Oh where to begin?
This weekend is the beginning of now having actual weekends off. I got a 4-day off stretch and decided to use the time to go down to Florida and visit my favorite Aunt.
I was way overdue in visiting her. She is such a wonderful, strong woman who keeps ...enduring is the best word I can use. Most of my visits have been to go down there and help her out with stuff but this time around we just enjoyed the visit. There was a lot of laughs and a new shared experience (!) that cemented that we're not just aunt/niece but truly friends. (And don't even get me started about how I'm ever so grateful that I didn't lose my cell phone down there!)
So I'm grateful for her and the hospitality her and her family show me (my cousin gave up his room so I could have some space and privacy of my own, her husband cooks for us or brings us lunch...) She/they are so generous and giving, it puts me to shame.
I'm going to make it a point to get down there for more frequent visits...my last one was way too long ago. I've been staying away because it was just too much to be a part of her life and feel so...helpless in trying to help her get back control of her life with the various things she struggles with. I think now that my staying away did more harm than good. So back to fairly regular visits and keeping in better touch.
So after I got home last night -after getting lucky and getting a seat in first class for the flight home -I stopped at Chipotle for dinner and as I was leaving that's when I thought to myself that it's about time I acknowledged how many things I've got to be grateful for. (Every once in a while I need to remind myself how good I've got it.)
I'm grateful for the job that allows me to just "pop down" to Florida for a day or two. I'm grateful for an aunt that I can really talk to ...about anything. And for having yet another person in my life who loves me.
I'm grateful for my living situation. I'm living with one of my best friends and so far so good. This won't be a permanent arrangement...I do want to eventually finally get my very own "nest" but this is a good place to be.
Ryan and I ran some errands together today and it was awesome, yet strange being out and about on an actual Sunday on my Sunday. It's going to be interesting adjusting to this weekend off thing...
I'm grateful for a car that runs...even if she needs work to get the oil to stop leaking.
I'm grateful for my family, especially my brother who always helps me when I need it ...crap that reminds me, I've got to do his CRP (renter's credit) for him! I've been meaning to get that done for like 2 weeks now! Ooops!
I'm grateful that Troy finally paid me the money for the last job I did for him ..and even though it was truly the last job (he and his wife have decided to do the mailings themselves since business hasn't been great) I'm grateful I got back in touch with him and even had the opportunity to temporarily make a bit of extra cash.
I'm grateful I have a computer and internet access.
I'm grateful that my "new" library is close by and very easy to get to.
I'm grateful that I have food in the cupboard and a little bit of money in the bank (just a weensy bit.)
Oh sure I still have to deal with that last ticket I got and I've got that 3rd court appearance in a couple of weeks (and hopefully it will be the last!) but things could be worse.
So there are a million more things to be grateful for but you get the picture.
So now to start winding it down...have to start getting myself to bed a wee bit earlier than I have been...
Onward. With excitement at the new work I'll be doing ...at work.
Musings from a big and beautiful sometimes "drama queen" on her current state of existence
What's It All About?
"The unexamined life is not worth living." Socrates
While you’re here, in this time and in this space, you are beautiful and you are perfect.
You are right where you need to be to get to where you want to go, so start asking yourself where you want to go.
Noire
She'll be 2 years in 2 months! Time flies!
Things I'm grateful for everyday....
- My family
- My friends, old and new.
- A roof over my head.
- My computer & internet access
- Being employed (even if I don't always like things about my job)
- The public library and the joy of borrowing books with/on/for my Kindle
- That I can walk on two legs, use 2 arms/hands, have ten fingers/toes, can see and hear, etc. (uh, no offense to anyone who is physically challenged)
- Other people's creativity and efforts
- The love of a good man (he IS good)
- My friends, old and new.
- A roof over my head.
- My computer & internet access
- Being employed (even if I don't always like things about my job)
- The public library and the joy of borrowing books with/on/for my Kindle
- That I can walk on two legs, use 2 arms/hands, have ten fingers/toes, can see and hear, etc. (uh, no offense to anyone who is physically challenged)
- Other people's creativity and efforts
- The love of a good man (he IS good)
Current Favorite Quotes
“Be content with what you have, rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.” - Lao Tzu
"The privilege of a lifetime is to be who you are." ~ Joseph Campbell
"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." ~ Charles Dickens
"We either make ourselves miserable or we make ourselves happy. The amount of work is the same." -Carlos Castañeda
"..there’s something lovely about knowing that when it’s right, you really know it’s right because you’ve already been through all the wrong." ~ Sade
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." ~ Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss)
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." —Mark Twain
(This bit not so much as a quote but somethings I wrote down that I want to keep and this looks like a good place to do it)
7-25-07
1. Almost everything comes from almost nothing.
2. The best way to predict your future is to create it.
3. Leap and the net will appear.
"The privilege of a lifetime is to be who you are." ~ Joseph Campbell
"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." ~ Charles Dickens
"We either make ourselves miserable or we make ourselves happy. The amount of work is the same." -Carlos Castañeda
"..there’s something lovely about knowing that when it’s right, you really know it’s right because you’ve already been through all the wrong." ~ Sade
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." ~ Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss)
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." —Mark Twain
(This bit not so much as a quote but somethings I wrote down that I want to keep and this looks like a good place to do it)
7-25-07
1. Almost everything comes from almost nothing.
2. The best way to predict your future is to create it.
3. Leap and the net will appear.
Facts of Life (per Sonya Friedman)
- 1. No one can bring your life to you
- 2. No matter what you do, someone important isn't going to like it
- 3. Though painful, rejection won't kill you - it may even lead to growth
- 4. Every choice means giving up something different
- 5. Some people aren't capable of giving you what you're trying to get from them
- 6. The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others
- 7. There are no quick fixes that can permanently change your life
- 8. Life is on a rheostat, not an on/off switch
- 9. Some problems cannot be solved - but you can make peace with them