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| Tuesday, February 9, 2010 |
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Try a little thankfulness
Published November 24, 2009
When I was a kidlet, I participated in all sorts of school-supported Thanksgiving activities like speculating on how one actually cooks a turkey, making Pilgrim papers dolls and using my hand as a template for construction-paper-cutout gobblers.
I’m 23 years old now. I can’t say I do much playing with dolls, and my hands are too big to make cute paper turkeys with. Also, I don’t have to guess what type of crazy things (marshmallows, sand, unicorn kisses, etc.) go into cooking a turkey because I actually know how to cook a bird (and, for that matter, other holiday foods covered with waves of Thanksgiving Day deliciousness).
I’m sure you know where I’m going with this. C’mon, it’s not a hard connection to make, but if you guessed I’d be writing about how dogs disturb the sanctity of my house or about how I want to start a book club, you’d be wrong (Just wait a few weeks and guess again—I’m sure those topics are coming around the mountain).
Anyway, I digress.
One tradition anyone can do every year around this time is write out a list of things they’re thankful for. That’s precisely what I’ve decided to do this week.
The Internet — I may repel most forms of modern technology, but I need and love it. Google was my best pal when I worked at the Foy Student Union phone desk at Auburn University, and we’ve been tight ever since.
What would I do without knowing which people I went to high school with are getting married and becoming parent through Facebook. How could I get out all my snarky comments out without letting all my followers know what I’m doing (in 140 characters or less, of course).
So I suppose I’m really more thankful for social networking Web sites, but I wanted to give a shout out to my boy Al Gore, since, allegedly, the whole cockamamie Internet idea was his.
Friends — In my 23 years on this planet, I’ve managed to surround myself with some pretty excellent human beings whom I consider my closest friends. I’ve been through a lot with all of them, just as they have with me. This year was great to me on the friendship front: I reconnected with a friend I’d thought I lost, I got to be part of the most special days of my best friend’s life and I developed a close friendship with someone I’ll probably be friends with for the rest of my life. What more could anyone ask for?
Family — They make me want-to-pull-my-hair-out crazy sometimes, but I love them. That’s all I can really say — For better or worse, my family is my family, and I love them. (P.S. I probably drive them a little crazy too.)
Nora Ephron — Everything I’ve needed to know about love, I learned from a Nora Ephron screen play. If you know anything about my love life, that would probably explain a lot. Without N.E., I would not have my No. 1 most hated movie ( “You've Got Mail”), and the world would have missed out on Cher playing a lesbian factory worker in “Silkwood.” She’s also the screenwriter behind “When Harry Met Sally ...,” “Sleepless in Seattle,” and “Hanging Up.” Judging by that list of movies, Nora should be on both Meg Ryan and the Lifetime network’s thankful-for lists.
The First Amendment — Good ol’ number one. The passage in our country’s constitution gives everyone freedom of speech, press, petition, religion (in both establishment and exercise) and assembly. The First Amendment gives you and me the right to go to church where we choose on Sunday, it gives people the right to meet for local government meetings, and it gives me the right to do my job, which leads me to ...
My career — I don’t love my job all day, every day, and I don’t think anyone genuinely does. However, I do enjoy what I do for a living every day. Anyone is lucky to have a steady job in this economy, but I found a career that I love — one I think I’m pretty good at — and that makes me very fortunate. I hope it always stays that way.
Coffee — This one feels especially pertinent today. You see, I’ve been having a sort of Mexican-style standoff with the Sandman, and he’s winning. If coffee came in an IV drip, I’d always have a hanging bag of Folgers. If it was possible to procreate with a Mr. Coffee and have little Juan Valdez-esque babies, I probably would have done it by now.
On a side note, I’m also thankful for my Oy Vey! coffee mug to drink said caffeinated gold. I don’t know why, but the coffee just tastes better out of it.
Life — According to a resource I gave thanks for a little earlier, more than 250,000 people die every day. The fact that anyone makes it from day to day is a crazy happening, and that is enough to be grateful for.
So there you have it — a short list of the things I’m thankful for this year.
Now the only question is, what are you thankful for?
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