WITHIN the past few weeks, my life has experienced a total turnaround.

In early January, I headed off to New York City for a book reading and signing at Vox Pop bookstore in Brooklyn, performing with New York’s top political comedian, Scott Blakeman. This was the best-attended reading I’ve done so far.

Curiously, at the bookstore’s suggestion, I set up my signing table display near the front door. I did not post a notice with the selling price. My goof. When I came back to the table after the reading, more than a dozen books were gone. One person quipped, “Theft is the sincerest form of flattery.” Must be my lucky day, I told myself.

After a few days in the city, including an amazing Sunday with men from the ManKind Project, I took the train down to Philadelphia. Philly is my kind of town.

To commemorate the 231st anniversary for the January 10 publication of Common Sense by Thomas Paine, I’d organized a press event at The Library Company of Philadelphia (founded by Ben Franklin on 1731). Joining me were the head librarian, James Green; the director of the Thomas Paine National Historical Association, Brian McCartin; the nation’s top Ben Franklin re-enactor, Ralph Archbold; and talented Thomas Paine re-enactor and peace activist, Steve Gulick. I spoke on what Paine would write if he was alive today.

C-SPAN’s Book TV sent a crew to record the event. They cablecast the program three times on the last weekend of January. My publicist, Penny Sansevieri, told me, “This could be really important for your book.” Must be my lucky day, I told myself.

I then spent three days in Steve and Bill Harrison’s “Milion Dollar Author Crash Course,” which caused me to totally rethink how I’m marketing my book, Global Sense. (You’ll be hearing more about that here at the website and through my e-letter.)

One of the highlights of the training was another participant teaching the group to juggle. We used feather-light pieces of colored lace, which floated in the air long enough for my hands to move into position for each catch and release. I’d been wanting to learn how to juggle since I was a teenager, back when I started doing a magic act for kids’ parties. Learning to juggle was a dream come true. Must be my lucky day, I told myself.

When I came home, I was greeted by a phone message from my girlfriend that she was ready to talk about our relationship. We’d come very close to ending the relationship several times over the almost four years that we’d been together. Despite loving one another deeply, our differences were so profound, we’d finally accepted on New Year’s eve that we needed to let go of the struggle. Enough was enough.

On January 17, we met with our couples’ counselor and formally called it quits. This same date was the yartzeit for my father’s death in 2000, also the same date as we’d buried my mother a year ago. I felt a mixture of grief and relief. I felt sad to end the union. I felt liberated to focus wholly on my inner growth and outer career, plus I’m now free to meet a lifemate who’s more compatible. Must be my lucky day, I told myself.

Yeah, I’m the luckiest guy in the world. Excuse me as I wipe away a tear.