Hello there, and I hope all of you are doing well. I'm sitting here after a busy few days at work (everyone is suddenly remembering they want to knit holiday gifts!), enjoying a cup of tea on a day at home. There are a few things that I've been thinking about lately, and since it's Thursday, I thought I'd write a Three on Thursday post. So here are three things that always make me happy.
1. Animals, particularly those in my family, but all animals in general. The other day at work, a woman asked me a question and I immediately remembered the answer. It was a somewhat esoteric thing, so we were both surprised. She said, "Wow, I'm impressed at your memory," and I said, "Me too, but I can't count on it, since most of the time the things that are foremost in my brain are animals and cake." She laughed, but I was serious.
Earlier in the week, when the weather had started to get cooler, I took this photo and posted it on Facebook and Instagram and mentioned in the caption that it was one way to know the weather was colder without going outside. 😊
This is not only cozy, it just makes me happy to see. (If you are wondering where Alfie was when this was taken, the answer is that he was basking in a sunspot on the bed in the guest room. I guess he hadn't figured out that the heat was on upstairs - or maybe these two told him it wasn't??)
2. Which brings me to my second thing - CAKE. I love cake. (OK, I love anything sweet, but I'm talking about cake here.) Cake makes me very happy. I think it's because we don't have it that often, and when we do, it is usually to celebrate a birthday. Today for instance, I'm already in a good mood because I'm going to bake a cake for The Tim's birthday celebration tomorrow. And that makes me happy enough to cancel out the "blah" of it also being laundry day. So tomorrow we'll have cake *and* clean clothes! 😃
3. Related to cake in a way, but also not - wrapping gifts. I know that an awful lot of people would rather have a root canal than have to wrap gifts, but I really enjoy it. I LOVE choosing things to give to people, and wrapping them is the piece de resistance in that whole process. I enjoy choosing what paper or bag I'll use, which ribbon goes on each package, and then the excitement that wrapping a gift adds to the mystery. And gift-wrapping season is upon us, even without The Tim's birthday, so I'm ready to go!
Funny story related to gift-wrapping, etc. I have a friend named Liz who started a practice a couple of years ago where she writes notes one year for herself the next year. For instance, last year, when she opened up the box that holds the holiday wrapping paper, she found this note (she has said I could share, by the way):
Dear 2021 Liz -
You have plenty of wrapping paper, but this year you need to buy more ribbon and gift tags. You're doing a great job.
Love, 2020 Liz
Or this note she found in her planner for Thanksgiving dinner next week:
Dear 2022 Liz -
No one liked the new potato recipe you tried, so skip that. And remember to buy extra sweet potatoes, since those are more popular with your guests. You've got this!
Love, 2021 Liz
I think this is funny in a happy, amusing way, but I also think it's an excellent idea! Maybe you don't write it as a letter with an affirmation, but it's good to have a reminder with the stuff you're going to use. I for one *always* think I'll remember to do _____ for next year, but nine times out of ten, I forget altogether or only remember at the last minute. I may have to begin using Liz's system.
Whatever you do or do not do, I hope you can think of at least three things that always make you happy. Just writing this post gave me a boost!
Be sure to head to Carole's page to see what others have posted for Three on Thursday (link above).
8 comments:
I used to write myself notes like that before and after every big family holiday event I hosted back when we did such things. I often used a lot of profanity in the after notes.
The Mister is in your camp when it comes to wrapping. He always stresses over whether we have enough paper every year even though we have a closet full of it. He loves to wrap which is good because I have no patience for it at all. Gift bags are among the greatest inventions ever imho. My grandmother always had a gift wrapping party right before Christmas. She'd have all the gifts in boxes in piles for each person and we'd have to wrap each other's gifts. She loved shopping for wrapping supplies and had lots of fun things. She just hated the actual wrapping part.
Cake makes me happy, too! Wishing Tim a very Happy Birthday tomorrow. And I love those notes that Liz writes to herself. Reminders are always good, but I'm also up for a pep talk from myself. (And given my poor memory, I will probably forget about them and they'll be a delightful surprise.)
Don't be jealous, but in college I was a professional (part time) gift wrapper at a store called Marshall Field's. I loved it too. The other part of my job was to check in furs that ladies brought in for storage. I think at my highest earning time I got paid $3.25 an hour plus a 15% discount and I'm sure all if not more of my salary went right back to the store.
I didn't like wrapping gifts so much after a couple of Christmases at the jewelry store, but I do love to now. And the zzzuusssh of scissors gliding through the wrapping paper is one of my Favorite Things.
I love wrapping too. Whenever I have time, I get all fancy with bows and ribbons!
Whenever I find money in a pocket in some item of clothing I haven't worn in a while I say "Thanks, past Michelle!" Just this week I found $40 in the pocket of my winter coat! I must have been flush last winter. lol
After any big event or party, Tom and I usually sit down and have (what we call) a "post-mortem." We talk about what worked well and what didn't, and what we want to remember to do the NEXT TIME we do whatever event/party it is. We write it down as notes, and then we actually remember to refer to them again.It's kind of like your friend's notes to herself, but not quite as charming. (We also usually do our post-mortems over drinks. . . which makes it feel kinda special.) Have a great weekend, Bridget! XO (And Happy Birthday to Tim.)
gift bags makes wrapping delightful and I recycle them, as in using them every year. My animals make me happy and make me laugh daily.
Post a Comment