands with the boyfriend to mail out ARCs of Ultimate Courage and talked about high cupcake standards with the girl working the counter at UPS. Apparently, cupcake places only last a few months in the Phoenix area and then go out of business. Why? Hmm. But we’re hoping a new place that specializes in cocktail inspired cupcakes will last.

Excellent quirky things to write into a book.

 We stopped to get the car washed and detailed. I took my diploma, from the Masters Degree I earned over 10 years ago, to be framed. Then I popped into World Market for tasty international treats and Ulta looking for the Too Faced Peanut Butter and Jelly eye shadow palette.
I didn’t find the elusive eye shadow palette. It’s sold out both in store locally and online. But I fired up a chat with two of the make up consultants as I tried on daring (for me) summer lipstick shades from Urban Decay’s Vice line.

One of the make up consultants told me he once had a client that paid him  $85 a day to do her make up for her, every Friday and Saturday. She’d moved to Florida eventually, but still flew him out to do her makeup for special events. And he stayed in her beach house when he was out there.

Whoa. Very cool. Taking mental notes because that’s a fun character idea.

Then we chatted about ill-advised things people do coming into make up stores. Like randomly using the sample make up without disinfecting it. *shudder*

PSA: people, this is seriously unhealthy and could cause infections. Just take the extra time to get a consultant to help you disinfect that lipstick or blush or eye shadow or whatever before you try it on.

And boyfriend walks in, letting us know the police have cordoned off a portion of the parking lot right outside. In addition to standard police, TAC was on site. They’d also expanded the secured area three times in the time it took me to try on two lipstick shades.

Could’ve been a bomb threat. Could’ve been a robbery. There were actually quite a few possibilities. My writer’s brain was going crazy with all the possible plot bunnies.

And for some odd reason, the Ulta suddenly got incredibly busy. The general store manager had to hop on a register with two other cashiers to handle the line. Why the influx of shoppers just yards away from a developing police investigation? 

It is a mystery. 

And mysteries, puzzlements, conundrums, are fantastic mental stimulation.

I came home with a mind full of What If? Ready to write and ready to take my story unexpected places.

All of this, because I went out to run a few errands and indulge in a bit of shopping.

It was well worth the cost of a lipstick.

I decided to get out of the house and tried on Urban Decay’s Vice lipstick in Wired. This was not the color I ultimately bought.