9-30-2012 The Grill

It's more than just a place to cook.  For someone who is not really a cook, it makes you feel like you can do it.  Grills are centerpiece of the cook out, portable grills can go to a tailgate party, or camping or maybe to the beach.

Tonight for something different I bought frozen quails.  Thawed them out and put them on the grill.  All of the sudden, for a moment it made me feel like I good do it, I could cook.  Also put on some corn on the cob - love the taste of grilled corn.

Anyway, the grill and I go way back and I can't think of a bad day grilling and the memories of those times when we sat down and ate together.

9-25-2012 KC and the Sunshine Band

I was running this morning, listening to my mp3 player and an old song from this band came on

It's a happy song and I thought about being a kid and all the time that has gone by and also about living in the moment and enjoying life.  And I wished that I could appreciate all those moments that happened from then until now.

And sort of like "click", moment captured.  Running fast at 6:00 a.m. listening to a happy song with the day ahead of me.

Thank you K.C.

9-24-2012 Good Things You Don't Even Know About

We can be grateful for those big things and little things.   We can be grateful when we reflect upon the day and what there was to be grateful for.

But, there will always be those things we just don't know enough to be grateful for.  Then one day we either learn the hard way and whatever that thing is goes away on us, or we learn about it before it goes away.

For example, how many of us are grateful for the beneficial bacteria in our intestines?  I heard a story once about life saving "poo" transplants.  And after you get past the potty humor aspect you see how serious these situations are.  I looked on the news today and saw yet another story today of this life saving procedure and how important these little things are.

There will be more things that you may never know about.

Be grateful for those things.

9-21-2012 This Morning

I think maybe I have been grateful for mornings and the promise of the start of a new day.  But today, I just want to be grateful for this morning.  It was a good morning.  Another start of a day.  I don't think there was really anything spectacular or newsworthy.  But, nevertheless, it was a good morning.  The temperature felt right, I ran, I stretched, I ate breakfast and went to work.

There are no ordinary moments unless that is how we look at things.  While this morning is still the present and  before it becomes the past, I am going to be grateful for THIS MORNING.

9-19-2012 Clean Sheets

When the day is done, and it's time for bed, and the last thing you notice right before you fall asleep is that the sheets are clean and fresh, it's one more detail to think about, about how much there is to be grateful for.  From the moment you wake up, then going about your day, until you fall asleep.

It's just one more reminder, of things to be grateful for, like clean sheets.

9-18-2012 Dignity

It's not the opposite of humility, because opposite might imply that one is good and the other is not, but they do counteract each other.

Once you have accepted humility, you can turn to your dignity or self worth.  They are both important.
Everyone deserves their dignity and we all have the same self worth and need to realize that.

I am grateful for dignity.

9-17-2012 Humility

I am grateful for humility.  To experience that feeling sometimes feels like just what you needed to put things into perspective.  We want to think of ourselves as the one who is being right or is trying to be right even though we know there is a chance that maybe we are not.

To accept our faults, to step away from the theoretical and embrace ourselves as we are sometimes takes a dose of humility and hopefully it comes before it is too late.

9-16-2012 Sunday Morning Waffles

The house was quiet this morning, the week is winding down with a new week and new challenges starting tomorrow.

Time to get moving, time to do something to start the day and do something positive.

So, I made waffles.  And, I realized that it has been longer than I thought it had been.  I had been making pancakes on the weekends, using a recipe on an old scrap of paper.   But, the cookbooks I used to open to find a waffle recipe were not available, so maybe it has been a while or maybe I found a recipe on the internet.

I found a basic recipe on the internet but used buttermilk instead of milk.  It was a pretty big batch and the boys and I ate almost all of them except for two which I froze.  We had fresh grapes and pineapple on the side (I like to buy a pineapple now and then, leave it in the fruit basket for a few days then slice it up for fresh pineapple.  It's a nice decoration.  It's a symbol of welcoming, a reminder of Hawaii, and it reminds me of Spongebob).

So, the simple ingredients were transformed into something to start the day and something to be grateful about.

9-14-2012 Seeing the Tunnel End

The last 24 hours were a rough ride, with challenges from every possible angle between work, social, family, and self.  There is more to come but there is a small break now - maybe not too long, but just long enough to reflect on how fortunate I am to have the good friends, family, and experiences to help me go on.

I'm going to hang onto my attitude of gratitude.

I'm grateful for seeing the end of one tunnel even if another one is around the corner, because I know I can choose to get through that one also.

9-12-12 Knowing What Life Is

I may not know what the meaning of life is or what life is all about.   But I did hear one time that life is what happens when you are busy making other plans.  I think back to the good and bad things that happened today, and the things that come to mind had little to do with the plans that were being made.  Those plans are for the future, but what happened today happened today.  We live in the day.   Worrying excessively about the future is not what life is, it is not what you'll remember, except perhaps to think back and wondered why you worried so much.

I am grateful for this idea because it makes the future not so worrisome when you realize that what counts is what you do during each day.

I think this made very little sense but that's ok, I think I get it.

9-9-2012 A Friend Who Will Run Through Rain

I am grateful to a friend of mine who was going to run with me, then was going to cancel the run due to rain but since I had almost driven all the way there he changed his plans again and came out to run with me through the woods at Croom.

Not everyone would do that, it was above and beyond.

So, I am grateful for this friend who ran through the rain today with me.

9-8-2012 Was Able to Loosen Nut

A very minor thing today, but when it happened I thought that this is what I would write down.

I have fixed toilets a lot.  Partially, because I don't seem to get it right the first time.  The downstairs toilet was starting to leak in two spots since the last time I had fixed it.  Spot one was at where the supply line connects to the cut off valve, and the other spot was where the supply line connected to the tank.

The upstairs toilet had also been leaking at the supply line and I was afraid to touch it so I called a plumber, who for $145 fixed it and also made me see how easy it was - he also gave me some valuable tips on toilet repair.

So, I set out to fix the downstairs toilet.  Still concerned about what if I broke the cut off valve - big disaster.

I tried to loosen the nut - it wouldn't budge.  Sprayed it with wd-40 and tried again in a few minutes. And then it came off with no problems and the rest of repair went smoothly.

It all hinged on getting that somewhat corroded looking nut to budge without messing up the cut off valve.

So, for that one moment that could have turned a simple repair into a disaster, but didn't -

I am grateful I was able to loosen that nut.

9-7-2012 One More Day

A few weeks ago I was grateful that if a day wasn't so good, at the end of it you could be grateful that the next day was another day to start over again.

Today I'm thinking about how one should at the end of the day be grateful for one more day.  Today was a day that was given to me.  This day will never happen again.  It wasn't the best day or the worst day.

But it was one more day and I should be grateful for that.

9-6-2012 Epiphanies while Running

I had been up most of the night, unable to sleep, trying to think of a solution to a problem that was stuck in my head.  I knew that figuring it out would require transcendence of some sorts because the problem itself was affecting my thoughts.

And it seemed almost to be trivial to do something to go for a run but I knew it would be good for me in many ways.

After three miles, the answer came to me and it was not what I expected and it was not even a direct answer to the problem, but it was better than that.

Who knows what causes it, perhaps all the extra blood pumping or maybe the redirecting of energy from where it shouldn't be (negative thoughts) to where it should be.

But, for whatever the reason it has helped me before, and I am truly grateful for it.  At this moment I am actually exceedingly grateful.

9-5-2012 My Boss

He's a good guy.  I kind of have two bosses, actually they are both good guys.
I think I already said that I was grateful for my job, but it's worth it to mention my boss(es).


Also, I'm in Texas right now, I guess that is something else to be grateful for!
Looking forward to going back home though.