Every Thursday, or Friday or Saturday, like today, I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, if you want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week by Deb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
Keeping it short and simple this week
I’m at my parents, who live about 60 miles away from us. I’ve been here since late yesterday morning and will be here through late Sunday morning.
I also am able to see my sister and her family, who live near my parents.
My wife and I are both off work tomorrow night and maybe we’ll catch up on some TV we’ve been meaning to watch, including this documentary.
Every Thursday, I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, if you want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week by Deb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
This weekend, my wife Kim and I are off for three days together, starting tomorrow and going through Sunday. Here are the three big things we have planned:
Tomorrowland
It is the second weekend of the Tomorrowland festival in Belgium and we’ll be watching some via YouTube all weekend. For those of you unfamiliar with Tomorrowland, in the simplest terms, it is an electronic music festival that started in 2005 and has spun off into festivals in Brazil and in France, where a winter edition is held. We started watching it before the pandemic and while we like some other festivals more now, this was our first exposure to these kinds of festivals – and so, almost obligatory.
The Bronx Bombers vs. The Fightin’ Phils
All three days, the Phillies and the Yankees are playing in the Bronx. The Yankees are, and always have been, my team, but I haven’t always really watched games. This year, thanks to a deal on MLB.com through T-Mobile, I’m able to watch games with the Yankees and other teams all season. Kim has joined me, with both of us finding the game not boring like we once thought. Now, she has selected a team to follow: the Phillies, a team which she grew up with became she lived in the suburbs of Philadelphia. The Yankees are struggling, while the Phillies, eh, not so much. Both teams have off today so both teams ought to be well-rested.
Brass Under The Stars
Sunday night, weather permitting, we will be going to a concert that is part of the Endless Mountain Music Festival at Cherry Springs State Park in nearby Potter County. The park is a Dark Sky Park and often cited as one of the best places in the eastern U.S. to view the night sky. As for the festival, it has 17 concerts in 17 days here in northcentral Pennsylvania and the Southern Tier of New York with musicians from all over the world. Sunday’s concert is one of its free concerts.
Every Thursday, I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, if you want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week by Deb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
To my sister and brother-in-law
This past week, my sister and brother-in-law celebrated their 23rd wedding anniversary. My brother-in-law was/is off work all week and besides going to a bookstore and out for dinner on their anniversary, they’ve just been hanging out with each other and their kids at home the rest of the week.
Today, my wife Kim and I were both off work. She went to a local art club, her first time going, then the local produce market. We then watched silly TV the rest of the day. Like my sister and brother-in-law, we are simple folk, I guess.
This weekend I’m off work and among other things I plan on watching Tomorrowland (a music festival in Belgium), which is still happening despite a fire on Wednesday that destroyed the Main Stage.
Every Thursday, I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, if you want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week by Deb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
With June in the rearview, I thought it’d be good to look back at the month through the lens of three good things:
New car
We got the new car on the last day of May, but I’m still counting it for June as it was our first month using the car. What a difference between a 2011 car and a 2020 (Subaru Outback, both of them, and a car that we had to keep dumping money into versus a car we don’t have to do that.
New air conditioner
The day before we had a multi-day heat wave, we got a new air conditioner. We are glad we did as with three window air conditioners, and closing curtains so it looked like we lived in a cave, our small one-story house was kept more tolerable than it would have been without it.
My wife’s month of Pride
My wife Kim is the northcentral Pennsylvania area coordinator for Free Mom Hugs. Click link for more info about the non-profit organization.
She coordinated three events in June, and would have been four if the one hadn’t been canceled due to bad weather. She also is on the committee of our county’s annual Pride event, which was this past weekend. Here is a photo of her, right, with two volunteers on Saturday at the Free Mom Hugs table.
Why is she involved? I’ll let her tell you in her own words:
I am involved with Free Mom Hugs because I steadfastly refuse to accept the scapegoating and attempted erasure of the LGBTQIA+ community. I do it in honor and memory of people I know and have known who deserve much better than they are getting.
Bonus good thing
On Sunday, Kim participated in an art class at a park near our house that was all day.
So, how about you? Tell me about three good things from last month in the comments, if you want.
Every Thursday, and sometimes Friday (today, for example), I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, if you want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week by Deb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
Above is this week’s No. 1: a new (used) car! It’s a 2020 Subaru Outback XT. Our old car, a 2011 Subaru Outback, died on Friday and we were able to get this one Saturday morning. Nine years newer, it’s quite a step up, with touchscreen controls being the biggest change. But we’re getting used to it, with minor frustrations but nothing compared to putting $500 every time we’d go to the mechanic’s.
This week’s second and third grateful things are: 2.) starting tonight after work, I’m off until Thursday and 3.) my 56th birthday is on Monday. My wife Kim is off Monday and Tuesday with me. Unfortunately, our plan to go road tripping to the wine country of the Finger Lakes in New York on Tuesday isn’t happening thanks to expected rainy weather. So, we’ll just be hanging out together both days, with fun TV and movies.
I do have other possibilities of things I want to do over the five days, including maybe finishing the Inspector Montalbano series by Andrea Camilleri if two of the copies of the books come in. I only have three to go and have one already. I’d also like to watch more of the Italian TV series based on the books on MHz, which we have for a discounted rate for the a few months. Mainly, well, besides laundry tomorrow morning (or Sunday morning) at the laundromat, I just want to not think too much about things.
Addendum: Seems like right before I go on a work break of any duration, there’s always something Friday afternoon that makes the last part of the day hectic. Today was a manic coworker. At least, it wasn’t patrons…and hey, I’m off now.
Every Thursday I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, if you want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week by Deb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
Today, I’m grateful for these three good things:
Number 1: I’m off the upcoming holiday weekend for all three days.
Number 2: Kim and I are both off today and Monday together. As a 911 dispatcher, she usually works most holiday weekends, but at least has Monday off. She’s running a couple of errands this morning, but this afternoon, we have silly TV and movies planned. Among the silliness is this:
Number 3: Still looking forward to five days off around, and on, my birthday.
Every Thursday, I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, if you want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week by Deb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
First, I’m grateful that I’m off work today. After the day I had Tuesday, I need the time to recollect my thoughts, obviously. I’m not going anywhere.
Second, I’m planning on dipping into The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins again. I don’t know if I’ll finish it today. It’s not that long, but Robbins gives a lot of information. I’ve been taking notes.
Third, I got my work schedule for work for June earlier in the week and happen to have several days off on and around my birthday. I asked for my birthday, Monday, June 9, off and the day after since with the way her schedule works, Kim happens to be off too. Our director also gave me off Wednesday, which with the weekend off for me before my birthday too gives me five days in a row off. As I work part-time at the library and can be put in the schedule to fill holes, it’s rare I get that many days off in a row so it will be welcome as probably the weather will be (finally, maybe) getting warmer than it has been so far this spring.
We have no plans at this point, but might go to Finger Lakes wine country in neighboring New York State on my birthday for the day or the day after. Kim gets home at 6 a.m. Monday morning from her regular 12-hour shift, so most likely it will be Tuesday and on a week day at the wineries, it shouldn’t be too busy.
Every Thursday I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, ifyou want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week byDeb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
So, first good thing is Kim and I were both off yesterday together, today she was off all day, I only worked three hours and now I’m off. As usual, we have nothing special planned but it’s good to be off together for the rest of the night.
Third is hopefully reading this Sunday a book that the aforementioned Deb Nance mentioned in passing in a comment to me, The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins. I had heard of Robbins, a very popular podcaster, but didn’t – and don’t – know much about her or the book. That said, I’m looking forward to anything that potentially can make me a more complete person.
Every Thursday I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, ifyou want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week byDeb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
A poem a day
For National Poetry Month, I’ve been posting a poem a day that I’ve written. I’ve also been sharing a poem from one of three websites that share a poem each day. If you would like to check them out, go here. I had most of the poems chosen at the end of March, which has helped.
Three days off for my wife…
…and two days off for me this coming weekend, which comes at a much needed time for her. She has cellulitis again in one of her legs, which unfortunately is one of the things that people with lymphedema are susceptible to. At least, the first couple of times she has had this year, including this time, have been caught early – unlike last year, which ended with her being in the hospital for a month. It doesn’t make it any less painful or annoying for her, but she is on an antibiotic that will help get rid of the infection. Unfortunately, because of medications she is on for her heart, there is not much she can take for the pain: Tylenol, which does almost nothing for the pain. All this said, at least she has a few days that hopefully will help with the healing. UPDATE @ 2:40 p.m., also on Thursday: She called for an appointment at the wound care center in Williamsport and was able to get in Monday afternoon before she goes to work at 6 p.m.So there is a fourth good thing.
Because of the cellulitis, we aren’t going anywhere for Easter, but we have, as usual, silly TV planned and we also will be peeking in on a few artists at Coachella for its second weekend this (most we don’t know and, to be honest, don’t want to know).
A day off today
I also a off today and while I often do laundry at the laundromat when I have a spare day, today I decided to postpone the chore until later in the weekend or early next week. This morning, I read some of Shift: Managing Your Emotions — So They Don’t Manage You by Ethan Kross and might read a bit more after putting this up. I probably will unwind with my ongoing alternating of watching Bones and Castle. I’m in Season 5 for both, so no spoilers, please, if you have seen either or both of them.
Every Thursday, I share three good things from today, in the past week, and/or in the week or weeks to come, to focus on what is good. I encourage you to share in the comments your three good things too, ifyou want. I was introduced to thinking on three good things for the week byDeb Nance of the blog Readerbuzz who lists hers every Sunday on her blog.
I debated whether or not to continue this during National Poetry Month, since I’m posting daily, but I decided why not? So, here goes:
My wife Kim’s ‘s birthday is Sunday.
We both are off this weekend.
We have no plans other than getting fish fry Friday from a local supermarket that is really good.
If you have missed any of my National Poetry Month posts where I have been sharing one of my poems each day along with a poem from one of three sites that share a poem each day, please feel free to scroll back and read them.
Transmissions from the Northern Outpost 