August Happiness Challenge -- Day 1

This year's happy icon

What's that you say? What's the August Happiness Challenge?

Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.

Today is one of those days when the Challenge is helpful because I'm so annoyed by stuff just now. The condo association (see post below). My oldest friend, who emails me about her overwhelming problems but when I call her, she not only doesn't pick up, her voicemail is full (and she only has a cell, no landline). CVS, who it turns out didn't take $2 off for Joey's cat treats, even though they kept my coupon. Grumble, grumble.

Yet, many little things made me happy, and the Challenge helps me focus on them. The filthy towel that survived Lollapalooza came out of the wash looking very nearly good as new. (Or at least clean).  I had a delicious coffee shop breakfast. I took a long, rejuvenating nap. The Cubs' Anthony Rizzo hit a beautiful home run.

But this year's first Happy Cone goes to the first day of Summer Under the Stars on TCM. What a wallow this is for classic film fans, like me! Today Gene Tierney was featured, and I caught parts of her more familiar movies (Laura and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir) and one that's legendary but I'd never seen (The Razor's Edge) and here's the happy, happy part -- I DVR'd a movie I'd never heard of but looks like a soapy, Technicolor gem. Discovering movies I've never even heard of makes me happy, happy.



If you want to play along, just come back here (meaning to this blog, not this individual post) each day in August, looking for the happy chocolate cone. Every day I will try to have a post with the headline: August Happiness Challenge: Day [X]. Leave a comment and then post your own daily happiness, with August Happiness Challenge in the title to make it easy to find.