Sunday 21 November 2010

I'm Thankful for the Little Things

Thanksgiving is fast approaching in the States, and I wanted to write a blog that was season appropriate. And I wanted to blog about being grateful while I am in the mood. I can't tell you the number of times I'm in a pissy mood, and some well meaning, but irritating, person, will tell me that I have so much to be grateful for and all that crap. When I'm in that frame of mind, grateful is not the first thing I think of. Matter of fact, what I really want to say to them is, "Go stick your gratefulness where the sun don't shine and leave me alone." I don't, but I want to. LOL

However, today, I am in a mood where I can honestly blog about being grateful. Not about the typical stuff that usually comes to mind when we start listing our blessings. No, I'm not going to list all of that. That's too easy. Instead, I want to look at the little things to be grateful for in my life because, after all, it's the little things that either drive us batty or make us happy. So, I am going to list ten "little" things that make my life easier, and that I am very grateful for. I encourage you to add your own.

  1. Wax: "Wax?" you ask. "Why wax?" Well, if you have facial hair that you don't consider womanly, wax is your friend. (It helps to have a sister who's an expert with it. Just keep her away from your bikini line and armpits!) I can thank my maternal grandmother for this. As I inherited other good qualities from her, I can almost forgive her. (g)
  2. Tweezers: For the weeks you don't see your cosmetologist, or sister in this case, they are very handy for removing the aforementioned facial hair.
  3. Toenail clippers: Because Frankenstein toenails just aren't very attractive in flip-flops and can cause some serious damage when you are, um, getting "busy."
  4. Speaking of flip-flops, I love mine and would be very unhappy without them. When the weather is warm, they are the best footwear...next to bare feet, that is.
  5. Size 13 shoes: That's my husband's shoe size. And while that is not a small thing, it's certainly something to be grateful for. (g)
  6. Toilet paper: Imagine life without toilet paper. (shudder) Okay, let's not do that. I'm very happy to live where I have unlimited amount of toilet paper to use. (Not that I use all of it, mind you, but I know I have it there...just in case.)
  7. The toilet: How can you be grateful for toilet paper and forget the toilet? Again, this is not such a little thing, but how often do we list this in our "to be grateful for" roll call? I've camped and backpacked where you had to find a quiet place in the wilderness to do your business. I've also been to a few countries where the toilet was a hole in the ground with some place to position your feet on either side. During all of those times, I pined for a toilet, but not a skanky toilet. I'd rather dig my own hole than use a skanky toilet! Once on a train through what was then Yugoslavia, the toilet was so disgusting that I held it until we reached the next station...three hours later. Hanging my butt out the window was starting to look like a very viable option. While I didn't worship that hole in the ground they called a toilet, I came very close.
  8. Stupid people: They remind me how lucky I am to be from my gene pool and not theirs. And then I get the hell away from them because stupid people do stupid sh** that frequently turns bad.
  9. Running water: This is another one that harkens back to my backpacking days. Running water is the bomb. Yes, it is. One backpacking trip, none of us had water filters (or showers, of course. We stank!) We had to boil water over a fire for three minutes to sterilize it. To this day, I can't stand anything that has a smoky flavor. That was the same trip where it was too cold to bath for three or four days. I came down the mountain with my hair plastered to my head. Ripe would be too tame of a term for what I was.
  10. Silence: If you live in the city, or a house full of kids, and came from the country, you appreciate silence. Or really, the absence of manmade sounds. It doesn't happen very often, but when it does, it's a beautiful thing. The past few days, it's been really noisy. I'd like a little more birdsong and a lot less cars, airplanes, and noisy people.

That's my list of little things. What are some of your little loves?

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

The off button on my cell phone: because sometimes, you just can't take any more.

Dishwashers: I grew up without one, lived without one for a few years. Thanksgiving sans dishwasher is not a pretty picture.

I'm in total agreement with the toilet and toilet paper, things I'd never want to do without!

Emmy Ellis said...

I'm with Lusha on the dishwasher. I had 35 years without one...never again!

Also the same with my phone. Some days when it bleeps, I just want to throw it out the window. Some days I could throw PEOPLE out the window!

LOL @ Because Frankenstein toenails just aren't very attractive in flip-flops...

:o)

Marci Baun said...

Funny you should say that about the phone, Lusha. My phone is on all of the time, but I have it on vibrate or I leave it plugged in in the other room, which usually means I miss the calls. (g)

I've pretty much always had a dishwasher, but we've always washed our dishes before putting them in the dishwasher as I have found I'm not fond of taking something out of the dishwasher with food still on it. (Ew!)

Marci Baun said...

35 years?! Yeah, that would not go over well with me, Sarah. LOL

As for toenails, it's true. Frankenstein nails should be left inside shoes, never to be displayed for anyone. (g)

Anonymous said...

I'm with you on the toilet and toilet paper. I've been camping a few times where there was no facilities. Never again. From now on camping takes place in a hotel room. Preferably with a well stocked mini-bar.

I'm going to add to your running water. I'm grateful for that, too, but I'm going to add HOT running water. For about 8 months I lived in a place that had running water, but only cold water. I had to heat water up everyday to wash up, wash my hair, and do dishes. I was able to go to a laundromat to wash clothes and there were times I considered throwing myself into the washing machine. Ugh!

Marci Baun said...

HAHAHAHA, you would really get along with my mother. She is the same with camping, although hers was a very cushy RV. (g)

You know, you are right about the hot water. I suppose in my mind it was synonymous, but hot water is very important. I've bathed in glacial lakes when desperate enough. I have to say I would have given a lot for hot water. (g)

Faith Bicknell said...

Internet because it makes publishing so much easier. I've done the handwritten manuscripts converted to an electric typewriter and type it out while cussing over and over at the super sensitive buttons...then the packaging of the ms and the ungodly cost of postage.

Books because there never seems to be anything on satellite that I haven't already seen a trillion times.

White out because I tend to write things down wrong or backward.

A fan in the bedroom because when the hubby farts and the paint peels as a result, I turn the fan on and blow his parfume his way so he can suffocate instead of me.

Marci Baun said...

HAHAHAHAHA, Faith. I know all about paint peelers, unfortunately. (g) I can't always blame it on the hubby, though. If I eat too many dried apricots... Don't light a match around me. (g)

Marci Baun said...

I want to add something to my own list:

Razors: because I am not real fond of Bigfoot armpits.

Cassie Exline said...

When I read about the camping trips, obviously you've never seen the movie, Easy Rider. That cured of me any desire to camp. I'm with Casey's mother -- Give me a room, preferably at Motel 6 where they always leave the light on for you. No one is hacking me up in a sleeping bag. I'm not myself when I'm all in pieces. lol

Love my DSL, I have it at home but not at the office. Now you understand why I'm nutty.


Love my potty and potty paper and running water.


Never owned a dishwasher in my life. Maybe one day.


My personal favorite on the list is #5. Size 13 huh, well, well. Makes this girl smile.

Marci Baun said...

Cassie, you must have helpers (AKA children--;) ) with those dishes. I can't imagine going that long without a dishwasher.

And, no, I've never seen Easy Rider, and after that little bit you shared, I don't think I will either. LOL

As I said, #5 isn't such a little thing, but I am grateful for it. (g)

Cassie Exline said...

Daughter helps with dishes, when she's home from college. Hubby helps, he enjoys the fringe benefits. Spoiled rotten. lol

Saw that stupid movie when I was very young and it scared the crap out of me. Of course nowadays it probably would seem tame.

Marci Baun said...

HAHAHAHA, Cassie. I saw Jaws when I was very young (9), so now I don't like to swim in lakes or oceans or any body of water that I can't see the bottom. (sigh) People give me shit for it, but, hey, they can get eaten by a shark if they want. I have no desire to have that happen. (g)

Marci Baun said...

BTW, Cassie, since I'm not going to be that available tonight/tomorrow, your book is now available in 5 formats at Wild Child. It should be up on Amazon by Friday. I may or may not get it up at ARe/OmniLit, Bookstrand, etc., until after Thanksgiving.

Maeve Greyson said...

I'm thankful for the mute button on my conference call phone at work. That little jewel has probably saved my butt a thousand times over!

Cassie Exline said...

Thanks, Marci, for letting me about my new book. woohoo.

C. Zampa said...

My little things? That are little by some standards but that I CANNOT live without?

1) Lipstick
2) Coffee

Or is it coffee, then lipstick? No. Lipstick first. Sigh.

Fiona McGier said...

I don't understand how you can love silence, with no man-made sounds, yet say you won't go camping. We have a tiny pop-up, just big enough so that we are not sleeping on the ground. We cook all food over the fire, and sit and play cards after dinner in our zippered dining tent. We have taught all 4 of our kids to camp. We love to head so far up north that the only night-sounds are wolves howling in the distance, coyotes yipping, and loons calling. Now THAT is relaxing! If I have to not shower for a coupla days, I can deal with that, in return for that much natural solitude to soothe my soul.
But I also am grateful for the internet, without which I would still be papering my bathroom with rejection notices. E-publishers rock!

Marci Baun said...

LOL, Maeve. Be glad you are intelligent enough to use it. There are so many who aren't. (g)

Marci Baun said...

My pleasure, Cassie. :)

Marci Baun said...

Fiona, I enjoy camping and backpacking, but I am also glad to come home to the amenities. (g) I have backpacked over Mt. Whitney. If my husband was willing, I'd do it again. :)

Also, I grew up in the country, where, at night, you could hear the coyotes yip, the horses stamp, and the frogs croak. In the early mornings, the hawks cry pierces the air. Yeah, I love it. Even now, in the summer when I visit my mother, I love the chorus of croaking frogs and love listening to nature's sounds.

Faith Bicknell said...

One thing I've always loved about living so rurally is the night sounds and then the birds around dawn. I've lived in the city and will never do so again unless it's a dire need for some bizarre reason.

Since moving in May, we have a small pond across the gravel road from our house that is loaded with bullfrogs. I fell in love with their sound when we first moved into the house. However, every single time I start hearing their song each night the first thing that pops into my mind is that Budweiser commercial with the bullfrogs. Bud. Weis. Er! ROFLMAO!

Faith Bicknell said...

Btw, I've had a dishwasher a coupla times through the years, and this house has a nice one in it, but with us using well water, we can't use it 'cept for special occasions. And getting my girls to wash dishes the normal way is a feat in itself, so we rotate weeks for this chore. My hubby do dishes? Bwahahahaha!

What sucks is the weather has been so dry our wells are too low to use the dishwasher, so I've got to wash all the dishes for Thanksgiving Dinner by hand, but the girls WILL help me do it no matter what they thing!

Marci Baun said...

There's a creek behind my mom's house, but she also has a small fish pond next to her house. We don't get the bullfrogs up by the house (they are in the creek, and I used to catch as a child), but those tiny, little frogs sure can make noise. I love visiting in the summer and listening to them. :) They are so loud you have to turn the TV up. LOL

Marci Baun said...

That does suck, Faith. Fortunately for me, Charlie washes if I cook. (g) I trained him well. (g)