A Somber Snow Day

One would be inclinded to believe the first snow day of the season would be quite romantic and elegant. But this is not always the case. Yes, I was lucky enough to have my electricity today (unlike my mom/dad, aunt/uncle, and cousin's family). However, I woke up this morning, to yes, a foot of snow, and a gorgeous, my favorite, tree, split right down the middle, spilling out in every direction. My neighbor's yard and driveway... covered by the great tree outside my bedroom window, that keeps my room secluded from the outside world... and in my yard, and even worse, on my roof. I am very, very fortunate to have a great dad in town, and he came and helped saw that tree with a 14 in. chainsaw out of my neighbor's way (thank god it missed her car) and off of my roof (thank god it missed my bedroom window and didn't bust through that onto my bed). Now I have, yes, still, a split tree in my front yard, plus a HUGE pile of branches. I thought that tree was small, but it looks big now, all down at ground level. Why didn't it shed its leaves? They said on the news that this snow was very dense and heavy... mix that with a tree that forget to loose its leaves in time for this early winter storm... and you have a very, very, expensive and tragic, problem outside your front door... for all the neighbors to drive by slowly and gaze at with disbelief. -em

Gratitude

Being thankful is a blessing. While I stress and fret over my daily tasks, I need to remember the fortunate outcomes at the end of the day. So... here are some of the things I find myself thankful for: my cup of cocoa at the end of the day, Ja getting the groceries and cooking dinner for me every night, when my clients are doing good at the exercise routines and have seen progress, when my boss shows me she appreciates my work... I'm thankful and grateful for all my jobs- while they keep me busy and exhausted at the end of the day and the beginning of a new one, I enjoy what I do at the time. I love my house, despite all the work I keep focusing on that I think needs to be done... I will work on this. I am grateful for my family being near and for having my cat, who loves me tremendously and can't seem to show me enough... so much I almost (but just almost) feel smothered by her at times. I am very lucky to have good, long-lasting friends, while they may be far away from me. I would not be able to do this if I did not know they were there for me, regardless of where they may live. And I'm very fortunate and thankful to have found an incredible young man to spend the rest of my life with... and thankful he will be there to help me through those times when I forget to count my blessings. I also am grateful for the holidays and can't wait to decorate the home!! -em