Sessygail

Came only after I read and determined that I whole-heartedly concurred with your response! ;) 3 days ago

Today, I am grateful for:
1. Productive workdays.
2. my friend, B, who has joined the gym so we can work out together.
3. waking up from a bad dream and knowing it was just a dream.
4. a good cup of coffee in the morning.
5. two long weekends coming up! 6 days ago

Today, I am grateful for:
1. having so much in my life for which to be grateful.
2. making myself get up and go for a walk on this brisk, late Spring morning.
3. the urge I get to straighten the house up on Sunday evenings. It has become somewhat of a habit. I enjoy my weekend then spend about an hour tidying up the house so that Mondays feel all nead and tidy!
4. feeling good about where I am with stuff at work.
5. my mother, as she is and as she was. 1 week ago

Because really, there’s No Such Thing As Girls Like That

The woman on the TV set
Is clutching both her great big breasts
And she sure looks like she is having fun
In purple plastic panties
She is writhing she is dancing
And it’s plain to see she really turns her on
But this is MTV you know
And that is how the music goes
And all the male guitarists think she’s great
They believe that girls like this
Actually do exist
And secretly we all love to gyrate
Well, pardon me but I have never
Done a thing I can remember
That remotely looks like this at all
Except for once at Girl Scout camp
When several bees got in my pants
And one of them flew in my training bra
CHORUS:
Maybe these are fantasies
Maybe you have a right to these
Baby I’ll just break this gently
There’s no such thing as girls like that
The catalogs of lingerie
Come to our houses everyday
With women who have mostly nothing on
My favorite is the one who sits and
Drinks her coffee in her kitchen
Wearing just a silk robe and a thong
Well, let’s be real here let’s just say
My kitchen any given day
Is not exactly somewhere you seduce
Between the cat hair and the crumbs
Your nakedness might make him numb
And even worse he might begin to puke
And if you’re gonna wear a thong
You might just find the cat hair’s gone
To places you don’t want cat hair to be
And besides you know the facts
A thong just rides right up your ass
And serves no earthly purpose I can see
CHORUS
Lastly I will say to all
The boys who make the Barbie Doll
That I think Barbie’s really cute and fun
But if Barbie were a real live chick
Her waist would be 12 inches thick
Her bra-size would be close to 41
So by the age of 53
Those things would be down to her knees
With osteoporosis on the way
So, after having said all that
I’ll leave you with this simple fact
My favorite girls are women that
Are not afraid to cry and laugh
And eat some food that’s high in fat
Can change your oil, fix your flat
Can say some prayers and blaze a path
And I’ll just say on their behalf
There’s no such thing as girls like that 1 week ago

Tonight, I am mellow and grateful for:
1. Friday night yoga and meditation. The perfect way to end the week.
2. A phone call from SD#1 tonight, at the end of which she declared, “I love you!” (now, it is true we always end our calls with a quick “love you” but it has always been me saying it first and always that abbreviated form. This afternoon, she said it emphatically and I felt very much loved!)
3. A work crisis averted this afternoon. I was working to figure out an effective and quick solution when the problem solved itself. I love it when that happens.
4. dreaming with my husband about the things we want to do.
5. recovering all of the notebooks that went missing from my Penultimate app today. Not a great way to start the day but a tremendous flood of relief when they all re-appeared! 1 week ago

I have nothing more to say, really. 2 weeks ago

Tonight, I am grateful for:
1. happening upon Call the Midwife on Netflix. Oh, how I love that series!
2. my Friday night yoga/meditation class. Such a good feeling.
3. Saturday errands with my husband.
4. getting some new plants into the front beds. I have an image in my head of a beautiful garden that develops over the course of a few years. As of now, one bed is nearly there, two others will get there.
5. still feeling a sense of peace and calm in my life. 2 weeks ago

Darkly beautiful. 2 weeks ago

Tonight, I am grateful for:
1. chatting with my niece of Facebook, remembering a weekend spent together when she was a little girl…we watched Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, read The Secret Garden , made pizza and sang “Joy to the World” (aka Jeremiah was a bullfrog) at the top of our lungs as we drove to the vet to pick out a new cat for me. That cat is still with me and I am so very glad that the happy memory of that weekend is still with her. She is wandering aimlessly right now in her early 20s and I like to think that I have offered her just a tiny bit of stability through the years.
2. chatting with my mother about her new cat this afternoon. The cat wasn’t in the room at the time we talked so she couldn’t remember what color he is but we talked about what she might name him and she said that as soon as they named him, she would let me know so I could address him properly when I spoke to him! I said, “Oh, you should call him T.S. Eliot” and she said, “No, I will call him T.C. Eliot” When I asked why she said “Tom Cat Eliot.” I love those moments when I can set aside my worry for her and just love and laugh with her.
3. cats. I have one sitting next to me, purring mightily and ocassionally rubbing his head against my chin or my arm as I type this. I know cats have their detractors but in my life, cats have provided an unseen but undeniable bond with so many people that I love.
4. discovering Call the Midwife on Netflix. I have only watched one episode but I am completely hooked.
5. the sense of well-being that I get from reflecting on my days as I try to capture some of the things that fill me with gratitude.

NOTE: The cat in the photo (if you can see him there) is Jazz (he likes to drink shower water after we finish our showers each morning but last night he was distressed because no one would take a shower and he, by God, wanted shower water for dinner!). Jazz is the cat that my niece and I found at the SPCA that long ago weekend in October of 2001. 2 weeks ago

Today, I am grateful for:
1. a good night’s sleep.
2. a good cup of coffee.
3. the abatement of yesterday’s headache.
4. the support of my colleagues.
5. the love of my husband. 3 weeks ago

Today, I am grateful for:
1. telecommuting. On days like today, when I don’t feel so good, I can sleep in for a bit and still be to work on time.
2. a hot bath with eucalyptus and mint bath salts.
3. my big blue cotton sweater…it is great for times when I am cold but not too cold. and oh, so comfy!
4. being able to celebrate this weekend with a friend who is getting married to a really good man!
5. feeling content and peaceful despite having a killer sore throat. 3 weeks ago

is especially evident in people between the ages of about 14 and 20, wouldn’t you say? At least in my world it has been. 3 weeks ago

That sounds like a delightful way to spend a Spring day! Enjoy and savour every moment of it! :) 3 weeks ago

Today, I am delightfully grateful for:
1. my sweet sister-in-law who took me to the nursery yesterday to but lots of herbs for a new herb garden as an expression of appreciation!
2. a conversation with my mother yesterday that seemed almost normal (none of the scripts we repeat daily, no repetition at all, she was alert and engaged and engaging!)
3. an afternoon off on a beautiful Spring day.
4. a good workout with weights.
5. my hair stylist (is that what they are called now?) – she always starts me off with a wonderful scalp massage and then I can go into total relaxation (nearly napping) mode because I trust that she will do my hair right! 4 weeks ago

With the sun streaming into the room and a fresh cup of coffee at hand, I am grateful for:
1. the morning sun…I have savored it all of my life…something about the quality of the light of the morning sun just soothes my soul.
2. my uncomplicated life. I have a good husband, a good job, a good home and good friends. Yes, it is true that there are complications in the lives of people I love that cause me sorrow or worry and that require my time and attention, but I give my time and attention wrapped in love and concern and am grateful to be able to retreat to my own, uncomplicated life. I refuse to take it for granted.
3. trees. As I sit here writing, I look out the window and see our young maples in the exuberance of spring, young leaves unfurling in vivid green and red (Japanese Maple). I will appreciate their beauty with each season to come.
4. my second cup of coffee. I don’t drink a lot of coffee but sometimes, I appreciate a second cup in the morning. I just took a break from this list to refill my cup and I realized that I am grateful for the luxury of time to sit with a good cup of coffee and reflect on the gifts in my life.
5. my marriage. I am sure I have mentioned this once or twice here! We have grown to fit together so very well, having been greatly tested in our earlier years. I drive him crazy; he drives me crazy but we laugh and we share and we love. Ours is not a traditionally romance-filled or sentimental marriage. He doesn’t send me flowers and that is okay with me. He does much more than that. He puts up with my quirks and he works hard to keep his quirks under control and I do the same in return. It is not the marriage I dreamed about when I was younger. It is, oh, so much better than that! 4 weeks ago

This morning, I am grateful for:
1. taking time in the morning to remind myself that I can handle what the day will bring, listening to music, breathing, reflecting.
2. being able to express my ire in a professional way and to follow it up with meaningful advice to someone who was way out of line in her approach to me (she called me at home on a Sunday afternoon and left a message to ask non-urgent, nonsensical questions about our contract and expected me to call her back. She then called my office TWICE before my 8:30 a.m. arrival.)
3. my WAZE app on my iPad. Helped me avoid a very bad back up on my way home from work yesterday.
4. my husband’s humor.
5. being able to hear my cat purring from across the room. 4 weeks ago

Tonight, I am grateful for:
1. having the time to clean up the pantry this weekend. It’s the kind of thing that needs to be done every couple of years (in my house anyway) and it hit me when we got back from the grocery store that this was the time!
2. the knowledge that I will make headway on two long-avoided work projects this week.
3. my iPod on shuffle. It never ceases to amaze me that I can carry all of that music around with me!
4. perennials in my garden beds. Watching them come back from certain death simply because the temperature is rising and the sun has shifted…well, it is like a miracle, isn’t it?
5. another good workout today. I did 20 minutes on the treadmill (incline up to 12) and then 10 minutes on the stairmaster and finished out with 30 minutes on the elliptical. Decided that mixing it up would be a good thing. 4 weeks ago

Tonight, I am most grateful for:
1. the feeling I got when I returned to strength training yesterday. It is hard to explain but I just love the feeling of lifting weights.
2. the moment in Yoga class last night when I sensed my sister with me. It was powerful.
3. the many good people who have crossed my path and touched my heart.
4. finding several of the books from my Amazon wish list available as e-books to checkout from the library!
5. My song of the day: This song by Ruthie Foster that shuffled onto my playlist while I was trying to get myself to finish my time on the elliptical today. Walk on!4 weeks ago

Tonight, I am honestly grateful for:
1. taking a step in the right direction to get back on track with my workouts.
2. being able to make my mother-in-law laugh.
3. recognizing the progress one of my staff has made in accomplishing the tasks assigned to her. She is shining again!
4. seeing my flower beds burst into spring. Not much color yet but it is coming!
5. knowing that my sister’s work is picking up with the Spring Season; hoping she can set aside some reserves for the lean months later in the year. 4 weeks ago

Tonight, I am relaxed and grateful for:
1. being able to laugh with a co-worker over the absurdities we encounter on a daily basis.
2. being able to talk with a trusted friend about concerns for a mutual friend.
3. feeling less conflicted about the concerns for the above noted friend and ready to offer some measured support.
4. a meeting yesterday about “dashboards” which I have been dreading but which turned out to be much less intimidating than anticipated.
5. sharing books with friends and family. 1 month ago

Cheering instead for the clarity of your analysis of your negativity. If you can name it, it is easier to figure out how to banish it. And cheering because I hope for you to have even just a tiny demonstration of how people can care for each other despite what you have read lately! :) 1 month ago

Made me smile and nod in hearty agreement with each item, but most especially #1 and #6! Good stuff! 1 month ago

Tonight, I am grateful for:
1. My wonderful husband, who, without complaint and with extreme patience, devoted his Sunday afternoon to doing my sister’s taxes and knew that she could not pay what was due so he paid it, with the understanding that she would pay us back as she could. I married a good man.
2. Our Happy Yellow House, where friends and family are welcomed with open arms.
3. Perfectly beautiful Spring days.
4. The dear woman at church today who appeared genuinely shocked to learn that I am way past the 43 years old she would have guessed me to be!
5. Feeling ready to knock out some pesky work issues in the coming week. 1 month ago

It must be so hard to maintain any sense of calm with so much excitement right around the corner! Breathe deeply and have a fabulous time getting ready and a fabulous time in the midst of it! And be safe and stock up on hugs. 1 month ago

Tonight, I am grateful for:
1. clearing the air with a co-worker.
2. taking a 5 minute relaxation meditation break instead of letting anxiety derail me.
3. being able to offer a listening ear and some reassurance to a mom who called me for help today.
4. finding a practically stress-free (and mostly stoplight free) route home.
5. planning for a few more one- or two-day minivacations over the next month or so. 1 month ago

This is the only one I read again and again. Glad to know it holds up! 1 month ago

I don’t doubt that it wasn’t what you wanted to do. We considered the same alternative with the bluebird.
The thing with the paper was it had to be on his side of the window, not ours because it had to block his reflection. If you put it on the onside, it just makes his reflection clearer to him, making his enemy look all the more real. 1 month ago

Tonight, I am grateful for:
1. beautiful, warm Spring days.
2. Taking the day off, especially on a beautiful Spring day!
3. A warm bath after a hard day’s work.
4. The way my willpower kicked in today.
5. Being ready to go to sleep but only after I have done my Gratitudes! 1 month ago

I have had bouts of it for about 15 years now, usually when the seasons change. I hope yours is controlled soon. 1 month ago