1. A healthy body. I have no major illnesses. I can even do about two pull-ups!
2. It's not winter anymore. It's summer by my calendar, if not the official one. I love wearing short sleeves.
3. My garden. I've got pea pods, green beans, basil, and cilantro coming in! Tomatoes and cucumbers are blooming most promisingly too.
4. Marko. He's so smart and the things he's into are so interesting. And just when you think he can't be affectionate, he draws you a sweet picture and gives you a hug. I remember I was sad when he didn't say "I love you" for such a long time. Till, like, five. You know what, though? I found out the other day that other boys his age won't hug their moms or say "I love you" in public anymore. Whereas Marko isn't the least bit embarrassed about it. Who's missing out here, really?
5. Michael. His smile is so joyful and infectious. He loves hugs and kisses. He's really good to animals. And he actually enjoys being helpful.
6. Miriam. She is so full of love for everyone. When I told her your "true love" is someone you love a lot, she started telling everyone she knows they're her true love. She loves to wear beautiful clothes, to sing, to dance, to be a princess, and to make bouquets.
7. Jackie. She is such a delight right now. It's so easy to make her giggle. She's at that stage where literally everything they say is hilarious because of the voice they say it in. I remember waiting a lot longer than I would have to for her to initiate hugs and kisses, but she does both very enthusiastically now. She also loves to sing, basically all the time, and is surprisingly good at it for two.
8. John. For my birthday he got me a red teakettle, a Harry Potter t-shirt, and a photo collage of all the kids. I feel seen.
9. Kitty-kitty, aka Pandora, aka the Basement Cat. She is lying along my leg right now purring like a jet engine. There's something nice about being the special person of a cat who doesn't like anybody but you.
10. Tiger. As different from Kitty-kitty as night from day, she loves everybody, even strangers. That means the kids get to enjoy cat snuggles too. And she lets you rub her tum.
11. Cats in general. I MEAN, CATS. They are so wonderful. I joined THIS CAT IS C H O N K Y on Facebook and it's the best. Daily fat cat pictures. This is the way to maximize happiness on social media.
12. Social media! People say it makes you unhappy, but it makes me feel very happy. I've never had so many friends or kept in better touch. Could I, theoretically, have emailed all my friends all the time, or written letters, or called? Yeah, but it's a lot more work and I'm busy and tired all the time. This way I can get a little smile from a friend any time of day.
13. My family of origin. I'm visiting them this summer and I am SO EXCITED OH MY GOSH. It's been a long time. I gotta brush up on my Princess Bride quotes and Star Trek references.
14. Star Trek. It's just such a thought-provoking and also fun show. Deep Space Nine is the best and you are welcome to fight me on that.
15. Science fiction in general. It's good stuff, man! I love to imagine possible futures. I'm reading C. J. Cherryh's Foreigner series and it's really got the imagination chugging along.
16. Discworld. To me, the Discworld books rise almost to the level of holy texts. There is so much that's good in them, including hilarity which is always good for the soul.
17. Tolkien, for similar reasons.
18. Writing. I am thankful that I have time to write (if not as much as I want) and that my family supports me in it. Even if I never get published, I'll be glad I have created these stories, which seem to have life beyond me when I've finished them.
19. The publishing industry. Isn't it great that you can just write stuff, and send it in, and it's possible for a total amateur with no credentials to become a best-seller? You can complain about how small the odds are, but really, it's a lot harder and comes with more entry fees to do almost any other kind of art.
20. Colors. I love them all. I love them when they shade together. Sunset colors. Forest colors. Night colors. Earth tones. Ocean colors.
21. Fiber arts. I haven't done much of those lately, but last night I picked up a hat I started last winter and started clickety-clacking. It's nice. So meditative.
22. The Shenandoah River. I love how it winds around everywhere and is so lazy and smooth. I love the ridges rising up all around it. I'm thankful to live in a place that is beautiful.
23. The Pacific Northwest. I don't get to go there very often, but I love even thinking about it. I love the mountains, the forest, and the ocean. Where else do you not have to pick one?
24. Public schools. It's been a little bit life-changing having the kids in school. They learn so much. I find my life manageable again. I don't know how people homeschool while having a baby and/or a toddler, but I know I couldn't.
25. Millennials and Gen-Z. The Tumblr memes! So relatable!
26. Neighbors. This year we have two, count 'em, TWO families with kids across the street. The kids are in bliss.
27. M.S., who chats with me on messenger almost every day. We share kid-related woes and send each other stuff we write. I love her work. But I selfishly keep a special fondness for her rave reviews of mine.
28. J.S., who hangs out with me every chance she gets and is incredibly selfless about offering to help. She's also got very interesting things to say and her style is flawless. She reminds me to stand up for myself.
29. J.O., who I admired all through college because she just seemed to radiate happiness and love to everyone. She's still like that. She's amazing.
30. S.C., who was the first person to help break me out of the shell I was in after boarding school. We explored Middle-earth together and she got me into dancing. I wish I could see her more often.
31. M.M., who I first spotted across a field, standing on a stump, playing violin with her long hair fluttering in the breeze. She's just . . . like that, all the time! She lets me recite Hopkins poems to her and sends me beautiful things she writes.
32. Oops, another M.M., this initials thing is hard. (It's just, this is public and I want my friends to recognize themselves without the whole world catching on.) I hope she'll recognize herself, though: she's very glamorous and loves Victorian dresses and sends people flowers out of the blue. She's so supportive, you have to remember to ask her how she's doing because she's so busy asking after you, she won't say.
33. Oh no, I'm out. Let's just say: all my other many friends, loved ones, aunties, grandparents, fans, all those people who make me smile just by being their unique selves. The good news is, in twenty years I'll have more slots to fit in all the things I'm thankful for.
JMJ
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday! That's an epic list. :)
Ah hah! A fellow Niner! I meet another in the wilds of the internet.
ReplyDeleteWho is your favorite main character from that show? Its tough for me, but I'd say its a tie between Garak and Kira. With Kira definitely being the best female character Star Trek has ever done.
I love Garak (plain, simple tailor that he is!) but Jadzia is probably my top favorite. Or Kira. Honorable mention for ALL the Ferengi. The dynamic between Quark and Odo is great.
ReplyDeleteInteresting choices. I must confess, I'm curious why its those characters whom are your favorites. I don't dislike Jadiza, but it seemed to me the writers often had little good idea how to develop her, and she wasn't as strong an actor as many of the others. Also, I associate the Ferengi with many...painful episodes. Profit and Lace, anyone?
ReplyDeleteYour last sentence is of course, 120% correct. Odo+Quark real OTP of the show, as the kids say.
Jadzia, to me, is subtle and complicated. As a kid Kira was my hero, but now that I'm older I can see how much is going on with Jadzia. She keeps her feelings to herself a lot, like I do, but it doesn't mean she doesn't have them. I am also really intrigued by the whole concept of being multiple people, or having multiple people's memories. I'm currently writing my *second* book playing with this idea! And it was the Trill that started all that off.
ReplyDeleteOkay, Profit and Lace is cringey, but what about the one where Rom starts a labor union? The one where we find out Moogie has been secretly earning profits? The one where Jake teaches Nog to read?
The Ferengi are a socially backward species with a lot of regressive customs. But over the course of the show, we can watch them learning from the Federation and experiencing their own Enlightenment! Ferengi-style of course, they're never going to be the Federation (and thank goodness. As Quark says, the Federation's too much like root beer) but they're going to eventually adopt women's rights and workers' rights and not a moment too soon.
There's also that I just find them hilarious. Like Little Green Men. That one ought to be terrible but I love it so much. "Moooooogieeeee!" I bust a gut every time.