Things I am Grateful on this Christmas Day

So many things...

I am thankful for my sanity after a shaky early life filled with, shall we say exploration and uncertainty.

I am very thankful for Beloved who has put up with me as I have put up with her for almost 19 years, through thick and thin, sickness and health, better and worse and all the rest but one...

I am so glad to get to know my the Godchild who grew up away from me, states away, but we have gotten to know each other a adults, both of us-as least she's an adult.

I am grateful for the cousins. When some of us are only children and some of are only by death or distance, I rely on them, also through the thick and thin, and when we get together we ague like the sisters most of us never had and Janet teaches how! And Michele, who I never, even knew as a child has become a great friend and who is full of surprises.

I am so grateful for the Brother-in Law, the best one a girl could ever want! Who knew I would ever have one! I hope he has a wonderful New Year...

I am grateful for my friends, who like the souvenir ruler that I got when I was on a trip as a child said should be "like books, few and well chosen." Well I get the second part, but not the first. Books, still over run me, thank God. Laurie, Maureen and Randi, Steve and Paul, Joni-who baked me Christmas cookies-Jim,Amy, Paula, Carmel, Carol Sally, John, Roe, Joe, Steve Paula, and the rest of you all know who you are...

I'm very grateful for the Revgals for giving me guidance, for being there when I was ill, for answering questions, for having fun.

I'm grateful to the NY State Education Department, Vocational Services for Individuals for Individuals with Disabilities for letting me keep my job in these hard times and letting be practice my skill and learn to be a better counselor every day, even the days that leave me tired and frustrated. More days leave me proud of what I do and that's good.

I'm so Grateful that my Aunt Julie, at 91 is still with us in mind and body and able to have fun with us.

I'm very grateful to Mary to help me to get here.

Thank you all and Merry Christmas.

Friday Five Christmas Traditons

Jan posted this Friday Five: "Christmas traditions vary from family to family and from regions afar. I've been pleased that my oldest son's wife AA loves to be with our family for Christmas, though I don't think we do anything out of the ordinary. It helps that DC has one brother and two sisters to liven up our home.

Since I finally decorated the Christmas tree and have started baking Christmas cookies, I am thinking of Christmas only being one week away.

So for this Friday Five, tell us five things about the traditions in your family. Think of:"

1.traditions you always do

We Celebrate Hannukahah. Since beloved in Jewish and this usually happens right before Christmas, we light the 8 little candles, one more each night. Tonight will be eight plus the shamus (the middle one, the one used to light the rest.

2. traditions you always cook or eat

Cookies have to be in there somewhere...

3. traditions you would like to start

Still looking for a home church for the main event...

4. traditions you would like to discard

Shopping, Office parties. Actually, since I moved my office to Brooklyn, I really like the office party. It was Tuesday and we had a great time! Hmm. Change can happen?

5.anything about your family Christmases

Well our family tradition involved my father drinking more than usual. The good part was my mother baking lots of wonderful cookies.

Ocho Kandelikas-Happy Happy Hannakah

Friday Five Do Nothing Edition

I'm trying to figure out the reason that the gay marriage bill failed to pass in NY by such a huge number this week? Or failed to pass at all!

1. I won't be doing much more shopping since most of mine is done.

2. I will be filling out more forms, since my mortgage banker at CHASE BANK informed us, moments after the gay marriage bill failed that our Canadian marriage would not be recognized and that we had to apply separately for our mortgage! I bought a house with a partner in 1978 and this didn't happen!

3. I won't be planning Christmas dinner, as we will be going out.

4. I will be wrapping the gifts for the gifts for homeless kids party that our Catholic Lesbians group is having tonight.

5. I will be lighting candles for 8 festive nights!

I cheated with will and won't. I will be taking as many naps as possible!

My Long Weekend-Happy Thanksgiving!

Today we're going to BL's aunt who usually has this shindig. This year she has moved into senior housing, a smaller apartment so it will just be BL and me, her two sons, the gay one and his BF, and straight on and his wife and two kids. Lots of vegetarian food and, oh yes, a turkey, a real one.

Tomorrow will be the shopping event with my godchild, the adult woman. First stop, my 8:00 am a.m. a.p. at the MAC store where I hear there are some special specials and I am lusting after a new power book or whatever they're calling them now will be my Christmas gift to myself. We'll just see. In the evening, it's dinner with the cousins, including my cousin from Florida who I don't see often. I love my cousins and it's always a treat to get together with them.

Saturday we'll be having dinner with our friends in Long Beach, our new home away from home. We're treating our friend, the lawyer who helped us with negotiations that helped us to get such a great price. I hope to stop at Costco on the way. (more shopping-there's no Costco in NYC yet.)

Sunday we rest. Perhaps I'll go the the Church of the Holy Apostles, the Episcopal Church that I'm currently interviewing.

Monday is my pass day. Itinerary to be determined.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Friends

Friday Five Thanksgiving

Jan posted this Thankful Friday Five:
"Aunt Bert says
it's snowing there in Arkansas,
on Catfish Lane, and she hasn't been
able to walk out to their mailbox.
She's been suffering
from a bad case of the mulleygrubs.
The cure for the mulleygrubs,
she tells my sister,
is to get up and bake a cake.
If that doesn't do it, put on a red dress.

--Ginger Andrews (from Hurricane Sisters)

So this Friday before Thanksgiving, think about Aunt Bert and how she'll celebrate Thanksgiving! And how about YOU?"

1. What is your cure for the "mulleygrubs"?
A nap. Probably not the best...

2. Where will you be for Thanksgiving?
We'll be at Beloved's 82 y/o aunt who started eating meat again at the age of 80. The food is always... interesting, but always includes real turkey.

3. What foods will be served? Which are traditional for your family?
Well, There will be Turkey
We're making cranberry sauce and pie
The rest is a crap shoot, but you can bet on lots of vegetarian and vegan options because a good part of the family is one or the other.

4. How do you feel about Thanksgiving as a holiday?
I like it. The secularity, yet warmth and thankfulness of it. The coming together of families, mixed, pulled together, whatever. Last year we were at the same site, yet we had extended families from my family, a sister-in laws family, lots of different families.

5. In this season of Thanksgiving, what are you grateful for?
I'm so grateful to almost have a new home and more space!

Some trivia from FB

You\'ve been living for 60 years, 3 months, and 20 days.
You were born on a Monday.
Your date of conception was probably 1st November 1948.(Do I really want to know this?)
You\'ve seen 15 leap years.
Your Zodiac Sign is Leo.
Your Chinese Zodiac Sign is Ox.
Your Ruling Planet is Sun.
Your Birthstone is Ruby.
Your Birth Flower is Larkspur.
Your Birth Tree is Elm Tree.
Your Birth Number is 1.
Time till your next Birthday 252 days 8 hours 26 mins. (Hmmm, presents, presents?)
Your Lucky Color is Golden Yellow.
Your Lucky Day is Sunday.
Your Lucky Number is One.

And I still have to take a Civil Service Test today, Sigh!

Friday Five- Friday the 13 on the 14th

Sophia posted this scary Friday Five: The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskevidekatriaphobia, a word derived from the concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví (Παρασκευή) (meaning Friday), and dekatreís (δεκατρείς) (meaning thirteen), attached to phobía (φοβία) (meaning fear). The term triskaidekaphobia derives from the Greek words "tris", meaning 'three', "kai", meaning 'and', and "deka", meaning 'ten'. the whole word means three and ten. The word was derived in 1911 and first appeared in a mainstream source in 1953. (Wikipedia)

With thanks to my dear spouse TechnoGuy for the great suggestion, it's a Friday the 13th Friday Five!

1. How is this Friday the 13th looking for you?
Sinus infection still hanging on, today, the 14th, I have a Civil Service test all day. I would have skipped it, but was gently encouraged by my boss/friend Laurie who reminded me that those promotions could go to less desirable "others." So I'm packing my lunch and sharpening my #2 pencils. The only redeeming thing is that the testing site is 6 blocks from my apartment!

2. Have you ever had anything unlucky happen on Friday the 13th?
Oh Yes. WAY Unlucky. When I went to the bad orthopedic surgeon on a Friday 13, (he was on vacation so I saw the shoulder guy) with severe exacerbation of my back symptoms. He scheduled me for surgery in two weeks. I ended up in the emergency room the next morning and had emergency surgery that day! And thus I am permanently disabled. I could have been a paraplegic if I had not known the symptoms to look for! I was in graduate school to be a rehabilitation counselor at the time. Ironic? I think so...


3. Did your family of origin embrace or scorn superstitions?
Eh, they went both ways. My father was a little more superstitious. My mother not so much.


4. Are there any unique or amusing ones from your family, region, or ethnic background?
My father was a big one for throwing salt over the shoulder when salt was spilled.


5. Do you love or hate horror movies like "Friday the 13th"?
Hate!

Friday Five-What's New

Imagine a brand new kitchen with sparkling appliances!

Songbird posted this NEW FF "Please share with us five things you like *especially* when they are new."

1. So, you have all been hearing about the PROJECT? Well I can't wait for a new refrigerator. I currently live in an apartment so whenever the refrigerator breaks I get a new, old, used in an apartment that has become a co-op fridge,

2. Well, a new co-op. With 2 bedrooms, a heated outdoor pool, a terrace, 2 bathrooms, all new appliances (as soon as we buy and install them) in our new kitchen. and several walk-in closets-on the ocean! We're officially-as of yesterday-in contract! Hooray.

3. Always new shoes.

4. A nice new pen, with gel ink, that writes smoothly.

5. I really need a new Mac. And the new ones have such nice bells and whistles. This one has been showing the beach ball a little too much. The genius tells me I need more RAM and a new battery.

Friday Five-Personal Flotation Device

Kathrykzj posted this lifesaving FF:

In honor of BE Three" I thought I'd offer up a Friday Five of lifesavers. I'm going on our cruise (are you?) because I am excited about meeting up with my blogging buddies again, I am interested in the speaker and because when I went on the first one my life was saved (okay, that may be a little over-dramatized but if you saw me getting on the boat and then the difference when getting off the boat you would know of what I speak).

I don't expect - or need - another life saving moment but I want to support the conference.

Of course lifesavers can come in all sizes and with far less drama. I would readily admit that I have considered a person (children's sermon substitute), the location of a bathroom, and a beverage (the last diet coke in the back of the fridge - score!) all to be lifesavers at one point or another.

And so today I ask you - dramatic or fairly common - what have been/are your lifesavers:"

1) Your lifesaving food/beverage.

It all goes better with a Coke, but Water fills the tiny refrigerator in my office
2) Your lifesaving article of clothing.

Since I missed the shoes chapter of FF, after my back surgery and subsequent disability, Rockport's and Teva's. The most comfortable shoes and sandals, and for Rockports, the ones that stay on, since my feet cannot grip anymore,
3) Your lifesaving movie/book/tv show/music.

As a youngish person, the books of Jane Rule who told me who I was and that it was quite all right. ( and who I later met.0
4) Your lifesaving friend.

Well, not quite a friend, but my therapist, who in two installments over 20 years has saved my sorry ass.
5) Your lifesaving moment.

So many