I was amazed at how many naysayers there were when I started my project, well-meaning (?) friends who didn't think I'd ever get appointed because

1. There are no previous Poets Laureate in Orange County;
2. No Library in the United States has ever done this before;
3. I don't have a long list of publication credits;

blah blah blah blah

and I said, There's no time like the present for this to happen, and I don't see a long line of other people who want this position...

and I knew if I didn't try, I'd be forever saying shoulda done, coulda done.

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This was my fourth brush with "coulda died" and the first time it ever affected my behavior or long-term attitudes. I think I just woke up and realized if I wanted to do something, Today Is The Day.