Putney

Amsterdam

Wealth & good fortune

Do rich people think they are rich? Maybe they own a lot, but isn't there always someone with more, more, more, more, etc ad nauseam?

I've come to the conclusion that we are quite wealthy. This planet has such astonishing poverty, that declaration seems kind of obvious. But, even taking it to a micro level & considering the small number of people we regularly interact with, we're pretty lucky.

There are no children tapping us out & our home/cars are mostly paid off. There are expenses, bills, debts owed. But none of it feels like it's sucking the goodness out of life.

Don't get me wrong, we're not running out to buy the newest model of anything. We have to work & are terrible about saving/investing. Probably our dotage will be spent in a highway underpass.

In the here & now, we get to eat good food, go interesting places, spend time taking care of ourselves and each other. When our teeth hurt, they can be fixed. When it's cold out in the world, we can hibernate in our warm home. When someone we care about needs us, we can be there.

It's hard to come up with much more we seriously want, let alone need. Yes, there are things we would change (bathroom sinks), items we will buy (damn you Amazon for making that so easy) and desires which will also remain unfulfilled (just in case anyone's looking to give away a reliable new pickup which gets good mileage & has a bench seat for the dog to sprawl out on).

Seriously though, we are so unburdened and have been given so many opportunities to really have interesting friends. If life were over tomorrow, no one could say we didn't get our fair share of happiness.

Peering thru windows

Looking at our snowflakes & found a terrifying monster. The abominal snowdog! You can only see it w the flash. Terrifying!

Insects Await

Mr doesn't even eat lobsta, but he loves the rest of us enough to purchase & murder the little fellows. Cheers to you my good man!

The mundane and the extraordinary

Yes, It is that time of the year again when everyone is so, very grateful. On Sundays, after the pastor has prodded his paritioners into recognizance of their great fortunes, it is particularly nauseating.

There are things which (when we remember) are invaluable all the time. The fact that we have food, love, warm nests, all of that. Great! Glad we are making a point of appreciating these things as a society all together like - in addition to our own daily gratitude.

We need reminding that it's getting cold out there and people less fortunate could use more hot meals. How lucky that we can have a bit extra to send as somewhere on an island far, far away, people have been blown out of their homes. There's a whole world of hurt out there and I, at least, am spoiled rotten.

Still, is there anything more vile than when Mrs Do-goody wants all her friends to know that she is ever so "thankful" for her daughters good report card and her husbands bonus (coming just in time to reward formerly mentioned offspring with a special gift from Santa).

I am not above this kind of thing, and sometimes (when I reflect for 10 seconds) I see it in my own words. Perhaps it is this realization that makes me cringe when other folks post this stuff.

Anyhow, I'm gonna use some of this spare time to go dwell on self-improvement methods. Surely YouTube has some video to help me fix my short fuse? After all, they did teach me to train the dog to not hate the treadmill.

Sweet dreams are made of these

Do I sleep with my tongue sticking out?

Guessing it leads to dreams about finding something to drink.

Its ok Neek, we'll get you something pronto! Anyone know how to make a dog martini?