Pleasant Surprises

[ilspooner]

Hello Escapist! I haven't been on here in ages, not properly anyway. Been lurking for a couple of years, but decided to make a topic today.
As you may have guessed from the title, I had a pleasant surprise today. When I came home from school, I was informed that there was an awards ceremony for a writing competition I'd entered last year. This in itself was nice. I hadn't heard anything about that competition, and just assumed that I'd not gotten anywhere. Upon arrival, I realized that I was also a finalist in my division! I was really happy about that, as I'm a budding writer, and I really am my own worst critic. So that kind of confirmation was really nice.
Anyway, it turns out I won my division in the competition. I was really surprised and happy about that, but the nicest part was that I won $350 for it! I had pretty well forgotten about this competition before, and suddenly I've won and gotten a bunch of money. It's also boosted my confidence a lot. It was very much a reality check, and I'm super excited at the moment.
But enough of my anecdote. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's had a very pleasant surprise, and I'm a good mood, so I want to share happy stories. So, has anyone else had a really nice note to another wise dull day? Something that you'd forgotten about that came back positive? Anything, really. This certainly livened up my boring school day

 

[Barbas]

This morning I woke up thinking it was a work day, before I realized it was actually a day off. That's a particularly sweet one I haven't had happen for a while. I think I lay on my back, beaming at the ceiling and making bed angels, for about fifteen minutes before I eventually got up.

 

[Padwolf]

I don't know if it counts but it certainly made me happy. One morning about a month ago I woke up thinking I was still at university and woke up with a sense of dread that I had an essay due and books to read and research to do. Then I remembered it's been nearly three years since I graduated. It made me happy!

 

[Rose and Thorn]

I won a cake once a long time ago. Maybe 4ish years ago.

I've never really won anything in my life, but I have won a cake and on that day I was pretty dang suprised. It was cookies and creame flavoured I believe.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

About a year ago I found a package at my doorstep which according to the stamps had come all the way from Switzerland (I'm in Argentina). I opened it and found a copy of Demon's Souls. A person I'd met on this forum a month earlier had promised to mail me a copy after reading my rant about my country's shitty importation laws. Nothing I paid much attention to back then. It was an amazingly pleasant surprise for a number of reasons combined - not just the game itself, but the trajectory of the package, the promise of a stranger, the fact that she would selflessly take the time to go to a post office, pay for the mailing and do it with disinterested good will.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

Was at the D&D group I run yesterday, and it turned out to be one of my group member's birthday. Had food and a delicious cookie dough ice cream cake. Sooooo good~

 

[Ix Rebound]

My grandfather comes over to our house regularly on Saturdays, and this seemed like a regular one, so as we are having dinner he turns to myself and my sister and throws us a pair of keys. OK I thought, he knows I'm on my L's we probably just wants me to drive him home. Nope! turns out he failed his last driving test and lost his license, so he is giving us the car to share!

 

[Aetera]

Last week, I got a text from my best friend that lives far away from me and I haven't been able to see in two years. It just said, "what are you doing at 2 AM tonight?" I replied with, "nothing, why?" Her response, "smoke break?" Long story short, that was how I went through an entire pack of cigarettes from 2 AM until far after the sun had risen catching up with my best friend. It took her 3 hours to get to my house. That was a pleasant surprise visit.

Another pleasant surprise happened to me a few months ago. I'm on the board of directors at a wellness and recovery center, and at a meeting, we were electing the new executive committee. I found out, at the meeting, that not only was I nominated for vice president, but I was the only nominee. Yet another pleasant surprise.

 

[Artina89]

I just got two pleasant surprises just now actually. My dad just wandered into my room and said "Hey, you reading anything at the moment?" and I read through books really quickly so I shook my head and he has just dropped The Simpsons and their mathematical secrets on my bed, knowing my liking of mathematics and animation, and it is a book that I haven't heard of before so I am looking forward to reading it. If that isn't enough, about 5 minutes later my mum came home and said, "You know you were looking at that chemistry magazine and decided not to get it because you said it was too expensive? Well, I have found something better" and placed a book titled The elements: an illustrated history of the periodic table. As a result, I have two fantastic books that I had no idea I was going to get. I have a wonderful family and I feel spoiled rotten at the moment.

 

[Someone Depressing]

A friend of mine bought me some art books for late Christmas.

I don't celebrate Christmas with as much... enthusiasm as some. I also have a very keen interest in art and animation, and general movie making; I have enormous respect for anyone who can use a camera or draw or pitch a movie or write a screenplay... pretty much any talent that I deem cool.

So I'm incredibly thankful for that. Best 6-months late Christmas present I could have ever got.