Five things that made me happy today – 6/30/22

Hope is some extraordinary spiritual grace that God gives us to control our fears, not to oust them.

Vincent McNabb

1. The weather this morning was cool and sunny – 57 deg. when I woke up.

2. I spent most of the morning updating my Intentions for June. You can read it here.

3. I wasn’t able to order my new glasses yesterday. The Optical Shop was closed by the time we finished with our appointments. This morning I drove down there and ordered a pair that will fit my face better, and will work well as sunglasses and readers, with my new post-cataract vision.

4. We had bratwurst, cucumber salad and boiled potato for lunch today.

5. I’m having internet problems, but I’m happy that son #2 is on it and hopefully being able to fix something.

How about you? What made you happy today?

Intentions Review for June 2022

My Star Word for this year is Solitude. I’m taking it as an affirmation that my introverted tendencies are just fine.

“We are human beings, not human doings:”. I set these intentions for who I want to BE not what I want to DO. As with last year I will hold these intentions loosely, and may add new ones or subtract some of these as the spirit moves me.

NOTE: *indicates intention added in June

1. Traveler – partially completed
   1. Train Trip to Upstate New York
      1. Summer of 2022
      2. Cost
      3. Start saving now
   2. Northern Washington with Bill
      1. Because of the weather and traffic, we opted to visit Port Townsend instead of Leavenworth. We got pictures of the sound, the mountains, the shore, etc.
      2. Cost – lunch for two
   3. Whale Watching with Al
      1. Early Fall
      2. Cost – minimal
2. Content
   1. Habits to keep
      1. Exercise 1 hour a day 5-6 days a week (see 3-C)
      2. Eat healthy food (see 3-C)
      3. Stick to regular schedule of noon meals – check
         1. Sunday – eat out
         2. Monday and Friday – meat, starch, fresh vegetable
         3. Tuesday – feed yourself (sandwich, salad, pre-frozen pasta)
         4. Wednesday – soup of the week, or salad
         5. Thursday – pickup Fast Food
         6. Saturday – finish off leftovers
   1. Habits to change
      1. Focus on how I feel when I’m exercising and eating right and try to ignore the numbers – Check
      2. Really listen to Al instead of thinking I know what he’s going to say – It’s a work in progress
3. Healthy
   1. Both cataracts are done. I’ll be getting new glasses in July (prescription written in June)
   2. I’m double vaccinated and double boosted, and so are all my family.
   3. *My new Primary Care Physician gave me a new prescription for healthy living
      1. 5 or more fruits and vegetables daily
      2. 1 hour or more of physical activity daily
      3. 2 1/2 hrs of aerobic activity a week
      4. 2 days of strength building activity a week
      5. 0 soda & sugary drinks – more water
   4. *Lose 2 lbs a month before my 80th birthday (will complete the goal I set in 2014).
      1. June 2022 – 3 lbs
4. Learner
   1. Great Decisions – first Wednesday of every month
      1. Changing Demographics – Interesting, but nothing earthshaking
      2. Outer Space – interesting perspective from others in the class
      3. Climate Change – I led the discussion and everyone seemed to enjoy the conversation
      4. Putin’s Russia – interesting history, but mostly overcome by events and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
      5. Myanmar and Asean
      6. Quad Alliance
      7. Drug Policy in Latin America
      8. Industrial Policy
      9. Biden’s Agenda
   2. MasterClass – I didn’t renew my membership. It felt like I wasn’t using it enough to make it worthwhile.
   3. Read at least 24 books this year
      1. Finish the Inspector Lynley series
         1. In the Presence of the Enemy – Elizabeth George – finished
         2. Deception on his Mind – Elizabeth George – finished
         3. In Pursuit of the Proper Sinner – Elizabeth George – finished
         4. The Sacred Bridge – Anne Hilllerman – finished
         5. A Traitor to Memory – Elizabeth George – finished
         6. A Place of Hiding – Elizabeth George – reading
5. Writer
   1. 5 Things that Made Me Happy Today – I’m definitely keeping up with this.
   2. Stories from my Life
      1. Publish a story at least twice a week – current events have sidelined me often this month
      2. Okay to use and/or expand other things I’ve written
6. Friend – Remember the only person I can change is me.
   1. Accepting Mindset
      1. Try to give other people the benefit of the doubt
      2. Ask questions instead of jumping to conclusions
   2. Introverted actions to take
      1. Send a kind message to distant friends at least once a month – done
      2. Keep up with friends on Facebook – done
      3. Send an email or text message to people who do nice things for me or for other people – done, but not as many as I should.

Five things that made me happy today – 6/29/22

I had not loved enough. I’d been busy, busy, so busy, preparing for life, while life floated by me, quiet and swift as a regatta.

LORENE CARY

1. Only 56 deg when I got up and the marine layer in full effect. The sun came out about noon and the temperature got into the mid 60s.

2. Exercised early, particularly since I didn’t do anything but sit in my chair and stare at screens (TV, iPad, iPhone) all day yesterday – glued to the Jan 6 hearings, HCR’s Politics Chat, Greisser Girls Gab, and MSNBC’s analysis of the hearings.

3. I had a cracked filling replaced in one of my molars this morning. Not fun, but I’m happy I’ve gotten it over with.

4. Cottage cheese and a tomato for lunch (being careful not to chew my lip since it was still numb from the filling.) Big Al had some of his noodles. More cantaloupe for supper, garnished with more cottage cheese. After blueberries on my cereal and grapefruit for breakfast – that made five fruits and vegetables today.

5. Trip to the ophthalmologist to get fitted for new glasses (HOORAY) that fit and work for far seeing and reading with my new after-cataract-surgery eyes. I think that polishes off all the medical/dental stuff that’s been hanging over me this spring.

How about you? What made you happy today?

Five things that made me happy today – 6/28/22

Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.

Henry Nouwen

1. The on-shore flow came through overnight with MUCH cooler temperatures and cloudy skies – 59 deg. when I got up this morning. High this afternoon was 64 – a BIG change from the last three days.

2. I skipped Bible study this morning to watch the January 6th newly scheduled hearing. I’m still flabbergasted about the mental picture of the ex-President wrestling with the driver in his motorcade because he wanted to go to the Capital, and the Secret Service refused to take him there.

Cassidy Hutchinson, former aide to Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, is sworn in to testify as the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol holds a hearing at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, June 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool)

3. Al had his intake appointment with his new Primary Care Physician this morning. He’s fine – pending his bloodwork that he had drawn. He picked up lunch at McDonald’s on his way home.

4. We traded Thursday for Tuesday for lunch today. I had a Deluxe Crispy Chicken Sandwich and Al had a Big Mac and fries. Grapefruit this morning, lettuce, tomato, and onion on the sandwich, cottage cheese stuffed in a tomato for supper, and a cup of cantaloupe pieces (counts as two) makes five fruits and vegetables for the day.

5. Greisser Girls Gab this afternoon. Lots to talk about.

How about you? What made you happy today?

Five things that made me happy today – 6/27/22

The very least you can do in your life is figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof. 

Barbara Kingsolver

1. The heat continues – it was in the mid 60s when I got up this morning. I had to close up the house about 3:00 pm because it was 90 deg. outside and the A/C came on. “They say” we shouldn’t have to worry about heat tomorrow as the on-shore flow will be back – “Nature’s Air Conditioner”.

2. I got the NYT crossword puzzle correct with no hints or help! Hooray!

3. Laundry day – The clothes are all washed, dried, sorted, delivered, folded, and hung up.

4. Lunch was pork chops, cinnamon applesauce, and asparagus. I also gave Al a boiled potato to round out his dinner. I had a sliced tomato for supper – that, with the grapefruit and blueberries from breakfast gave me my five vegetables and fruits for the day.

5. Gazebo Group this evening. Thank goodness for the breeze that always comes up as the sun is disappearing behind the trees.

How about you? What made you happy today?

Five things that made me happy today – 6/26/22

We realize the importance of our voices only when we are silenced

MALALA YOUSAFZAI

1. Pretty day this morning. Blue skies, light breeze, temperatures in the mid 60s early. By the time we got back to the house from lunch, the temperature was in the upper 80s, but there was a nice breeze. I closed all the shades on the sunny side of the house, and it stayed pretty nice all day. The A/C came on about the time I went to bed, cooling the house off from 80 deg. down to 73.

2. Bethany had church service at Camp Soundview this morning. I’m too unsteady on my feet to deal with the paths and hills out there, so I skipped the service. They will post it on YouTube later, and I’ll catch it then. I would have loved to have gone. Maybe my balance will have improved by next summer.

3. I finished up an order at Safeway and we picked it up on the way home from lunch. Fewer trips…

4. We went to Boathouse 19 for lunch. I had steamers and clam chowder, and Big Al had a hamburger with fries. I’ll have a sliced tomato, a peach, celery stuffed with cheez whiz and some blueberries for supper. With the grapefruit I had for breakfast, that ought to get me to my 5 fruits and vegetables for the day.

5. Finally got some paperwork finished that FTJ had asked for at the first of the month. Not hard, just fidgety.

How about you? What made you happy today?

Five things that made me happy today – 6/25/22

Things often seem way worse when we are at the bottom of a crisis.

darius foroux

1. Still good sleeping weather – 61 deg. when I got up. The sun was out all day, with a decent breeze, and the temperature got up to the mid 80s.

2. I spent quite a while this morning obsessively scrolling through Facebook looking at all the outrage. It didn’t help anything, but it did make me feel not so alone.

3. I went over to the Wellness Center shortly before noon, and got all my steps for the day.

4. Lunch was salad with boiled shrimp, and tomatoes, topped off with leftover potato salad from yesterday, and some more cucumbers and onions in vinegar.

5. I tried a couple of times to write a story, but the only thing I could manage to write was outrage upon outrage. Sorry. I know she must be whirling in her grave…

How about you? What made you happy today?

Five things that made me happy today – 6/24/22

Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you. 

ruth bader ginsburg

1. Good sleeping weather last night – low 50s this morning when I got up. The sun has been out all day, and it got up to the mid 70s this afternoon.

2. Went to Trader Joe’s right after breakfast to get potato, tomato, head of lettuce, and peaches. That should get us through Sunday for dinners. (Big Al wonders why I’m so focussed on making menus.)

3. Mama and Papa were married 79 years ago today. They were married in 1943 during WWII. They celebrated 50 years together in 1993, then Mama died in 1997, and Papa died in 2008. I remember sitting in church with Papa on June 24th in about 2004 or 2005, and he wrote me a note on his bulletin under the date. “Mama’s and my anniversary.”

4. Barbecue chicken, Mama’s potato salad, tomato, and German cucumber salad for lunch today.

5. Having a hard time being “happy” today. The Supremes have destroyed my last hope for democracy.

How about you? What made you happy today?

Five things that made me happy today – 6/23/22

When you decide to do something you believe to be right, don’t let others stop you, even if a majority of people disapprove of it. If it is the wrong thing to do, you should not do it in the first place. But if it is the right thing, then why care about what others think? 

Epictetus

1. Still cool – low 50s – with blue skies and puffy white clouds. 69 deg. with a light breeze and more blue skies this afternoon.

2. I got my morning chores done quickly. Went over to the Wellness Center to do the NuStep and watch HCR do her History Chat talking about the Declaration of Independence. She even slipped in a few barbs at the current situation in congress. Most of my steps for the day are in the books.

3. The 5th installment of the January 6th Committee was at noon Pacific Time. I took my seat in front of the TV and watched the whole thing. I keep thinking we’re bound to know whatever there is to know by now, if we’ve been paying attention, but, no, they dropped a name I had never heard of before – Ken Klukowski. Turns out he was a Federalist lawyer who helped write the letter to Georgia that nobody from the Justice Department would sign.

4. Big Al had a couple of errands to do (get his hearing aids adjusted, etc.) and he picked up lunch on the way home. McDonald’s Crispy Chicken Sandwich (no fries) for me and a Big Mac with fries and a Diet Coke for him.

5. I finally got the extra glass panes in the screen doors (front and back) adjusted. They are storm doors in the cold weather, and half screen/half glass in the summer.

How about you? What made you happy today?

Five things that made me happy today – 6/22/22

There is something to being chosen that is uniquely healing.

Cole Arthur Riley

1. The marine layer is back, cool and damp – 60 deg. when I got up. Scattered clouds and 68 deg. later in the afternoon. I could get used to this.

2. My primary care physician changed locations, so I met with my new PCP this morning. All is well – come back in 6 months.

3. I had to get blood drawn for a blood test and the lab with the doctor’s office was overflowing with people waiting. So I just got in the car and stopped at the Urgent Care lab in my neighborhood. I love having “connected” health care.

4. Tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch today. I got so used to the warm (75 deg.) weather yesterday, that today’s cool and damp felt a little cold.

5. Meeting and evaluation with my new personal trainer. Colin is a tough task master so I’m going to get fit or die in the attempt! I’ll be splitting training sessions with Sarah and Colin for a while.

How about you? What made you happy today?