practice 'Happiness Manifesto' periodically

job edition

• a paycheck
• my younger colleagues think I’m OK
• smart interns to help me out
• easy to get to on public trans
• will look good on my résumé

... apart from my beautiful family, is being able to spend a day in the kitchen cooking up a storm..

Today I ~

• stewed and froze a whole lot of apples that were picked yesterday
• made a beautiful sauce to top homemade pizza
• baked a wholemeal loaf of bread
• made a pot of leek and potato soup
• baked a boiled pineapple fruit cake
• dehydrating even more apples

The only thing left to do is make the pizza base!!

• a paycheck
• Stravinsky
• contradancing – in particular, aside from the music, the smiling, handholding, and eye contact, all free
• the freedom to decide to get the hell out of here if I want to
• having way more t-shirts (and other clothes) than I need, so I can give bunches of them away

1) Friends who don’t let me hide, who will look under my rock from time to time to see how I’m doing.
2) Staying head above. Not everybody can these days.
3) Wiseasses.
4) A burst of focus and energy. I’ll take it when I can get it.
5) Not getting stabbed after leaving my Leatherman Micra in my front pocket with the blade out for a few hours.

-dinner at the wonderful GastroPub in Westboro, with my wonderful friend M
-being able (both physically and financially) to go on a trip to Portugal this summer
-having a partner who jokes instead of getting angry, who listens instead of waiting to gets his words in, and who never puts me down or lets me down or gets me down
-the smell of all of the blooming trees and flowers while biking yesterday afternoon
-being able to look out of my huge office windows and see the vista as far as the Gatineau hills
-my mom on mother’s day, who kept us laughing all night

I am grateful for:

.....the fact that I’m leaving, in 1 hour, to go on a much-anticipated vacation to Paris, and Belgium!!!!!
-sunny, clear blue skies and warm wind on my face
-my adorable pets
-my wonderful friend J. who never ceases to inspire and amaze me
-my awesome roommate

• a sunny day, after a lot of rain
• talking with strangers
• occasional self-restraint – not having to eat everything just because it’s there
• SM’s very good support, friendship, and collegiality
• having choices – I don’t have to go to Milwaukee if it’s just too hard

I am thankful for:
1. Summer being sooooo very near!
2. A good day with responsive students (who are ALSO doing the Happiness Manifesto as a lesson!)
3. Thunderstorms immanent (but not dangerous). We need rain so badly here.
4. My backyard finally finished being xeroscaped and a forgiving HOA giving me the green light to finish the front yard, too
5. Pizza and beer Sundays

• being able to take care of myself
• a fast, reliable computer and internet connection
• lots of rain – it’s a little dreary, but droughts, in this area, are worse
• convenient calories and caffeine when I need them
• sometimes having choices about how to spend my t ime

• The restful sleep I have last night.

• My favorite cheese and tuna sandwich that I ate on
  my way to work.

• At last, the organized desk that I worked to get
  spic and span last night.

• The song ‘Hard Habit To Break’ lifted my mood.

• Peace of mind finally.

• The Serenity Prayer:
  _Grant me the serenity to accept I cannot change
  Courage to change the things I can; and the
  Wisdom to know the difference_

• I stopped crying today.:)