Happy Place: Gratefulness And Smiles

[Blergh]

I'm grateful for   having gotten the credit card paid off AND my flu shot done today before work.  Two less worries to deal with is always a good thing.

Edited October 11, 2016 by Blergh
moved 'the'

[DisneyBoy]

Quote

So today I am grateful for everybody who has offered their support to me, and equally grateful for the opportunity to be there for others. I really am.

Amen to that.

I'm grateful for every day because each one offers us a chance to fix the mistakes. I hope to succeed.

Having friends or kind folks around to help you keep hoping helps.

As for something more practical, I ran into an old acquaintance at the grocery store and they were excited to see me. That's always a boost :) I love grocery stores for that kind of thing...

 

And today's weather was really nice too. And I'm eating with a loved one (and texting) so I will stop by saying that's wonderful too.

[JTMacc99]

As I did something earlier to day, I thought to myself "I need to have my head examined."  And then I thought, "Wait a minute... I already pay somebody to do that a couple times a month. So I'm good."

I am very fortunate to be the kind of crazy that allows me to laugh at it.

[zxy556575]

5 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

I am very fortunate to be the kind of crazy that allows me to laugh at it.

I was with a friend and her husband once and she expressed some fear about succumbing to dementia/Alzheimer's as she got older and having to be in a nursing home, etc. Her husband put his arm around her and said he'd always be there for her and would never let that happen.

Then: "I can say that because you wouldn't know the difference."

[backformore]

I'm grateful that I don't have to be in the same room with my brother until Thanksgiving  - which is AFTER the election. 

[zxy556575]

34 minutes ago, backformore said:

I'm grateful that I don't have to be in the same room with my brother until Thanksgiving  - which is AFTER the election. 

Now that you mention it, I'm glad my family members are all in political agreement! Ingrained and/or imagined childhood slights are already enough to get us through holiday dinners.

With the addition of a political forum here, my blood pressure is also grateful for the ignore option. :)

[EighteenTwelve]

I'm grateful that I'm getting an assistant in November, because my job is too big to carry in my head these days. 

[zxy556575]

6 hours ago, EighteenTwelve said:

I'm grateful that I'm getting an assistant in November, because my job is too big to carry in my head these days. 

Yay for productivity! Fingers crossed the new assistant doesn't show up in the work spleen topic in a couple of months.  :)

[zxy556575]

As "the holidays" barrel towards us, I'm grateful that my family elected to forego gift giving many years ago. (Okay, it was at my urging, but really. I give you a gift certificate. You give me a gift certificate. Which establishment will it be this time??!)

Some people may find that sad, but for me it's such a relief. I only have five family members but we don't all get together for holidays. I tell ya, it's zero stress, November to January.

[DeLurker]

Went to the Asian market earlier with my daughter to find a small gift for her friend.  I saw the cup/soup mug on the upper right corner when I was there.  I had to have it.  It makes me happy.

 

[zxy556575]

Those are adorable! I can't find them online but will take pleasure in imagining you enjoying yours. :)

I get a kick out of buying spur of the moment presents when I see something I know a friend will like. The other benefit is that I don't have to wrap it or buy a card; just "this reminded me of you" the next time I see that person. Well, and also it's frequently something small and/or goofy.

Edited October 24, 2016 by lordonia

[Sandman87]

Totoro mugs! Nice. Now I want one. That's a great movie, just like everything else Hayao Miyazaki has worked on.

[DeLurker]

I found them here online, but am a little confused by the listing.  It may be for all 4 mugs at that price (which I paid $12 for just one).  I've ordered from DHgrate.com in the past year, but it didn't look like the site does now.  I may try ordering some because they are delightfully cute but would make wonderful gifts.

The mugs are not microwaveable (sp?), but that makes no difference to me.

And my kids and I love Miyazaki movies.

[zxy556575]

Amazon has the mugs. Cute gift for work friends who like hot beverages because of the lid.

[ParadoxLost]

I get that this is smug wrapped in a pet peeve inside gratefulness and smiles.

Stood in a long grocery store line.  Got to the front.  Unloaded the cart.  Realized I forgot something.  Reloaded my cart.  Got out of line and went back for it.

As I walked away I realized.... that mythical unicorn that has good manners in grocery stores and inconveniences themselves over strangers...its me.

So thanks to my parents who raised me.

Edited October 27, 2016 by ParadoxLost

[zxy556575]

Thank you from the rest of the world, @ParadoxLost!

I usually finish paying, then shop again to pick up what I forgot. Makes it more interesting to walk directly from checkout back into the store and then go through the cashier line with bagged items. I always imagine I'm giving the store security staff and cameras a nice workout.

[BooksRule]

Today's Google Doodle gave me a smile this morning.  It's a game where you help a cat wizard defeat ghosts.  I only got up to level three before there were too many ghosts for me to defeat and they overran the cat, but it was fun.

[DeLurker]

I took my dog to the dog park yesterday afternoon.  It is always iffy whether he will play with the other dogs or not.  Yesterday was a not. 

But, there was a little boy there with his grandma.  He was almost 4, autistic and a bit shorter than my dog (he's a big dog).  The boy tilted his face sideways so my dog could kiss him over and over.  It wasn't the typical dog slobbering on your face, but a gentle poke/nuzzle with his nose to the boy's cheek.  Kokuma was so gentle and sweet with him and the boy was in heaven..

[BooksRule]

I'm not sure if this fits under 'gratefulness and smiles', but it did bring back a little bit of nostalgia for the 'old days'.  I just got back from a work trip and got off the interstate somewhere in rural Georgia to get gas.  The only thing that I could see anywhere around was the chain gas station that I was heading for and what looked like another station that had closed.  When I looked for a place at the pump to insert my credit card, there was a sign posted that said 'pump first, then pay inside with cash or credit card'.  It was an old-looking station and I guess it would cost a lot to get new pumps installed, but it kind of made me happy that there were still places where you were actually trusted to pump your gas first and then pay.  I didn't think any of those types of stations still existed (maybe in tiny towns, but this was along a busy interstate).  

[JTMacc99]

I continue to be amazed by the lifelong bonds I formed when I was in college.

I've mentioned before that I get together with my classmates once a year. Of the 14 guys in my pledge class, we're up to 11 who get together, and I think we'll get the 12th one into the fold next year.

This past weekend I was back out at school for a broader gathering, with friends from two years older than me through three years younger than me. Some of the younger ones I haven't seen in person in 20+ years. The stories and camaraderie kicked in right from the start and only got more fun as the day and then night rolled on.  It's interesting that when back in that environment, I also easily slip into the 15 straight hours of goofing off and drinking beer the whole time. (I can't believe how much beer we drank. Heh.)

There's just something about getting together with old friends that I can't get from anything else.

[BooksRule]

Quote

Because my sister and I will forever be 12

My brother, sister and I are like that on occasion.  I remember a few years ago when we were all together at  Christmastime, we were in Target or Wal Mart (I forget why) and came upon a big display of toy Tigger dolls (from Winnie-the-Pooh).  They were all in boxes, but the kind that are open in the front so you are invited to 'test' out the Tigger bouncing action.  My brother pushed down on one Tigger's head and we laughed when Tigger started bouncing up and down (like Tigger is known to do, of course).  We then looked at each other and quickly (each using both hands) pushed down on every Tigger head we could reach.  That whole display of Tigger dolls started bouncing up and down randomly.  We giggled like--well, like 12 year olds--and quickly walked away.  Fun times!

[zxy556575]

Modern banking is fabulous. Deposit from home, transfer money online, store documents in the cloud, get cash advances, complete mortgage pre-approvals, etc. I absolutely love auto bill pay and paperless billing. My paycheck and social security get deposited automatically. I write checks maybe twice a year to handymen or whatnot and haven't physically gone to the bank in years. I don't even have a local bank.

It's not for everyone (nothing is, amiright!) but everything is such a time saver compared to the previous drill of rushing to the bank before it closed on Fridays to deposit checks, standing in teller lines to get cash, waiting for a monthly statement in order to reconcile my checkbook and needing to keep paper records of it all.

[Blergh]

OK, despite the news, it's a beautiful day outside here and ,in my tiny  corner of the world, people are friendly. THOSE are    things to be grateful for!

[zxy556575]

1 hour ago, Blergh said:

OK, despite the news, it's a beautiful day outside here and, in my tiny  corner of the world, people are friendly. THOSE are things to be grateful for!

Yay for Fall weather! (I'm surprised there isn't a weather thread here, now that I look.) Things are beautiful in Central Florida as the heat and humidity have finally eased up. I think the A/C is off for good until late Spring, so that's an extra $100 a month I get to not give the electric company, woot.

[Blergh]

OK, here's one: I live in a community that has a large number of colleges and higher learning institutes and with the T-Day Break, that means that the stores and restaurants that cater to them are MUCH quieter and less crowded this week. I know they'll all come back Monday and buckle down before exams but it's nice to have  relatively short lines.

[zxy556575]

8 hours ago, Blergh said:

OK, here's one: I live in a community that has a large number of colleges and higher learning institutes and with the T-Day Break, that means that the stores and restaurants that cater to them are MUCH quieter and less crowded this week. I know they'll all come back Monday and buckle down before exams but it's nice to have  relatively short lines.

That's probably a universal smile! I'm in Florida and we're in full-on snowbird season now. Lots of gusty sighs on my part from now until April.

[Blergh]

OK, I thought about putting this in the 'Pet Peeves' Forum but since it's not upsetting nor disruptive to my life in any way (and we ALL need to keep in mind things to smile and be grateful for), I decided to put it here. At 11PM last night, I noticed TODAY's papers in the driveway. Now, as much as I wasn't sure that it was a hot idea to have this 'window on the near future' (and recalling a Twilight Zone ep in which folks were startled by a mistakenly delivered futuristic newspaper), I felt a little bit wary  and cynical since I know it got delivered just so everyone could read the zillions of ads for the impending Black Friday sales starting in just a few hours.

 

 However; since this saved me a trip to the curb first thing this morning AND I know that they usually put together newspapers well in advance of the publication date (unless there's a catastrophic last minute happening), overall, it's a good thing. Did anyone else have this happen last night?

Edited November 24, 2016 by Blergh
boldly going where I'd overlooked before

[zxy556575]

That's an early delivery, @Blergh! I think a lot of dailies are put to bed by 6pm these days, so getting them printed and delivered by 11pm is in the realm of possibility.

I guess today I should remark about how many things I'm grateful for in my 65 years. A standard amount of heartbreak and emotional ups and downs, but on the whole, a life of contentment. Always well housed, fed, loved, and healthy. Education and work that I enjoyed. Never totally broke or homeless. No pogroms for me.

[Qoass]

I'm not surprised you got your paper early.  Surely the person who delivers it wanted to have as much of a holiday the next day as possible.

[zxy556575]

Lagniappe!

When I returned, I waited about three months to close out my company 401k and roll over the funds to my personal IRA. Even though the account is empty, I still receive email notices and announcements from the 401k fund. I delete them.

Today I got another one and finally logged in to see if I could permanently close my account and stop the spam -- and saw that there's somehow a balance of almost $4500. Yay for surprise money!

Edited December 14, 2016 by lordonia

[DisneyBoy]

I'm grateful. Today I am grateful.

[JTMacc99]

Winter solstice 2016 in Northern Hemisphere was at 4:44 AM Central time this morning, which means for the next six months every day is a little brighter.

Seems like a good thought to latch on to today.

Also, just wanted to say thanks to all of you here for the fun, civil, and often very supportive conversations! 

[Blergh]

On 12/21/2016 at 7:47 AM, JTMacc99 said:

Winter solstice 2016 in Northern Hemisphere was at 4:44 AM Central time this morning, which means for the next six months every day is a little brighter.

Seems like a good thought to latch on to today.

Also, just wanted to say thanks to all of you here for the fun, civil, and often very supportive conversations! 

 Amen! We can use ALL the civilty we can get in this world!

[backformore]

I'm grateful for sunshine.   Particularly today, since the sun is melting that icky grey mud-snow that's on my driveway.

[zxy556575]

How lovely, @forumfish!

Driving around looking at Christmas lights was for real one of the highlights of the holidays when I was a child. My grandfather took us. I was in awe of the lights and twinkling decorations and loved sharing the happiness with my grandfather and sister.

[Quof]

Peanut Butter Balls in the office kitchen   : )

[Blergh]

9 hours ago, lordonia said:

How lovely, @forumfish!

Driving around looking at Christmas lights was for real one of the highlights of the holidays when I was a child. My grandfather took us. I was in awe of the lights and twinkling decorations and loved sharing the happiness with my grandfather and sister.

 I agree! They're like ice sculptures- VERY fun to look at and something I'm grateful OTHERS actually want to take the time and trouble to do while all the oohs and ahs in the world couldn't get me to risk it all on ladders or hammer nails in bricks in precarious spots.

[ABay]

I'm taking the annual Look at the Lights drive tonight. The streets right around my house are pretty good and there's another neighborhood that usually has a lot of houses done up for the season. Whether I go firther to look for more depends on the weather and my fatigue level. Please tell me other people have to work today because the roads were empty when I came in...actually, that's because everyone was in line at Dunkin' Donuts...but the public schools I passed were all closed.

[Moose135]

36 minutes ago, ABay said:

Please tell me other people have to work today because the roads were empty when I came in

I took the day off, but our office is open.  It's a half day, since we're a financial services company and the stock market closes early.  We have Monday off for the holiday, but I think half the company is on vacation the last two weeks of the year.

[Quof]

How do you think I ate the peanut butter balls in the office kitchen?

[ABay]

Looking at lights last night, before getting very lost and wondering if I'd driven into the Twilight Zone because I could not escape this housing development I didn't know existed but seemed to go on forever in curving, intersecting roads that always led to a round-about...anyway, before that I noted 3 things:

Mammoth inflatable figures (15 foot polar bear, several Santas, a giant horse)

Every 3rd house had one of the star shower things

Unique this year but bound to be everywhere next year--icicle strings with falling lights. They look like sleet but I'm sure that's not the intent.

[Blergh]

Grateful for a nice, quiet Christmas with my mother with just a few presents under a prelit fake tree with NOTHING to cook or clean up- then us adjourning for a GIGANTIC meal at a local fave restaurant we knew would be open today. Nice to have that.

[DisneyBoy]

Grateful for the strength of spirit and of body than can see someone through another life-threatening year. Grateful for friends with good last-minute recipes. Grateful for my health.

[Qoass]

Although I generally hate shopping, my love for the local Job Lot knows no bounds.  This week, if you buy a men's winter jacket and then put it in their donation box for a nearby homeless shelter, they give you a store gift card for the same price as the jacket.  How cool is that?

[BooksRule]

My cold, cynical heart melted just a tiny bit today.  I was waiting to pull into a parking lot at a shopping center and was delayed because of a truck that was sitting right in the middle of the two-way 'road'.  I kept waiting for it to pull out into the main drive so I could enter the lot, but it just sat there.   I couldn't see the driver (the windows were tinted), but the passenger-side window was down and the guy was watching an elderly woman who was putting some packages and her walker in the back of her SUV.  The passenger (a young--maybe 19 or 20--man, wearing worn jeans, a t-shirt and a knitted cap over his long straggly hair) got out and walked over to her.  I watched him walk towards the woman who was struggling to get her walker into the back of her car.  My first thought was to look at the make/model of the truck and to get a good look at him in case he grabbed her purse (which was dangling from her arm) and ran.  He proceeded to help her put her packages in the SUV, folded her walker and put it in and then got back into the truck (with a smile on his face) and they drove off.  That made me happy (and a little ashamed that I thought the worst of him at first).  

[zxy556575]

I really like the tradition of New Year's resolutions. My most successful one was not buying any new durable consumer goods for the entire year. I struggled most when my spatula got ruined, but persevered.

Happy New Year to all!

[JTMacc99]

Ha!  One year ago today I was pretty much doing exactly that, knowing that I was for damn sure not going to end 2016 in the shape I was ending 2015. Might as well eat and drink too much one last time was the thought. 

And for anyone setting out to do something like diet in 2017, it's totally worth it. I mean, living like a skinny person is not always fun, but not worrying about how clothes fit is really cool. 

[Blergh]

Might as well start the New Year with a post being grateful for my 80-something mother still being in this world in relatively good health as the year opens. That above ALL is what's important to me regardless of what else happens.

 Somewhat small potatoes compared to that is being grateful to my neighbor across the street for having had an unexpectedly impressive round of fireworks that lasted several minutes that I could perfectly see all details of. I'm not talking one or two cherry bombs and bottle rockets but something that looked as though it could have been used for a small town's celebrations. I don't know where they got these from and I'm not about to speculate costs. However; I was thankful for the fact that this display alleviated my not having wanted to venture downtown to see the city's display and deal with sardine packed crowds of revelers then bumper-to-bumper all the way back home and hoping  to encounter none of said revelers who'd scoffed at pleas re designated drivers, taxis and ubers.  Anyway, I was safely home the whole time and STILL got to see a truly impressive display to ring in the New Year so that's something   to be grateful for

[zxy556575]

Thanks and congratulations to PTV on their third birthday! I was pretty bummed when TWoP closed -- don't make me have to go to Reddit -- but voila! PTV saves the day.

[DeLurker]

Prior to driving 200+ miles to go see a dog at a shelter that I might get, I had a couple of phone calls and emails with one of the volunteers who had fostered him for a while.  She was very helpful and generous with her time.

I ended up adopting him and just had him neutered so we were swapping emails about getting the shelter the proper documentation and a general update on how he was doing.

She signs her emails "Delightedly".  I've never meet her in person, but based on our conversations & communications, I believe she is sincere in that.