All the Happy

List 30 things that make you happy.

I have a serious topic I want to write about, but I’m still pondering. So let’s have fun and list happy-making things off the top of my head!

One. Blogging. It’s such a nice outlet to share and connect with the world

Two. Shiny things. Must have been a crow in a past life.

My AI crow

Three. Doing my nails. It’s a weird hobby for a sorta neutral person, but I’ve stuck with it 50 years now.

Very pink polish that has faded badly.

Four. Watching the dogs playing.

Whee.

Five. Finding a new bird by sound or sight. Such fascinating creatures.

AI hummingbird

Six. Learning new horse skills. Especially with Apache, who enjoys it as much as I do.

Seven. Ice cream.

Ice cream by Gemini

Eight. Driving my car. It’s so comfortable and Zoom.

That’s my car after it drove to Arizona.

Nine. Hiking. Or walking on trails looking for interesting plants, birds, mammals, insects, etc.

I don’t even remember where this is

Ten. Knitting and Crochet. My hands love the familiar rhythms, and my eyes love the colors.

My finished cardigan. Granny Pop.

Eleven. Reading magazines. I like to have pictures to go with the words I’m reading. Plus I learn a lot from most of them, other than my guilty pleasure of People.

Looks like my cardigan. Actually I made this, too.

Twelve. Talking with friends (including Messenger). I get so happy just catching up, even when we discuss hard things. Of course, I’m awful at phone calls. So call me, Donita and Jan.

Thirteen. The way horses smell. So happy-making.

Smell my butt.

Fourteen. Sleeping in a new, clean bed. I think that’s why I enjoy traveling so much. Hotel and condo beds.

Condo bed in Colorado. I’ll be there soon.

Fifteen. Hearing positive political news. It’s so rare that I get giddy.

Sixteen. Babies. Even cranky ones. I miss them.

Me and a baby

Seventeen. Singing harmony. I don’t get to do it anymore, since my voice broke, but I lapse into it occasionally. It’s so intimate.

My friend Carolyn made this for me.

Eighteen. Rain. It rained this morning and I was very happy until Penney erupted in fear. But rain is so welcome here.

Some rain is too much.

Nineteen. The swimming pool. It’s hard not to be happy floating around or sitting with Lee watching the hummingbirds on the red yucca.

The only time we lit the fire.

Twenty. Mountains. They fascinate me, I guess because I have mostly lived in flat places. I love the waterfalls, rocks, and forests.

Twenty-one. Flowers. All of them. What a cool way to reproduce! I get a little thrill when I spot a flower.

That makes you happy! So I say!

Twenty-two. Helping someone. I get so happy when I can make things easier for someone or do a favor.

Twenty-three. Chickens running. Just thinking about Bertie Lee and Buttercup running up to greet me brings a smile to my face. I shall get more chickens next month.

Bianca in the run.

Twenty-four. Making cornbread oyster dressing. Reminds me there were good times in the past.

Dressing.

Twenty-five. Spending time with my son. He’s become such an interesting adult.

Twenty-six. Attending conferences. I like learning, meeting new people, connecting with friends, and hotel bars. It’s like going to college with no tests.

Twenty-seven. Riding in the motorhome with Lee. He loves driving and I love the scenery.

Last winter

Twenty-eight. The moment when you get to the apex of the hill on 190 and see all of Cameron spread out in the distance. You can see the courthouse. Especially at night I feel a rush of happiness. See, I don’t dislike Cameron, Texas.

Twenty-nine. Art Galleries and Museums. It’s amazing what beauty people can create.

Brookgreen Gardens gallery

Thirty. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, especially the Chorale. I cry every time I hear it.

Whew. That was hard.

Why Not Resolutionize?

Let’s admit this right off. I stole this idea from a very talented bogger, whose writing I really enjoy. Her blog also has a beautiful design, so check out this post on the Zowiezoe blog. Zoe (how come it’s so much easier to find an umlaut on the phone than on my dang keyboard?) shared how she has never been a fan of New Year’s resolutions, but decided after the weirdness of 2020, she’ll make lots and lots of them. She is going to revolutionize resolutions and resolutionize her life! You see, if you make so many that it’s hard to keep track of them, you’re bound to succeed at one or two!

Example of 2020’s effect on me. These are my “festive” holiday gifts for tomorrow. I bought exactly two gift containers, which are hiding.

I Can Resolutionize, Too

I decided that it would be a fun Christmas Eve activity to make some resolutions, myself. This also conveniently procrastinates from more closet organizing. I won’t have quite as many as Zoe did, but I did like her category ideas. Here goes.

WORK-O-LUTIONS

Planview

  • Be free with praise to productive coworkers
  • Contribute more to the LGBTQ+ group and make it the BEST
  • Remind myself that I enjoy organizing and writing, and have fun
  • Get a better desk location near a WINDOW
  • Find new ways to support and encourage my direct reports

Hearts, Homes and Hands

  • Write more frequent blog posts
  • Figure out what I can do to help without getting in the way
  • Support the team!

VOLUNTEER-WORK-O-LUTIONS

  • Find more ways to help with MTOL; I’ve been a sucky Board member
  • Keep the spirits up with the Master Naturalists as we can’t DO much right now
  • Keep my mojo going on the Friends of LLL newsletter, even though hardly anyone gets it because we have so few members

CRAFT-O-LUTIONS

  • Crochet a cardigan
  • Crochet an afghan
  • Knit Lee’s table runner for his office
  • Knit anything a family member requests (within reason)
  • Try some new (dog-friendly) things
  • Use my stash as much as possible
  • Organize the craft room in each house (ha ha ha ha ha)

SOCIAL-O-LUTIONS

  • Talk to kids more
  • Find ways to talk to more friends (and see them, eventually)
  • Be a better conversationalist, even when tired
  • Conversely, stay out of conversations where my contribution would not be helpful
  • Participate more in online groups (I tend to lurk)
  • Blog every day, for my own fun, not statistics
  • Comment on people’s blogs and encourage them
  • Quit trying so hard to be nice to people who aren’t nice to me

HEALTH-O-LUTIONS

  • Get that annoying post-nasal drip looked at
  • Go to a dermatologist
  • Get new glasses/prescription
  • Keep walking as much as or more than now
  • CBD Oil. Lots of it.
  • Don’t stop my therapy just because I only have one big issue

RANCH-O-LUTIONS

  • Ride the damn horse or get another horse that has good feet and just enjoy Apache
  • Get more chickens and keep them SAFE
  • Help however I can to get a tack room and fencing for horses on our property
  • Contribute to beautifying the outside
  • Get rid of ugly stuff in the house, like dead plants
  • Replace the nature tree with a new one

Geez, that should be enough. I hope I get some of this done. But, at the least, Lee will be happy that I now have GOALS and priorities and lists! He loves those, more than anything, I think.

Lee, writing in his journal of lists, goals, goal analysis and goal tracking. He’s amazing at it.

Maybe I’m becoming a better person, right? Some of this will help, or, at least I’ll have fun trying!

So, are you ready for the resolution revolution? Let’s ALL resolutionize!