2024 Happy Blog Challenge Continues

Merry Christmas!  Happy Hanukkah! Happy Whatever-you-do-on-this-day Day! Here are some happy highlights from my day: The rest of the family got up much later than I did.  Eventually everyone had eaten and presents were exchanged.  All the gifts were wonderful, however, Gideon won Christmas this year.  He created a scavenger hunt for Keziah that included us all.  Keziah got the first clue and each of us had a piece of the map and key.  "Gnomes" had hidden clues around the place and we had to find them.  Each clue had a gnome that Gideon had made, a gift for someone, and another clue.  Gideon did such a good job.  He used hints, YouTube, and the app What3Words to help lead us to the next clue.  We had a blast! My stocking haul.  They were all similar. That stocking of mine is almost as old as I am. There is a company that makes shirts based on old stores that have gone out of business.  My mom used to work for both Zayre and Ames...

There was a party today for my birthday, but I didn't attend. It was a shared party with a friend who is about to turn 40. It seemed to make sense to combine the parties. I woke up with a miserable head cold and decided to not share. Instead, I spent the day in my little apartment, mostly in bed. Here is a short list of happy things from today: All the hiking and camping I did this summer and fall meant that I had shelf stable food to eat. Usually, I eat in the house, today I chose to stay separated. Even when they were gone to the party, the temperature was in the teens today. Staying inside was best for me.  Yay, food! There were a few private messages that people sent me throughout the day when they learned I wouldn't be at the party. That was very nice. I miss seeing friends.  Hearing from them helped with that. ☮ Continued listening to: Daindreth's Sorceress , by Elisabeth Wheatley. Continued listening to: The Body Keeps the Score , by Bessel Van Der Kolk. Th...

Here are some happy Tuesday things: It was a busy time at work. I was assigned the Problem Solve area. There were a lot of problems to solve. The supervisors tried to keep the area staffed well. That helped and I was able to work on properly disposing of some hazardous wastes too. Until Christmas, I am scheduled to work four days instead of three. Usually it is five days in December. I’ll need to pick up more shifts if they don’t give them to me.  I was counting on some overtime. There was some apple crumble left from Thanksgiving that a friend made. They have been offering me a piece for the last couple of days and I had either just eaten or wanted real food first. Today I remembered it at a good time. It was good. I’m glad I am getting to experience some of the yummy leftovers. This weekend will be a gathering of my SCA household for a nice meal. I’m looking forward to it. Sunset! ☮ Continued listening to: Daindreth's Traiter , by Elisabeth Wheatley. Thank you for be...

Here are some happy things from my day: Work was wild.  It was busier than I expected it to be.  They assigned me to be the QA for the AB line.  We started out low on people and without the aisles being prepped for us so there was a lot to do.  It stayed busy all night and then we worked late to get everything done.  I feel like I earned every bit of the holiday pay.   After a brief rest at home, I made a French apple pie with some help from Gideon.  Zed brought it to his family's Thanksgiving dinner.  I was invited, planned to go, but I seem to be fighting a cold so I stayed home.   An evening alone meant laundry, a movie, pizza, and ice cream.  It would have been nicer to go out to feast with family and friends, but getting rid of this cough that came on today is more important.  Keziah brought me home a piece of my pie!  It is delicious.   🍎 ☮ 🍕 Continued listening to: Daindreth's Outlaw , by Elisabeth ...

Happy Wednesday things: When I left for work my car was covered with a thick layer of frost or thin layer of ice or a combination. When I got to work I noticed all the patterns on my rooftop. Even though I was running later than I wanted to, I took some pictures because, pretty. Work was good. It was one of the few times that the building seemed cold. This was great when I was moving around a lot. Once they moved me to Problem Solve, I put on my fleece. Everyone was home when I got back from work. Keziah has been busy cooking for Thanksgiving. Zed works from home or the store. Gideon has the long weekend off from school. They were just finishing lunch. There was enough for me to have some too. I'm kind of amazed at how much I relaxed when there was food ready that I didn't have to prepare. Zed went to work from the store after lunch so he could be available to the helpers there.  The rest of us did more prep work for tomorrow.  I'm still not sure what I'll b...

Here are some happy things from today:  At work I was assigned to do the QA position.  This is the first time I have been assigned there from the beginning of the shift.  It is a lot of work, frustrating at times, but I like it.  I need to make a list of things so I remember what to bring with me, look out for, and what files I need to have open on the laptop.  There were some things I forgot and it slowed me down in the beginning. One of the Process Assistants thinks that I could do their job someday. I'm not ready for that, we'll see if I even decide to pursue more. It is a nice compliment though. The food today was pretzel wrapped hotdogs.  It was okay.  I got to the food a little late.  They were still warm, but I think it would have been better from the source. After work and lunch I took a nap.  I set an alarm to go off before the sunset so I could get a picture of it.  The moon was rising too.  The sky can be beautiful. No...

Here are some happy things from today: They fed us at work today.  I looked at the work engagement calendar and it looks like we will get something on Thursday, too.  It was Chinese food today and I got some fried rice.   After work I had a message from Keziah about working on the boxes in the apartment.  I thought it sounded like a great idea, until I got home and was exhausted.  I think I fell asleep for a little bit, and she ended up running late, so I had a little bit of energy.  She has a friend that came and helped us too. We didn't have a lot of time and things were mostly just moved around.  Many things need to go to either DIY Craft & Thrift or the studio.  Most of the studio things are going to the storage unit for now.  We need to organize the studio again too.  I took some before and after pictures.  There is still a long way to go. Before After Before After Sunset!! ☮ Currently listening to: The Dawn of Everyth...

Happy things from today: Before I fell asleep last night I made a list of things to do today.  I'm happy to say that I did most of the things on that list today.  Yay, productivity! There was a side quest that I failed with today.  I found a gift certificate for Barnes & Noble.  I went to the store, determined to use the gift certificate, and didn't.  There were a few things I had in mind, and they weren't there.  This still makes my list of happy things because I tried, and because I didn't settle for something I didn't really want.  I'm trying to downsize, I did not just buy something and that is good.   Sunset! The house smelled like garlic tonight.  I made dinner.  Keziah and Zed were very happy to come home from working at the store to dinner already made for them. Before bed, I started to crochet something.  I want to make a little carrying case for the work radio.  I'm making the pattern up as I go along. Unfort...

Here are some happy things from today: It was a beautiful day.  I did something that I don't usually do, I drove with my window down.  My hair is very long and driving with the windows down generally means hair in my face which can make driving difficult.  Oddly enough, I didn't really feel the air come in.  I'm not sure if it had to do with the weather, the speed of the car, or some aerodynamic aspect of the car.  The air was still fresher than with them closed, and that was nice. After work I had some shopping to do and asked Keziah if she needed anything.  She asked for a broom for the store so I picked one up and brought it to her.  She gave me a big hug when I got there.  I was only able to visit for a few minutes because I had refrigerator items in the car from shopping.  It was nice to see her, and a few of the people that work at the store with her too. One of the refrigerator items was eggnog.  The food is one of the best parts ...

Thursdays are long.  Here are some happy things: At work, they hand out swag bucks for work accomplishments that might be above and beyond.  Some things that the swag bucks are used for are company marked t-shirts, travel mugs, or small electronics.  When the time comes that I take the Learning Ambassador position I will not be able to use my swag bucks.  I tried to use most of my swag bucks today on two high ticket items.  I now have a Kindle Fire (the small, seven inch one) and an Echo Pop.  Having the Echo Pop means I can buy some special light bulbs and ask Alexa to turn them on for me.  I already own a ten inch Fire.  This new one will either become a family calendar or will go with me hiking.  Anyway, I say that I tried to use the swag bucks because the Senior Station Manager handed me back at least half of what I gave him.  He basically said thanks for doing what you do, take this stuff.  I tried to protest this, but walked a...