Thursday Thirteen #147

THIRTEEN THINGS
I'M THANKFUL FOR

1) I don't have cancer. Every day I remind myself to be grateful that both biopsies taken on 9/9 came back benign.

2) My cat, Charlotte, is fine. Unbeknownst to her, she had her own cancer scare this year. The vet warned me the lump on her tongue could be malignant. Thankfully it was just allergies!

3) Time with my mom. When I think of her, I think of the Beatles song, "Two of Us." You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches on ahead .... I realize that because of her age, our time together is short, and it makes me appreciate it more.

4) Shared history with friends. My oldest friend and I have known one another more than 45 years. I'm still in regular contact with a group of buddies I met in 1981. I have known Barb and Kathleen since 1995. The newbie of my circle, my best friend, has been around since 2004. I am thankful that they have stuck with me so long and through so much!

5) My cat Joey's open heart. He is such a loving a tub of guts.

6) My cat Reynaldo. His energetic approach to life can be a challenge. OK, at times he's a demon of destruction. But he teaches me patience. Every day.

7) My imagination. Yes, I can be all day-dreamy. But it serves me well. I am blessed with a creative mind, and I think it springs from this difficult-to-harness trait.

8) Books. I am a reader, and it's expanded my world enormously.

9) Music. I'm utterly tone deaf and can't sing a note, yet certain songs can change my mood instantly. I avoid the sad ones and am grateful for the happy ones.

10) Movies. I am in love with the process of going to the movies -- from buying the ticket to sitting in the dark and watching the coming attractions and then the main feature. I am thankful that for $10 I can so easily be transported to a new world.

11) My niece and nephew. It's been a joy to see how different they are from one another, how individual, how special.

12) My career. It's taken some twists and turns but it has always kept a roof over my head and has provided me with valuable benefits that let me get good healthcare.

13) The tree outside my livingroom window. It's on my neighbors property, and when I saw the tree service was cutting away at it, I was afraid we were losing it for good. No, they were just trimming away, and I'm so grateful. For this tree, bare now, symbolizes the four seasons for me -- watching it go from green to gold to bare and back again is one of the joys of living in the midwest.

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Happy Birthday to Me, Part 7

Met my old friend Mindy for dinner. I had a burger, she had a salad. She looks terrific and was full of tales about her younger son, which made me happy because has ADD and that has caused her and her husband quite a bit of worry.

She also gave me the DVD of her favorite show, The Good Wife, which I really haven't seen. I've caught an episode now and again, but I'm not really familiar with the series. Here's my chance to catch up.

Mindy wants John to join us for our Christmas get together. If they work it out, I'll agree. We all met at work 30 years ago. But John and I have stayed close, Mindy and I have stayed in touch and John and Mindy have drifted apart.

They have made that choice, in a dozen different little ways, over the years. It's not hard to sign a holiday or get well card and drop it in the mail, or to shoot an email with a link to a newspaper/magazine article that reminds you of someone, or to pick up the phone and say "happy birthday." And yet over the years, these two haven't done it. It's something I don't really understand and so I'm confused by her sudden desire to see John.

If they work it out, I'll be there. But I'm not going to move heaven and earth to make it happen. It might be awkward and besides, I see this as their business. I'll show up to be the bridge between them after all these years, but while I'm willing to be their conduit, I'm not going to be the catalyst.