Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Thanks for Laughter

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Chuckles, Comedies, family, Friends, Funny, Giggles, Grateful, Jokes, Laughter

I love a good laugh. A good joke, a funny quote, a funny comedy, or even a funny article. As long as the result is me laughing.

I love to laugh so hard I can’t breathe, my eyes water, and my voice raises about 10 octaves. These laughs are rare, but when they happen, it’s terrific.

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I love laughing at a funny movie, giggling when I read a clever quote or joke, or watching a funny comedy act on Netflix.

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I love laughing with family, friends, and strangers. Laughter is something I am so grateful for. The ability to laugh at myself, laugh with others, and the ability to find something funny in most situations.

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Laughter is a gift. Laugh, laugh, and laugh some more. It is so healing. It is so relaxing.

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursdays – Grateful for my folks

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Colds, Dad, Dementia, family, Grateful, Happy, Mom, Time with them

I’ve gotten a bunch of new followers in the last few months, so I wanted to apprise each of you about my situation. I retired early in 2016 to come home and help my folks. My wife is still in Arizona, teaching special education. My Dad has dementia, and he continues to slip, regardless of the work the doctors do with medication. There just isn’t a cure for this stuff.

Since 2018, we decided he couldn’t travel anymore. We went to my niece’s wedding and Dad had an episode during the trip. These episodes are like a panic attack to the 10th power. His system shuts down, his blood pressure drops, and he passes out. After this last one, Dad took almost a month to recover.

Since that time, Dad can’t be left home alone anymore. So if Mom leaves, I have to stay with him. If I leave, Mom has to stay with him or take him with her when she runs errands. It’s tough all around. That being said, I consider it a privilege to be home and spend time with them in their senior years. I realize few people have this opportunity, and I do my best to enjoy every moment of it. Yeah, every family has it’s internal spats, but for the most part, we have a good time.

Dad loves television, YouTube (believe it or not), and reading. Mom is more active and gets antsy when she can’t do anything, especially now that she’s sick with a cold and runs out of energy and has to just chill out on the couch with her iPad. Mom is the kind of person that always has to be doing something. She just can’t sit still. If she’s not working on a home project, she’s working on the family books, reading, running errands, doing laundry, or cooking. When it’s nice outside, Mom is in her garden or greenhouse.

It’s nice to be here with Mom and Dad and just be with them. I’m glad circumstances arose to allow me this opportunity to do that. I’m lucky I know. I read about so many horror stories about dysfunctional families on social media, articles, and even in the news. I just can’t imagine living in a home like that and grateful that my childhood and time with Mom and Dad has been a real treat.

So today, I’m thankful for my Mom and Dad.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursdays – Kind Words and Friendship

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Blogging, Comments, Connecting, Connection, Friends, Friendship, Grateful, Thankful

Today I’d like to thank the thoughtful bloggers that wished me well this week as I fight through a cold. What a wonderful gift.

What I find most fascinating is that small interactions over time can truly turn into a friendship. I know the terms friend and friendship have changed meaning in our new virtual world, but the sentiment is still the same. Friends are people who care about one another. They may not talk every day, but the feeling is there.

It’s interesting. I have been blogging for a little over 3 years and it took me this long to figure it out. You have to engage with other people to open the door to friendship. If you write your blog postings and never interact with other people in the blogosphere, you will likely remain alone, other than the random like here or there. We all love comments and feedback. To get this feedback and receive comments you have to take the first step. At least that is what I have discovered.

So, THANK YOU! Lillie, CrazyKat1963, and K.M. Allan for your kind words of encouragement. I am grateful for our friendship. It truly means a lot to me. And this is where I will end my posting today.

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursdays – Ah, Holidays!

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Christmas, Coffee, family, Friends, Good Conversation, Good Food, Good times, Grateful, Holidays, Movies, Snow, Thankful, TV

Today, I’m thankful for the holiday season. I don’t really care about the gifts and such, but I enjoy relatives visiting, the Christmas lights, the tree, the snow, and all the food that comes this time of year.

This year my brother and sister are coming to town and it’ll be great. We’ll watch movies, talk as a family in the living room, eat out a few times, and maybe even catch a movie at our local movie theater. Then there’s the Christmas dinner, which will be Mom’s recipe for roasted duck! Yummy!!

Obviously, the gifts are fun, but I get a kick out of people opening my gifts, not so much the gifts I get. It’s nice to get people something you think they’ll like. It’s also fun to just enjoy the vibe of the family being together, reminiscing about times past.

I realize we should all be giving to one another all-year long, but because this time only comes once a year, it is special; you know?

I realize for some this is a traumatic time of year. It brings back memories of family members who have passed and the gaping hole they have left in the family. This is just tough and my heart goes out to all of you who are experiencing this. That being said, I would recommend throwing yourself into a charity or volunteering. I’ve always found that when I give of myself, my problems fade a bit. I know this is probably a simplistic solution to your problem, but I wanted to throw that out there, in case you have never tried it. It works. At least it does for me.

Well, that’s it for today. I hope all of you have a great Thursday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Grateful for Retirement

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Blogging, Exercising, Grateful, Gratitude, Joy, Learning, Loving, Reading, Retirement, Service, Writing

When I was in the Army, particularly when I surpassed 10 years of service, I knew I was going to retire. It just didn’t make sense to leave the service and walk away from retirement. Boy, I’m glad I did.

I am grateful for the time I served, and if young enough, and faced with the same choices when I was younger, I’d do it all again. It was an adventure of a lifetime and it offered me the opportunity to do things I would have never had an opportunity to experience any other way.

I served in Europe for 6 years. I was in Berlin, Germany when the Berlin Wall came down. I was at the retirement ceremony for Checkpoint Charlie. I got to see Reagan give his famous “Tear down this wall” speech. So many memories.

Because of my service, my medical care is literally free for life. I had the opportunity to retire early and come home to help my folks. This has been a great thing. How many people get to celebrate their parent’s senior years? Not many. In fact, most people will never retire.

Honestly, I am not retired either. The key difference between my working life and my “retired” life is that I can do what I want. So, I am.

What do I love? I love reading. I love writing. I love exercise. I love serving. I love meeting new people and having impromptu conversations with people. I also love learning. So this is what I do every day.

What is something I discovered pretty quickly? I learned that I couldn’t just hang out and do nothing. Netflix is entertaining, but watching it all day every day—No thanks!

My military experience has bled into this retired life. I need structure. I don’t need a minute-by-minute schedule, but I need to do the same things daily. I do all the things I enjoy each day. I love blogging. I love working on my book projects. I love learning new things. All the things I do every day are an absolute joy. I hope all of you are in a position some day to do the same if you wish to.

So this is what I’m grateful for. My retirement and the new adventure I’ve embarked upon.

Have a great Thursday everybody!

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Grateful = Happy

Tags

Content, Fulfilled, Grateful, Gratitude, Happy, Joyful, Thankful

Gratitude is the topic each Thursday on this blog, because I believe it is important to express thanks for what we have. According to HealthBeat (2019), a product of the Harvard Medical School, Gratitude will make you happier.

If you look at most folks, they are always pursuing more. We can lay credit for this at the feet of the advertisers and marketers who blast our email boxes, fill up our social media, and bombard us with advertisement after advertisement while we watch our favorite sports team. Subsequently, we work harder, to make more money, to buy more stuff, which cause us to go into debt, and work harder, and so on. They tell us we don’t have a big enough home, a newer car, nicer clothes, expensive trips, and a cooler phone. They don’t do this directly. They show us a family enjoying themselves in front of a large-screen TV or walk out of their home to see two brand new cars sitting in the driveway with big ribbons on them. You see how this works?

Gratitude counters this social pressure, but acknowledging we have all we need. We have a roof over our head, food to eat, and a reliable piece of transportation to get us where we need to go. This allows us to preserve our capital because we aren’t spending ourselves into oblivion.

As we approach the holiday season, cultivate your gratitude for all you have, not what you do not have. It is a great way to live life. Here are a few ways you can grow your sense of gratitude in the upcoming months. To start out, just pick one

• Write a thank-you note to one person each month
• Thank someone mentally if you lack the time to write
• Keep a gratitude journal expressing your thanks and appreciation for other people in your life or something you enjoy
• Count your blessings
• Pray (if you are religious)
• Meditate

I dedicate a day each week to discuss gratitude. How to build it, how I do things to build my gratitude state, or express my gratitude for the things in my life.

If you’d like to read more, the article I used for this posting is below.

Thanks for your attention. If you use another technique or if there’s something you are particularly grateful for, feel free to drop me a note in the comments.

Until next time…

Dave

Reference

Healthbeat. (2019). Giving thanks can make you happier. Retrieved from: https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier

Daily Ramblings – Happy Veteran’s Day!

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Air Force, Army, Coastguard, Freedom, Grateful, Marines, Navy, Sacrifice, Thankful, Veteran's Day

I’m posting Monday’s posting early because I’m going to be enjoying my day tomorrow and will be doing another “Do Nothing Day” to celebrate. There are quite a few restaurants serving free meals and other goodies and I always try to take advantage of that. Subsequently, this posting will be my Monday Motivation post instead.

I wanted to express my thanks to all veterans, past and present, for their service. As a veteran, it’s great to see all the messages posted to social media. It makes you feel good about what you did for your country and I wanted to pass those good feelings along.

Our servicemen and women are everywhere providing security and support to the nations they are assigned to. They are enduring separation from their families, fear, stress, and in some situations, performing the impossible. Thank you for all you do. Your sacrifices will not be forgotten.

I’d also like to say Happy Birthday to all the Marines out there. Your 244 years of service has spanned every major war this country has seen. Your service has been exemplary. When the job is impossible, the Marines are called. I salute you.

I would also like to thank the families of our veterans. You share their burden. You worry. You miss our husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, or sister. The one thing that got me through my deployments were the letters you sent. We also enjoyed the care packages sent by random K-12 schools. We also enjoyed the USO shows when they came.

I will never forget my 20 years in the U.S. Army. I know those of you who are still serving will also never forget your experiences while you serve. I hope each of you a safe return.

For those that have lost a loved one, I thank you and your loved one’s for their sacrifice. Without the veterans of our armed services, none of us would be able to enjoy the freedoms, many of us take for granted from time-to-time.

Happy Veteran’s Day!

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Laughter

Tags

Chuckle, Funny, Giggle, Grateful, Jokes, Laughter, Satire, Thankful

“A day without laughter is a day wasted.” – Charlie Chaplin

I don’t know about you, but I love to laugh. I enjoy finding the funny things that occur every day. I also like reading the comics in the paper, finding funny memes, and even catching a comedy show on Netflix or Amazon from time-to-time. It’s a great feeling to laugh so hard you can’t breathe. I don’t reach this level every day, but I do try.

I’m truly thankful for comedy, funny jokes, puns, funny memes, comedy shows, and even the funny animals or fail videos on YouTube. It’s a great thing to laugh. It just feels terrific.

If you’re down in the dumps, stressed out, or in some mental turmoil, take a few minutes to watch your favorite cartoon, read a comic strip, watch a comedy on Netflix or your favorite sitcom. Get those giggles going and you’ll feel a tremendous lift in your mood, even if it is only for a short time.

Bill Burr and Joe Rogan are my go-tos on Netflix. Looney Tunes are my favorite cartoons (I grew up with them). Funny movies? Dumb & Dumber, Caddyshack, and Liar, Liar, to name a few. Comics? I love The Oatmeal. He is a genius. For political satire, there’s The Onion. There are so many funny things on the Internet it would be impossible to list them all here.

Starting today, laugh, giggle, chuckle. Keep an eye out for funny things. Seek them out. Make a habit of laughing. It is a great thing to laugh. I never feel bad when I’m laughing. I hope you strive for the laugh today. It will do wonders for you.

Have a great Thursday, folks.

Until next time…

Dave

 

 

 

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Life is a Celebration

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Blessings, God, Grateful, Happy Halloween, Harold Klemp, Life, Thankful

“So few know what a love for living means. They’ve put a web around themselves and called it spiritual. Life is a celebration. Some will read that as wanton living, but true celebration is loving God and Its own.” – Harold Klemp – The Language of Soul

This quote struck me today as appropriate for today, because we are celebrating another Halloween. If you do not celebrate today, cool. We celebrate by passing out goodies to the kids that come around to the house. I enjoy watching scary movies and we enjoy the many costumed kids that come to the door.

Halloween marks the beginning of the holiday season for me. When Halloween hits, there’s Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day and then we’re off to a new adventure. It’s also nice because my wife’s birthday and our wedding anniversary is in December too.

I love life. I really do. I enjoy what I do every day; I feel great physically and mentally, and it is a true gift to spend time with my folks in their senior years. Yeah, as a family we have our days, but for the most part, it’s great fun. My Dad likes telling stories about his childhood and my Mom does too. We eat most of our meals as a family and we are all readers, spending most of the “bad weather” days inside combing through our books.

My love of life is spurred by my gratitude. I try to find gratitude for all I do and receive. I am grateful for my family, friends, colleagues, siblings, and God. It is a wonderful feeling to wake up every day knowing that God loves me and every moment I am here is a blessing God has given me to gain experience and learn how to love and serve others. This is simplicity itself.

Happy Halloween! (for those that celebrate)

Have a great Thursday, the last day of October, and get ready to attack November.

Until next time…

Dave

 

Daily Ramblings – Thankful Thursday – Life

Tags

Adventure, Blessing, Grateful, Gratitude, Life, Thankful, Thanks, wonderful

Every day, I like to wake up and remind myself to be grateful of the simple things.

Miranda Kerr

The life you live is a blessing. I am grateful for every moment I am here, to live, to love, to laugh, to learn. Each experience we have builds on the next and the next and the next.

Looking back there are plenty of examples when life was tough. I wouldn’t trade any of them away. All these experiences got me to where I am today. I am grateful for every hurt, every betrayal, every lapse in health, every disappointment, and every failure. They all contribute to my life.

As time passes by,  the bad things fade and the good things remain. Things always get better. That’s the nature of life.

Enjoy the beauty of simple things and simple moments. A warm cup of coffee while you look at the snow outside your window. A shared moment with a loved one knowing exactly what each other is thinking. A good meal with family and friends. Laughing so hard you can’t breathe. Enjoying a book with a cup of tea and spending your day in pajamas. I could go on and on.

 

You have your own memories and moments that bless your life. Be grateful for every moment you have been alive. Life’s adventure continues for all of us.

Until next time…

Dave