Thankful Thursday, Hard week edition

 This has been a rough week to be honest. Something is up with Luna and she doesn't want to walk or really go outside, so we are headed to the vet tomorrow. I have a proposal due at work next week, so this week has been full of meetings. I haven't been able to see mom in over a week because of busy-ness like work and taxes. Someone I know just entered hospice and another friend might be saying goodbye to a beloved pet. And its April 16th, and the memories of the Virginia Tech tragedy linger, with the addition of the terrible news of the former lieutenant governor of Virginia killing his wife and then himself late last night. Its a lot. 

In the midst of all this, there are still things to be grateful for, and I do try to look for them even when I'm sad and overwhelmed.

• - My azaleas are blooming spectacularly, a blaze of color in my yard.
• - It's been really warm the last few days and I had a lovely evening reading in my hammock tonight
• - I think I really like Terry Pratchett. Mort is the first book I've read in Disc World, and I'm excited that there are so many others to read. 
• - I got to volunteer at an indy bookstore in Annapolis last Saturday, helping them sort and shelve books for several hours. 
• - I had a really fun evening with Garth and Karen and Kate and Garth's friends on Friday night celebrating his birthday. I think we stayed at that whiskey bar for 5 hours lol
• - I got some short hikes in with Luna on Friday and Sunday. I hope I didn't injure her in the process, but at the time we both enjoyed the warm but not hot weather that was perfect for hiking.

Thankful Thursday, Weird Week Edition

 This has honestly kind of been a weird week for me. It's had some great highs and some low lows. In some ways, it was really hard to think of things I was grateful for on Tuesday, when I was so worried we might bomb Iran again. But honestly, remembering that I have so much to be thankful for helps when I'm feeling low, maybe even more than when I'm just having an ordinary day or a great day. 

So this week I'm thankful for:

1. Old friends. On Friday I went birding with Kate and we talked for like 6 hours. On Saturday I saw my friend Andrea from college and we also talked for about 4 hours. Then I had dinner with Babs... and talked for 2 hours. I've known all 3 of these women for over 20 years and its just so fun to hang out, talk about our lives and randomness, laugh, and just be. I really hadn't seen Andrea in at least 8-9 years (we were trying to figure that out), so meeting up in Harrisburg was great. Rats for forgetting to take photos!

2. My favorite bookstore, Midtown Scholar in Harrisburg. On one hand, its a bummer my favorite bookstore is 2 hours away. On the other hand, it's probably a good thing because I'd be there weekly buying way to many books if I was local. It's got new and used books, a huge history section, and this cool underground part that goes on forever of rare books. 

3. Birds! Spring migration has started, and Kate and I walked several miles around Huntley Meadows looking for birds. We found what we think was a Coopers Hawk in a nest, red-headed woodpeckers, and tried our hand at identifying lots of sparrows.

4. Easter! Easter service at our church was such a wonderful celebration. We had a full house, great music, and dang, can Joshua preach. 

5. Girl Scout Cookies. I was silly and gave up sweets for lent, so I've been enjoying my stash of girl scout cookies this week. 

6. Conversations with mom. Alzheimers is a tricky thing, but on Friday mom was in a good mood and we actually chatted about a few things. I think she was following the conversation pretty well as I tried to reminisce about things she might still remember (but not too many things or I'd confuse her). We laughed a lot, and that was wonderful. I miss being able to talk to her about things, and this was a lovely small dose of her that's still in there.  

Thankful Thursday, Holy Week Edition

 This week I'm thankful for:

1. My hammock. I got my first 'lay in my hammock and read in the sun' day of the year this week and it was glorious. 

2. A moving Maundy Thursday service at church tonight.

3. Board games with Karen, Garth and Kate on Sunday. 

4. I learned a new board game called 'Age of Comics' and it was very fun.

5. I've gotten more stuff out of my house! Trips to the recycling center, used bookstore, Goodwill, Interfaith clothing, paper shredding and police station (expired meds) all happened this week. 

6. A big AC unit for my not so big house. I finally gave up and turned the AC on this week when it was 76 in my house; it was 85 outside on Tuesday! 

7. I've made an appointment with an allergist. Stay tuned to see how many dozens of things I'm allergic to lol.