Joyful Mayhem

Laments: 1. Selfish drivers. (I could list this one in varying incarnations on every 5 & 5!) 2. Rude pedestrians. ("You know we're living in a society!" Bonus points if you know where that quote is from. 3. Headaches: big ones, small ones, half head ones, side head ones, front head ones, neck ones... 4. Finances 5. Having to weigh risks (death by rash?) against benefits (no debilitating depression) when you consider medications. Gratitudes: 1. I have never hit a pedestrian, kid or otherwise. It's one of my worst fears driving around schools especially. 2. My dog. Such a sweet love who wants to hang out & cuddle. 3. I have a reliable car that I like. 4. Friends who are willing to help answer all sorts of questions on topics where my knowledge is limited. 5. My husband is a good, good man. I'm thankful he chooses me every day. How was your day?

  Laments: 1. SO MANY €#%£ BAD DRIVERS! A guy was behind me and started merging into me. Thankfully my HORN told him to stop. 2. Working on the computer makes my hand & wrist hurt, but I have so much work to do involving the computer. 3. Frikken Comcast and their "customer service" -not 4. I'm feeling a big lack of energy. 5. I'm so tired of battling with my weight.  Gratitudes: 1. I met a neighbor who loves working on vintage stoves and he happily came over to fix a problem with my oven. 2. I'm so thankful for my dog, Nala, everyday. She has brought love & live to our family in lots of situations, and has been therapeutic for my depression. 3. I'm getting to bed before 10 tonight! (We'll see if that really pans out) 4. I'm thankful I have a working washer, dryer and dishwasher. 5. After finishing Community college and earning her AA, M y daughter had her first day at the university she's looked forward to for

5 & 5 So when I first started blogging 10 years ago, it was an anonymous, but online journal. At the time I was seeing a therapist and we talked about a gratitude journal. But she also recognized the importance of identifying the crappy parts of the day too. So I started the "5 & 5" as a way to list the complaints of the day, and then end with the gratitude. Often then will be related (see #1), but sometimes, they stand alone.   In time, I began to write more and do less 5 & 5, but I always come back to it. Especially when I find myself lamenting more than being thankful. I want to be able to give each their due, but keep it in balance. So while I've been doing this off & on for a decade, here's my first 5 & 5 to share.  Today's 5 & 5 Laments: 1. People who leave empty gas tanks for others. 2. I was clearly a dingbat and blocked a driveway (on private property when no one was around) and was reading a text. When I lo

I've read updates from a couple different people saying how Robin William's death is sad, but what about (other horrible world issues)?   I want to know,  why do tragic events need to compete for what's worse ? Now there's way more going on internationally than I know about (and frankly, more than I care to know about. There's only so much emotional heaviness I can handle without it negatively affecting me).  Admittedly, I am awful at keeping up with the news. A few things of which I am aware: kids being kidnapped & sold into sex slavery, people (of many faiths) being tortured, falsely imprisoned and persecuted, and racially motivated violence and oppression - these are all horrible.  AND the suicide of a dearly loved and revered entertainer who suffered from depression is  also horrible . He made us laugh, made us feel better, and helped us escape whatever reality we needed a break from. His life was no more valuable than any other person claimed by mental

Laments 1. Second night of a nasty headache. 2. Road construction all around my street. 3. TRAFFIC (see #2) 4. Skipped another workout today Gratitudes 1. I had a blast volunteering at the conference at church this morning. 2. It's FRIDAY! 3. My sweet little pooch that loves me 4. I found reasonably priced GF pizza at Costco! 5. I'm so thankful for our Yukon.

I've been just short of obsessing over Robin William's death. I've been teary and on the verge of crying since I read the news at 4:30 this afternoon. Celebrities die. Why is this hitting me so hard? I was a fan, but not a superfan. In fact, his über fast-paced stand up and out of control interviews sometimes even annoyed me. But I still liked him. His persona. I never met him in person, but two people I do know posted separate stories about meeting him, and the time he spend talking with each of them. He sounded like a guy who really did care enough to listen, remember and make a connection with people he met. And then it hit me. He did that for everyone, whether we met him or not. I think I'm feeling this so deeply, because for my generation in particular, we really did grow up with him.  I was only 9 when Mork and Mindy exploded into American pop culture. I remember walking to school my first day of fourth grade with my neighbor friend, Julie Ann, both of us we