Some Things That Make Me Happy

I know I have been talking about a lot of sad topics lately and I am sorry to sound like such a negative and depressed person. I really am not simply a body filled with gloom and doom. Going to write about a happier topic today. I will call it things that are making me happy in my life. We already know some about what is making me sad, so going to talk about the good things, since life is filled with good and bad things. Here is my list of things that make me happy:

* School, even though it sometimes stresses me out.
* Work, most of the time my job is decent.
* My husband, he listens to what I have to say at my worst. I can barely even do that for myself.
* My fitness pals, you know who you are. I would not be half as motivated to be the best that I can be without all of you.
* My few close friends that I have, I know I often push myself away but I do care about all of you.
* My family, you all drive me insane sometimes but I love you all anyways.
* God, my faith in a higher power sometimes helps me through the hard things in life. Without God, I would never be able to see any of the good hidden underneath the bad and sad things in my life.
* Being able to write, it allows me an outlet that I need in my life. Being a fairly introverted person, I am reluctant to share my thoughts with many people in my life.
* Regular exercise, especially running. Helps me keep some of the depression away as does writing. Hope it keeps working, I never want to be on antidepressants again.

That is the major stuff that keep me going throughout the tumultuous, busy storm that is my life. Despite feeling like I am talking to a brick wall sometimes, I keep plugging away and writing here in hopes that someone enjoys what I have to say. This writing I am doing is therapeutic for me these days. Thank you all for reading and I look forward to keeping up this frequent posting that I am doing. Feels great to write more frequently and to cultivate my writing abilities.

My Blessings This Holiday Season

Here are some things I am thankful for and am glad to have this holiday season:

* That even after everything that has happened in my life up to this point, I still have my faith in God. While I am not that religious and am a very liberal Christian, I still believe in God and I go to church regularly.
* A warm house to go home to at night.
* Plenty of food and drink to sustain me, the cats, and my husband.
* A full time job with benefits (so many are unemployed these days)
* A second chance to earn my college degree.
* A high GPA in school this time around (I earned a 4.0 this past term for my courses)
* My husband, I don't know how he puts up with me sometimes. I love him for being able to handle me and love me even at my worst.
* My cats, they are like our children. One of my cats even has his birthday coming up right after Christmas.
* Family, even though they often drive me crazy and often are full of drama.
* Friends, I do have a few true friends that I really care about. They are there for me as much as if not more than some of my family.
* Car to get groceries and go places. For a few years I did not have a car and used public transportation or rides to get everywhere. So glad those days are over and now my husband drives him and myself where we need to go. Still use public transportation around the city for work commuting and such, but I am good with that. So grateful to not have to buy groceries and lug them on the bus anymore or on foot. That was such a pain.

I think that about sums up the truly important things in my life. They do not rank in any particular order, but they remind me that my life is good. Often I get too wrapped up in what is wrong with my life and forget about what is good in my life. This is what matters to me this holiday season. For me the Christmas season is about more than presents.Christmas is about remembering those in need, about spending time with loved ones, and showing them that we care about them and love them. I also remember Jesus's birth and remember things from a religious standpoint. While I know many don't celebrate that way, for me as a Christian this is important to me.

Now I am wondering what is important to all of you this holiday season? Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, or Yule, I want my readers to comment and tell me what matters to them this holiday season. Happy Holiday's, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanza, and Merry Yule to you all, whichever of these you may celebrate.

Gratitudes A to Z (and a Special mention to a Blogger)

Note: This post is inspired by Shar who writes at this blog below:

http://sharmartinez.blogspot.com/

She has done some gratitude posts about her daily life which have inspired me to stop and think about everything I have in my life. Thank you Shar for making me stop and think about the good things in my life. So often it is easy to focus on the negative even when so many positive things are already in your life. I encourage you all to check out her awesome blog. My personal gratitudes of my current life are listed below:

Gratitudes (Things I am Thankful For in My Life):

Air to breathe and feel as I walk and run around outside.
Best friend who understands me and listens when I speak.
Computer for writing, do schoolwork, and so much more.
Drexel, the university which I attend and work at most days.
Earnings from my job which pay the bills and so much more.
Food to feed me physically and in so many other ways.
God to guide me and teach me how to be a better person.
Housing to keep me dry and protect me from the elements.
Iced coffee to keep me energized and for me to enjoy regularly.
Jeans that cover my bottom and make me feel good about me.
Kitties to keep me company even when I am home alone.
Love from others around me to keep me from feeling lonely.
Mother, who gave birth to me and raised me and my brother.
Niece and nephew who remind me how precious children are.
Organized shelves and closets. I like being able to find things.
Phone to keep me connected to those I love who are far away.
Quartz and other jewelry, especially earrings. Makes me feel pretty.
Rock music, I love the pounding beat, screams, and singing bands do.
Singing, it is a vocal medium which I can express myself through.
Television, it entertains me and helps me relax before I go to sleep.
Umbrellas to keep the rain from ruining my hair and wetting me.
Vibrant flowers which cheer me up when I see them outside lately.
Water to cleanse me from the dirt and quench my thirst each day.
X-rays and other medical equipment which check our health.
You all here, I love reading the comments people make on my blogs.
Zippers, which keep pants from showing too much to the world.

There are so many more things I love about life, this is just a snapshot of the things from A to Z that excite me about life at this point.