I Went Back for the Rest of the Story

Stardate 09.12.2026

I went back to Ancho & Agave last night.

I had reviewed the restaurant yesterday, but I felt like I needed to get the rest of the story. My time on assignment is running short, and sometimes you know when there is a little more waiting to be discovered.

Last night, the street tacos gave me the perfect way to explore the menu.

I ordered four tacos. Two were street tacos and two were avenue tacos.

The street tacos were cauliflower and sweet potato. The avenue tacos were steak asada and blackened salmon.

I had my own little taco competition going.

The cauliflower street taco took first place. The sweet potato street taco came in second. The steak asada followed in third, with the blackened salmon finishing fourth.

I paired the tacos with a strawberry/pineapple margarita.

Then Russ surprised me.

He brought out Tres Leches Cake and told me it was on the house as a thank you for the story I published yesterday morning, "He Had Me at Hello."

That caught me off guard.

A story I had written yesterday morning had somehow traveled across the day and found its way back to me at dinner.

Special K, whose name is Kanisha, is one of the managers. She introduced herself early in my visit, and I enjoyed getting to know her a little better.

Then there was Cristen.

Cristen was serving me last night, and somewhere along the way our conversation turned toward writing.

She has ideas for publishing a collection of her poems. She also has several stories that have been simmering in her mind for a long time.

She is a student, too, and she has plenty on her plate right now.

I told her not to give up.

There will always be obstacles between an idea and the finished work. I know something about that. I have been writing every day for years, and I still find myself learning along the way.

Sometimes a person simply needs someone to say, "Keep going."

Maybe that was part of the reason I came back last night.

I thought I was returning to finish a restaurant story.

Instead, I found another writer who is still carrying stories of her own.

That feels worth remembering.

"Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans." — Proverbs 16:3

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Captain's Addendum

"Michael, you seem to have returned for tacos and discovered another writer," Spock observed.

"That's how these things happen, Spock," Bones replied. "You never know what you're going to find when the Captain gets hungry."

Maybe Bones has a point.

Last night reminded me that stories have a way of finding us. Sometimes they arrive on a plate. Sometimes they come with dessert. Sometimes they are sitting across the table carrying a dream that has not been finished yet.

I'm grateful I went back.

And I'm grateful for Cristen, who reminded me that some stories are worth carrying until the right time comes to tell them.

One percent better. One day at a time.