Thankful

Somehow through the hustle and bustle of this last Thanksgiving season I forgot to take the time to really think about what I am grateful for.

I am grateful for boots, especially during this chilly season.  I have never purchased myself a pair of boots to wear when it was cold until this year.  I don't know what I have been thinking in previous years.  My feet and legs have never been as warm and dry as they have been this year.  Who knew?!?  I always just assumed I would be fine with a pair of jeans a sneakers.  Boy, was I wrong.  Boots are a good thing!

I am grateful for baby faces, as in literal babies faces.  I became an aunt for the first time this last month and I am so in love with that little girl.  She is a miracle and I am grateful she made it to join our family.  Her mom and dad will be amazing parents and I am glad they get this chance to raise her.

I am grateful for my family.  Being the single daughter/sister I just show up at my families places at random times, because I don't have a set schedule (I do what I want), and they don't ever seem to mind.  I am grateful for their love and support.

I am grateful that I still have both sets of my grandparents.  I know that at my age that is a rarity.  I have been blessed to get to associate with them, know them, love them, be loved by them, and become a better woman because of them.

I am grateful that I have a job that allows me to support myself, that because of it I can afford a room to sleep in, food to eat, and a means of transportation.  I may not be rich or well off, but I can at least take care of myself because of my employment.  I am also grateful that my job has been an enjoyable place to work.  The values that the company has and the people I work with make all the difference.

I am grateful for friends and associates.  All the people that I meet and interact with everyday.  The world would be nothing without them.

I am grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I would truly be lost without it.  I just know that it is true and what causes the happiness that I have in my life.  I know who I am, I know why I am here, I know where I am going when I die.  What more could I want?  It is a true blessing.

I am grateful for places to visit and things to see.  The world is vast and there are places to see even in your own backyard.  I am glad that I have eyes to see and all my other senses to experience the world around me.

I have been lucky in my life.  I know I have been blessed.

**Oh and I'm grateful for books, blankets, and hot chocolate on a cold day!

Oh, The Single Life

On Saturday night I took myself out.  No use in waiting around for a date to take me somewhere.  If I did that I wouldn't go anywhere.  I could go into a rant about the idiocracies of men, but I'll save that for another time maybe.

I have to say I was a pretty good date.  I was able visit a used bookstore I have been wanting to look around in, walk down a beautiful snowy main street, get a good meal, read a good book, and enjoy my own company.  I'm sure not everyone can say they enjoy their own company when spending time alone just with themselves.

Just as I was rapping up my meal the wondering accordion player at the restaurant I was dining at came over and let me know that as a traveling salesman himself he is acutely aware of when diners from out of town come and eat at his establishment alone.  I didn't have the heart to tell him that I was from the area and the reason that I was eating alone was that I didn't have a boyfriend or someone to take me out to dinner so I have taken myself out.  It was a sweet gesture on his behalf to let me know that he had noticed me.

A Needed Vacation - Movie Sets and Universal Studios Backlot