Gratitude for October

 I am grateful for a flexible job, spending time with Peter, spending time with Sean, my crazy orange cat, my funny flexible supportive friends. I am grateful for my pacemaker and good doctors. I am grateful so many wonderful people support Harris/Walz. I am grateful my sister in law agreed to this crazy plan for Thanksgiving. I am grateful for our house of 22 years. I am grateful for a good night's sleep.

Small Joys -- Catch up!

 Day 15

Number randomizer says: 195

Sweep front porch

I left this for today because sweeping and tidying the porch and path before trick or treaters arrived seemed like a good idea.

Day 16

Number randomizer says: 176

Ride bike around the block

Did not mean to delay this until today, but work got away from me yesterday and I did not get to it. Today however, hubby suggested a ride around the park (and around the block!). 

Day 17 (Halloween!)

Number randomizer says: 89

Take 10 deep breaths

Happily.

In my favorite chair.

With cat on my lap

*Breathe in*

*Breathe out*

Peace.

Im ok

(Re)(re)(re)(re)learned in therapy:

I have areas to improve, and also I have areas I’ve done and am doing well. I do have some of the answers.

With son: must present ideas in a non-threatening manner, and his depressive/autistic idea of threatening is different than mine.

“How do you become better tomorrow? By improving yourself, the world is made better. Be not afraid of growing too slowly. Be afraid of standing still. Forget your mistakes, but remember what they taught you. So how do you become better tomorrow? By becoming better today.”

- Benjamin Franklin

Thank you all for helping me (encouraging me, coaching me, forcing me, embarrassing me!) to get this far.

Onward, friends!

LOOKED UP: ube

Trying to figure out where to buy ube, purple yams. I’ll try Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.

More about Ube

had terrific ube bun tonight at Vietnamese restaurant

Small Joys — cuddle bugs buddle hugs

Day 13 (October 27)

Random number: 112

Read a poem

The following is more a nursery rhyme, but it is still a poem. It’s been on my mind with the upcoming US election on the Fifth of November. Sometimes history rhymes also.

Remember, remember, the 5th of November,

Gunpowder, treason and plot.

I see no reason

Why gunpowder treason

Should ever be forgot.

Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, 'twas his intent

To blow up the King and the Parliament

Three score barrels of powder below

Poor old England to overthrow

By God's providence he was catch'd

With a dark lantern and burning match

Holler boys, holler boys, let the bells ring

Holler boys, holler boys

God save the King!

Day 14 (October 28, 2024)

Random number: 146

Cuddle

That was it. The whole thing. I cuddled with hubby. I cuddled with the cat. I gave the dog a good long back rub; she doesn't like to cuddle. I kissed the boy on the head; he also doesn't like to cuddle.

Nice one. A reminder to cuddle. A wonderful joy.

LOOKED UP: Guy Fawkes nursery rhyme

Remember Remember The Fifth of November

find the rest of the lyrics to this nursery rhyme about treason and attempted murder at the link

LOOKED UP: Florida trails and trail towns

 https://fdep.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=0139f10a05f54927abe654cfe61aef4e

https://floridadep.gov/parks/ogt/content/trail-town-program

Daytona Bike trail

LOOKED UP: Halifax and western Mass bike trails

 

Halifax/Nova Scotia options:

https://destinationtrailsnovascotia.com/

https://blttrails.ca/

https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=a0c8d2ddd531482b837b2cf95b354e6b

Berkshires options

https://www.berkshirebikeandboard.com/articles/where-to-ride-in-the-berkshires-pg1531.htm?srsltid=AfmBOopqUHFy-5O85Jr3u70rekVSeDURLJ9dHJ05gsjWRP9ws2p11j_8

LOOKED UP: passport renewal time!

Passport renewal

Small Joys -- Meme this!

 Day 12

Number randomizer says 181:

Send a funny meme to 6 people

This one didn't excite me much, honestly. I tried looking for a funny meme. I tried scrolling social media hoping to stumble across something funny. 

I was inspired to send an amusing, loving GIF of the Gold Girls hugging to S, K and B. They loved it. So I made at least 3 people smile.

And I shared  memes in social media, but not to specific people. And not necessarily funny (see images here). So I sorta did it. I think this is too close to stuff I do everyday. Seeking it out was harder than just letting it happen. 

Small Joys — happy happy

Day 11

Number randomizer says 17:

name a dozen happys - 12 things that make me happy

This must be another that I borrowed from @electra

1. Husband

2. Son

3. Daughter

4. Practicing my Italian

5. Baking cookies

6. Getting lost in a good book

7. Good salmon sushi

8. Playing cards with friends

9. Birthday surprises for friends

10. People receiving happy mail (postcards, birthday cards, books) from me

11. My silly orange cat

12. Riding my e-bike

LOOKED UP: vacation rentals

Best vacation rental sites

Small Joys — I love you around the world

Day 10:

Number randomizer says: 110

learn I love you in 5 languages

I already know 4: I love you, te amo, ti amo, je t’aime

Gonna learn 5 new ones!

1. Gaelic for Irish-American hubby: Is breá liom tú
2. German: Ich liebe dich
3. Greek: se agapó (Σε αγαπώ)
4. Japanese: Aishitemasu (愛してます)
5. Mongolian: Bi chamd khairtai (Би чамд хайртай)



Small Joys — giving to a good cause is a good thing

Day 8

Number randomizer says 331:

Donate to a cause

Very similar to another one this past week (give away money). This time i donated to Western NC recovery again. My step mom, who lives in Asheville, just visited so that inspired me. Like many, I gave right when Hurricane Helene was still fading away, but it’s good to remember to contribute later as well.

Day 9

Number randomizer says 200:

write a list of what went well and what did not from past week

What an interesting task. This is why it’s good to sit on this list for a year before starting. I have no memory of writing this one; might’ve borrowed it from Electra, the woman who inspired my list.

Let's see, what went right:

-cocktails with former co-workers who would be happy to have me join their new firm. Something to ponder.

-little vacay with hubby to Orlando, with bikes, cheese, long walks, time to chill out.

-seeing hubby speak at a conference on his speciality, sounding all smart and sharp and sexy. Love seeing him do his thing.

-progress at work on a messy tax return and a big bookkeeping project, helping the boss making decisions.

-back to the gym, new trainer, higher step counts

-voting for Kamala Harris and Tom Walz, with a fun flamingo sticker afterward

-leaving fun painted rocks promoting voting for Kamala around town

-watching Broadcast News and Murder By Death with Peter

-my book fairy gifts from day one of Small Joys arrived and I got 3 thank you messages

-buying tickets to three violin-centered concerts for spring

-getting Thanksgiving vacation plans further cemented

-birthday dinner with my stepmom

-finally bought a new address book, using re-found gift cards!

What didn’t go well this week:

-my eating: pitiful

-my sleeping: too little

-any reading at all: lacking

Wow, writing it all out, I see I got a LOT done in the past week. Plus lots of little other things I didn’t even list. Much to be grateful for… but… I don’t make my health enough of a priority. Maybe a little less productive and a little more quiet time for me.

LOOKED UP: historical fiction author Penman

Excited to dive into some historical fiction about medieval England. This author, Sharon Kay Penman, was recommended.

LOOKED UP: linguistic podcasts

Oh this list could keep me walking and off social media… list of linguistic podcasts

Small Joys — just say no to nyet

Day 7

random number generated: 263

avoid negative content

essy peasy: deleted Twitter app

Movie Review

 Watched documentary Will & Harper with Will Ferrell and friend Ms. Harper Steele. Fantastic, delightful, educational, touching. Highly recommend. On Netflix.

Small Joys — royalty version

Day 6

Random number: 133

Study a list of English kings/queens in order

Read through this: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kings-and-Queens-of-Britain-1856932

And this: https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/KingsQueensofBritain/

from Egbert to Charles III, with all the Haralds, Edwards, Henrys, Georges, and all the Queens and Queens who should’ve been (Matilda!!!) in between. Prompted many cool conversations with Peter as he went down rabbit holes with me.  The 10th century Saxons/Danes were a wild, murdery bunch. I am sure the British have all sorts of good books and movies based on these guys that I do not know about.

A perfect Sunday

I cleared out a sore spot in house and stocked with cards, stamps, envelopes, and address book to make sending mail easier

Sorted through re-discovered gift cards and made dinner plans in coming weeks with Sean

Tried a new gym trainer I loved

Made more travel arrangements for T’giving

Finished NYT Xword

Baked brownies with son

Studied English royal family line

Bought 5 tickets to 3 violin performances next year at Kravis (yes, I’m going to one of them alone)

rainy afternoon with a book and nap.

A perfect Sunday.

Friday Wins

Just a perfect day of e-bikes, drinks and chilling with my hubby today

and

Work-wise: I got a job offer… no detail, just a “we’d love to have you” I made schedule for current job of when I’ll be in office and when I won’t since no one there seems to be in charge of keeping track of me

Personal-wise: This morning I went for a 15 mile bike ride, saw fun public art, pretty birds, preparation for Pride parade, and a fantastic cheese shop.

Small Joys - I am really good

Day 5

Number randomizer says 369

Do something you know you're really good at!

Well, I’m very good at being supportive of Sean. And I’m good at talking to strangers. Doing both of these today (with lots of positive self talk from a day 2’s practice positive self talk) at Sean’s work event. Schmoozed two of his former co-workers, another presenter, a Sean fan, and a conference organizer. Will be beaming at him and radiating positive vibes during his talk shortly.

I’m a good researcher. I’ve used my downtime today to look into REIT investments, tax credits for energy efficient windows, baking and desserts in Jane Austen’s novels and era, and crazy-ass alternative social media sites that I’ll now avoid.

I am also a good navigator, and will get us home efficiently soon.

So this small joy was easily accomplished!

LOOKED UP: energy tax credits

We are thinking of getting some new windows. Will look at getting some that are Energy Star efficient. Worth up to a $600 credit (that’s a potential $600 off tax we owed).

(Note: Credits are not beneficial to you if you do not owe tax because of low income or prior loss carryovers. They are not money give aways, but a break in tax you owe. Salesmen will not explain that.)

And none of these improvements are worth doing just for the credit. You’ll spend a lot more than you’d save in tax.

But if you’ve been thinking about any improvements, follow some guidelines and it could save you tax dollars down the road.

Small Joys — Say cheese!

Day 4

Number randomizer says 29.

Try a new cheese

Absolutely! Happy to oblige.

We were biking today, and I had already looked up, weeks ago, the best cheese shop in Orlando, and it was a lovely bike ride away from our hotel. New cheese was already baked into today’s plan!

We bought a lovely crunchy cheddar and fantastic creamy blue. And brand new to us both, tomme, a cows milk cheese from France. And this one was mixed with a bright green pesto. Unusual look and flavor. Delish!

I highly recommend LaFemme du Fromage in north Orlando.

And now I want to try traditional, non-pesto tomme!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomme

LOOKED UP: Miami cocktail bars

Miami Beach cocktail bars

Small Joys - Good for me!

 The idea is to write about the Small Joys here and not Social Media, but I have slipped and posted on Twitter instead.

Let me catch up:

Day 2

Number randomizer says 313.

Practice Positive Self Talk

this is lovely. Like anyone I could use more practice on this. Between work and social interactions and a visit to the dermatologist looking over my whole naked body (gulp), I got plenty of practice. A friend on Twitter posted for all of us that we are valued and loved, and I used that as my mantra for the day. I had lunch with a former co-worker and then drinks with two other former co-workers and they all reminded me I am valued. My husband wrote me a lovely private message saying i love you in a cute way, and I felt loved. So these were all *external* validations, but I used that to pump up the internal voice: I am valued and loved.

And the dermatologist? Sure he was examining my body, but he was there to help . Looking for unusual growths or anything unhealthy on the skin. He did not find anything, and I am good for a year. As a pale person in a tropical climate, I appreciate this confirmation. I am healthy. I am valued. I am loved. That feels good.

Day 3

Number randomizer says 59

Give money

So much for my thought on day 1 that not all these Small Joys would be expensive! I gave $47 last night to Harris/Walz, since it was end of their fundraising quarter. Then with pulling this Small Joy this morning, with my husband's suggestion, I gave $50 to Whitney Fox who might beat Crazy Congresswoman Luna over in Pinellas County. I will also be open to giving out cash to whomever I see on a street corner. I do that intermittently, and obviously today would be an opportunity.

Friday Wins -- Catch Up

 On Twitter, there are two people that ask you to post your Friday Wins, no matter how small. I decided recently to start keeping a record of them from the past few months. And I will continue to track them here. So for now, here is a catch up of Friday Wins from the past year. A nice review of some small highlights to remember.

10/4/24

• Loved ones in storm-hit areas all checked in.
• I firmed up travel plans in Oct, Nov, & Jan, and I started sketching out plans for July-August (coming to see you @keithkenez!)
• Finally replaced cracked phone screen cover after 3? 4? months.
• Oh, and finished 5 returns.

9/27/24

• Oh my god! I got two personal projects done this week that are MONTHS overdue and tomorrow they both go in mail. And so much guilt and headspace will be freed.

9/20/24

• Turning in massive 1041 for 2nd review. Had great conversation with new partner in charge of 1041, who is in another office in another town, so never met. But I like her and trust her. 

In other news:

• Got my hair colored. 
• Got my nails painted. 
• Going to an art museum tonight.

9/7/24

• I did not quit my job this week. But I also did make decisions about the future.
• I went to therapy AND the chiropractor.
• I built my cat a rocket ship.

8/30/24

• After a devastating disappointment,  my depressed adult son got out of bed 4 mornings in a row to walk the dog with me, getting exercise and sunlight. Starting over again again is hard, but he’s doing it and it gives me a small joy (and relief).

8/23/24

• Moving son back to college. I’m reminding myself that if I want him to be independent, I need to treat him as independent. *deep breaths*

7/12/24

• -My best friend gave me a German chocolate cupcake that she made 
• -I found a package my grandmother gave me years ago that contains all the letters i wrote to her while in college and in my 20s. I finally re-read them. Amazing.
• -Good hair day

6/21/24

• I survived leg day at the gym, and I’m heading to lunch with a TaxTwitter friend soon!

6/14/24

• Had day off so didn’t have to attend the company-wide zoom call about how we’re not being bought by PE… yet. Relatedly, got personal business cards for Chicago. 
• Oh and also managed yet another successful annual event for the non-profit I founded.
• Won Wyrmspan last night.

5/31/24

• Nearly done with two weeks of touring Italy. The trip had a few hiccups, but mostly fantastic experiences.  A lot of my Italian has come back — I was fluent 30+ years ago. Already making plans to come back.

5/17/24

• Spinach pizza, milk duds, The Big Lebowski, and my family. All is right in the world.

5/10/24

• -cat is healthy
• -strawberry smoothie for breakfast
• -dinner plans with hubby tonight
• -board meeting finally for nonprofit i run this weekend 
• -group bicycle ride on Mothers Day
• -NINE DAYS UNTIL FLY TO ITALY

5/3/24

• Got a good night sleep!
• Solved Connections perfectly!
• Going away with hubby for cocktails & bikes weekend!
• Baked a ham quiche!
• Tracked all my eating for 11 days, and hit my water goal most of those days!
• Have a plan for projects and exercise increase for summer!

4/26/24

• Only working 30 hours this week.
• Manicure (photo later)
• Almost done reading third book this week.
• Lost 5 lbs.
• Excitement is starting to build with family for upcoming trip. 
• Like new cardiologist.

4/12/24

• -leftover pasta bolognese from our fave restaurant form 28 years ago
• -movie night with my boys
• -a reeeeeally good night’s sleep last night
• -new face moisturizer
• -lunchtime massage 
• Today is a good day.

3/29/24

• Chocolate with hazelnuts. 
• Plans for sushi and drinks with friends tonight. 
• Weather is gorgeous and I’m recommitted to getting out for a walk midday. 
• Oh, and today will be my 3rd day in a row of moving 4 returns to review. #pullingmyweight

3/15/24

• I thought I was a dork who waited until last day to file an extension for my husband’s teeny tiny 1120s’s final tax year. But I was gonna get it done today! So I looked at 2022 for info… and LAST year I filed a final. Doh! Yay, a win! And I’m still a dork.

3/8/24

• #taxtwitter has made me laugh this week
• I went to chiropractor and we discussed Buddhism, it was good
• Dinner out with husband
• Got a response to a pesky consumer issue
• Got NYC trip booked partially using old ticket credit 
• New fun shower curtain
• Also! Finally great grandfathers educational comics from 1930 shipped off to the SMITHSONIAN MUSEUM. I’m kinda chuffed that something one of my family members did will be in Smithsonian. Probably on some dark shelf forever, but still cool.

2/23/24

• -Reheated pad Thai — better on day two
• -Apparently I’m done with Biz returns (mostly ‘cause bosses don’t want to see me cry… which would be less if they didn’t give me CRAZY MESSY business returns… but I digress)
• -already moved two 1041s to review today
• -hand lotion
• -plans for quiet evening home with hubby 
• -new photos of my “grand dog” (a concept I hated until my daughter got a dog) 
• -getting $32 back from a forgotten account
• -Boston cream donut 
• -glorious Florida winter weather which I’ll get to enjoy this weekend

2/9/24

• —I was able to teach the newbie something with background and context rather than just “click that”.
• —I was able to figure something out new - how to enter prior year adjustment on M2 - all by myself. 
• —I left early for a weekend trip.

2/2/24

• This week, I got up from desk and moved and drank water and ate less sugar and slept enough and spent time with loved ones. 
• season hasn’t hit hard yet. Im totally caught up at work (I think for 1st time since 2022?) … until Monday when I suspect the sluice will open.

1/26/24

• I got a 1120s client to send in his bank statements in January, and not after 400 calls in late August!!!
• Annnnnnnd, it turns out he hasn’t paid us for our work in 2023 and hasn’t filed his company’s annual report in two years. So, good that I have the bank statements, but all work grinds to a halt.
• So i came home early and went for a bike ride.
• I expressed support for retiring partner to work less hours and for non-retiring partner to ALSO work less hours. And let them both know I’ll be working less hours. Way to slide that in… 

1/5/24

• Have Covid, which isn’t a win. Sad to cancel some plans this weekend. However, I am also very very glad to have downtime for reading, journaling, organizing my home office, cuddling with cat.
• Fresh bread from new bread maker! 
• Sending out birthday cards to my January friends.

8/25/23

• Your Friday wins are always a blessing. 
• I won $11 playing cribbage against senior citizens last night (note: I paid $13 to participate )
• I had gotten my work To Do list back under 40 items yesterday (two new ones added this morning — doh!)

Monthly Goals -- October update

 Started this month with the following goals -- and an update on how they are going at mid-month:

1. Go to Boxing Art lecture at Norton on 10/26 

UPDATE-- ticket acquired

UPDATE -- Went to Boxing Art Lecture on 10/26

2. Finish grout project with son 

UPDATE -- in process. Dining room and 3 bathrooms left to go

UPDATE -- Still finishing this up. Peter and I are motivated to finish! A deadline helps.

3. Walk 10,000 steps a day 

UPDATE -- ha. Not even close, but I have walked more and made it to the gym twice this month so far, because of this goal. So it is doing its thing of getting me moving *more*.

UPDATE: Done this a couple times. Definitely upping my game some.  This needs to be on next month's list.

4. Write and address birthday cards for rest of the year 

UPDATE-- have gotten end of October done

UPDATE -- Hoping to finish this up, at least Novembers. Good thing I set this goal. I also have new address book, and have been writing out postcards.

This was inspired by Mary's questions on Tax Twitter.

Small Joys Project

Back in January 2023, I came across a British woman on Twitter who had written out 365 small joys on pieces of paper and put them in a jar, and was taking one out each day. She posted the "tasks" and results, and it was just lovely. She made it worth staying on Twitter a bit longer. I stole some of her ideas, and wrote out a bunch of my own, and ended up with more than 365. Ooops.

I did not get it together to start my own project on Jan 1 2024, but it has remained on my mind. Meanwhile, Twitter is just a fucking cesspool, I would never post something like this there.

So I have edited out a few and gotten it down to 379. I think I will start it right now. And I will post the results here. And if no one sees it, that is okay too. It will force me to post daily... in theory!

Rather than lots of bits of paper and a jar, I have a numbered list on my phone and will use Google number randomizer.

Day One:

Number randomizer says 360:

Be a book fairy!

Perfect. I already had this in mind x3! I already bought a Frederik Backman book for a friend and forgot to give it to her last week. I will make not to give it to her when I see her in late October. 

Then this past weekend, a different friend liking an author I like, and I will send her a new book by Matt Haig. I have written to said friend, told her she is getting a book, and given her three to choose from.

And I have ordered two science books for my little 10 year old cousin in Maryland from Bookshop.org,  which is a fantastic site and supports local book stores instead of the big behemoth in Seattle. And then that turned into buying two books for the other two little cousins. I guess I am early for Christmas!

I like being a book fairy. What fun!

Music while writing: Emmylou Harris and Linda Rondstadt

Where: at my desk at home

Oh hey! Another project I never went back to!

 Been thinking yet again of a non-social media place to put thoughts. Perhaps I will make a go of this place.

Ideas for a blog in a running list on my phone:

Happy project -- that I have been meaning to do!

Gratitude lists

Things I learned today

What I looked up recently

What I am playing lately

Where i am dining lately

Stop to notice and observe and document

End-of-month to dos

Random lists

Hmmm, this is starting to come together. At least in my mind. Lets see if I can write another post with substance rather than just plans...