gratitude ulysses style

I'm thankful that Nell will be home in a few hours and is staying until Sunday I'm thankful that MadMax is out of school today and keeping me company I'm thankful that even though Dean is working tomorrow he will be home in time for dinner and even if an emergency keeps him away he is doing good work and providing food for our table and a roof over our heads I'm thankful for the bits of snow that are still hanging around but also thankful that we had some rain that washed most of it away because dang it is depressing to have snow continuously from mid-November until March intermittent snow is better I'm thankful that the test I took yesterday is over and wasn't as bad as I was expecting and my prospectus was e-mailed this morning and although I have to study this weekend I have no deadlines for three more weeks I'm thankful for my mom and my sisters and their families and that I will talk to them sometime this weekend and I'm so grateful for the lessons I've learned from my dad's passing even though I'm sometimes sad that he is gone and I'm grateful for his second wife and her strength and laughter I'm so so thankful we were able to spend a week in the Czech Republic and Germany and that Nell was able to be there for three months and I'm thankful that the cat is sleeping behind me and making small happy noises in her sleep and that the glucosamine supplements we've been giving the dog seem to be helping her with her arthritis so that she doesn't cry anymore when she's coming down the stairs in the morning and I'm happy that our neighbors asked us to take care of their dogs while they are gone so that we have motivation to go out for walks this weekend even though the weather is gray and cold but not snowing and I'm so so so thankful that I don't have to go shopping on Friday and that I can stay home and build a fire in the fireplace and read a book until I feel guilty about not studying and I'm thankful for apple pie and cranberry relish and grape salad and mashed potatoes and gravy and pumpkin pie and stuffing and sparkling cider and chocolate pecan pie and turkey even though it's not my favorite part of the meal and sweet potatoes and cherry pie and the relish tray and green beans which I secretly wish I could still have in the good old cream soup casserole but must fix more elegantly since we are eating with foodie friends and walnut cranberry pie and teeccino and hot chocolate and I'm grateful that there are four different kids movies that we could go see this weekend even though MadMax thinks he is too old for kid movies and I may have to bribe him to go with me and I'm thankful that we are closing on the sale of our house on Friday afternoon and on the purchase of the new one on Monday at noon so that we can get started on the renovations and so Dean can quit worrying that the deal is going to fall through and I'm so grateful that even though I was the only one that wanted to move when we first started down this path two years ago that we found a place that Dean and MadMax are actually more excited about than I am and we are all happy that this is happening and I'm grateful that Nell will get to see it this weekend since the whole thing happened so fast that she still hasn't been there and I'm thankful that there are more episodes of Big Bang Theory and Nigella and Mythbusters to watch this weekend and that it is plenty warm in our house and I'm grateful for our church and our pastor and his wife and kids and our new associate pastor and her husband who just moved here from a town about 30 miles from where I graduated from high school and I'm thankful that I live in the United States even though I'm worried sick about us right now and I'm thankful that we live in a country where the two main parties can disagree so fiercely that they can't even negotiate an agreement under pressure but no one feels strongly enough to call in a suicide bomber or to pull out a gun and solve the problem with violence and that's something even though maybe not much and I'm thankful that the Republican debates have been so depressing because it's the only chance we have that our lackluster president will get re-elected and I'm thankful that I get to drive through some of the most beautiful scenery in the country twice a week on a commute that I let people think is draining and boring although sometimes it really is and I'm thankful that at the age of 50 I can still beat my brain into learning new things although it sure as hell is harder than it used to be and I'm grateful for my three professors this semester who have been interesting and inspiring and dedicated worthwhile human beings and I'm grateful for my blog friends that check in here and who share their lives with me in their blogs and I'm grateful that there are writers in the world who go through the ordeal of producing books that I can't wait to read and I'm grateful that I have a car that is mostly reliable although now that I've said that I should knock on wood and I'm thankful that our furnace works and that in spite of the occasional headache I'm pretty healthy for a dang 50-year-old and I'm not even going to mention my loved ones' health because I don't want to risk and I'm thankful that I have friends to meet with for coffee and that AC will still be around for a few more years of coffee dates and maybe for a very long time and did I mention pie?