While I used to be afraid of seeming immodest, these days I talk about how awesome I am and I also invite you and others to talk about how awesome you are.
If it’s hard for you to see how awesome you are, keep looking. Ask people you know to talk about how awesome you are. (Many people find it easier to talk about how awesome you are than to talk about how awesome they are.)
It may be difficult to talk about how awesome you are when you’re not feeling your best, but who IS feeling their best these days? Even when you’re not feeling your best, you’re still awesome.
Maybe some of these images will help you talk about how awesome you are.
I won’t stop talking about group therapy, which is an awesome place to talk about how awesome you are.
Here‘s what I find when I search YouTube for “Talk about how awesome you are.”
We all need pep talks, from others (like Kid President) and from ourselves. So please talk about how awesome you are in the comments section, below.
Thanks to all who help me talk about how awesome we are, including YOU!
Why am I posting a photo of our late great cat Oscar today?Why did I order a book about Nashville?Why am I sometimes not wearing a mask outdoors?Why is there a mound of dirt in front of the local church?Why do I like taking pictures of animals wherever I go?Why did somebody hang an American flag and make it more difficult for people to get in their front door?Why do some vaccination locations in Boston give out cool buttons while others don’t?Why am I lucky enough to have a now-vaccinated husband who makes delicious meals like sablefish with figs?Why do I often take photos of Yogi tea sayings?Why do I love the Daily Bitch Calendar?Why does Harley love his favorite dry cat food, scorning EVERYTHING else except for popcorn?
Why am I engaging on Twitter these days?
Why did the late, great Professor Irwin Corey break down “Why” questions into two parts, where the first part was just “Why?” (which he could not really answer) and the second part was the rest of the question, which he simply answered “YES!”?
Let’s see how that works for today’s post, shall we?
The first part of all the questions I’ve asked today is Why?” “Why?” is a question that philosophers have been asking for millenniums. We all want to make meaning of what happens to us, and therefore we cry “Why?” from our souls into the world. “Why?” is ultimately unanswerable, especially by a humble person like me.
Now for the second parts of my “Why?” questions today:
Is “Why?” the title of my blog post today?
Do people ask “Why?” in my Coping and Healing groups?
Do songs pop into my head so easily?
Are those songs often Beatles songs?
Did I take all of these photos?
Am I posting a photo of our late great cat Oscar today?
Did I order a book about Nashville?
Am I sometimes not wearing a mask outdoors?
Is there a mound of dirt in front of the local church?
Do I like taking pictures of animals wherever I go?
Did somebody hang an American flag and make it more difficult for people to get in their front door?
Do some vaccination locations in Boston give out cool buttons while others don’t?
Am lucky enough to have a now-vaccinated husband who makes delicious meals like sablefish with figs?
Do I often take photos of Yogi tea sayings?
Do I love the Daily Bitch Calendar?
Does Harley love his favorite dry cat food, scorning EVERYTHING else except for popcorn?
Am I engaging on Twitter these days?
Did the late, great Professor Irwin Corey break down “Why” questions into two parts, where the first part was just “Why?” (which he could not really answer) and the second part was the rest of the question, which he simply answered “YES!”?
The answer to all those questions is “YES!”
Why do I ask for comments and express gratitude at the end of my blog posts?
Yesterday, when I was on my walk, the title of today’s post unexpectedly appeared to me when I encountered this unexpected appearance:
When Michael and I first saw our current home almost exactly four years ago, we saw the unexpected appearances of a rafter of wild turkeys in the neighborhood. I’ve expected other appearances of turkeys since then, but yesterday was the first time one unexpectedly appeared to me again.
The first night we moved in to our home by the bay, there was an unexpected appearance of a coyote walking near us on the beach. There have been many appearances of coyotes since then.
At this point, I guess I should expect the unexpected: appearances, disappearances, and everything else.
Are there more unexpected appearances in today’s other images?
Were any of those unexpected appearances particularly useful for you?
When I was looking at flowers yesterday, this Kenny Barron tune made an unexpected appearance in my headphones:
Later, while I was watching A Late Show with Stephen Colbert, there were more unexpected appearances, including this one:
Now I’m wondering if there are going to be unexpected appearances in the comments section, below.
Finally, here are the expected appearances of gratitude at the end of todays post.
Every day, no matter what this blog is about, I categorize it as “Personal growth” in the settings (which appear at the end of each post).
Do you see personal growth in today’s images?
I don’t know if the Daily Bitch would agree with this, but I believe that personal growth is mutual — if we witness somebody else’s personal growth, we personally grow too.
Yesterday, in therapy with someone who struggles with confrontation (and dealing effectively with confrontation is part of everyone’s personal growth), I mentioned how David Letterman used to make difficult phone calls for studio audience members.
Here’s something that Pat Metheny (who was sitting in with Dave’s band that night and who has helped me with my personal growth for decades) was playing with his group in 1995:
If you make a comment, that might help everybody’s personal growth.
Gratitude is part of personal growth, so thanks to everyone who accompanies me on this blogging journey, including YOU.
I never miss the Oscars, which I’ve been watching through all my aspirations and careers, including film school student.
Last night, I watched the Oscars without our late cat Oscar, who always deserved an Oscar for best supporting cat. For many reasons, watching last night’s Oscars just wasn’t the same.
How many Oscars do you see in today’s images?
Here’s the best all-round acceptance speech from last night’s Oscars:
Yuh-Jung Youn definitely deserves an Oscar and much more.
I have no Oscars to award today but just gratitude to all who help me create this daily blog, including YOU!
Yesterday, I saw this at Mialisa salon, where I was living the dream of getting a great haircut from the dreamy and fabulous Mia.
Mia is a dream of a hair stylist because she is
talented,
kind,
thoughtful,
curious,
authentic,
honest, and
never, ever shaming (even when I do a terrible job of cutting my own bangs).
I am living the dream because I am doing all that I can to spend precious moments on this earth with people (and other creatures) like Mia.
I am living the dream because I love my work as a group therapist.
I am living the dream because I’m working at being the hero of my own story and helping others to be the heroes of theirs.
I am living the dream because I have a healthy and hilarious husband and a healthy and wonderful son.
I am living the dream because I live near the ocean and am healthy enough to take walks every day.
I am living the dream because I just got a good night’s sleep with no disturbing dreams by slowing down my busy mind and reciting this over and over again: “We are all one, connected. I am at peace.”
I am living the dream because I’m going to Nashville in two weeks with my ukulele, my original songs, and a great haircut.
Do you see any signs of me living the dream in my other photos from yesterday?
I’m living the dream because I get to have Michael’s amazing tuna salad again today.
Since I have to renew this blog every day, sometimes I renew the title by reusing something from the news.
That photo from the Boston Globe might renew your memory of this photo from two days ago:
Life is renewed every day, and today I’m renewing
my hair with a visit to Mialisa salon,
my travel plans to Nashville, by talking with my friend Jenn in South Carolina,
my courage about traveling someplace I’ve never been before,
my hope that I’ll be able to connect with amazing blogger Christopher Waldrop while I’m there, and
my original song “Everybody’s Somebody’s Asshole,” to make it appropriate for family-friendly Open Mics in Nashville.
Life is renewed whenever I commit to being in the moment, so let’s renew by reviewing these moments together:
Life is renewed when we help another person, take a nap, and listen to music, like this renewal of Bach’s 2 Part Invention in D Minor by Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band:
Life is renewed whenever you authentically express your feelings and thoughts, so consider leaving a comment below.
Life is renewed by gratitude, so thanks to all who help me renew my life by blogging every day, including YOU.
People in my Coping and Healing groups yesterday focused on other people’s behaviors. These other people
ignore pandemic safety precautions like wearing masks and social distancing,
act like children,
violate requested limits and boundaries, and
were group members’ PARENTS.
When people talk to other people about other people’s behaviors in a support group, they realize they are not alone.
Other people’s behaviors are on my mind this morning, and I’m remembering something somebody said in group last night:
You can’t control other people’s behaviors; you can only control your reactions to them.
My Coping and Healing group, April 22, 2021
Can you see other people’s behaviors in any of today’s photos?
Harley, as he gets older, is less reactive to and scared of other people’s behaviors. Maybe he realizes he can only control his own behavior and that’s enough.
When I search YouTube for “other people’s behaviors,” I find this:
I very much appreciate Louise Evans’s behaviors in that 2017 Ted Talk, and I recommend that other people’s behaviors today include watching it whenever you can.
My behavior at the end of every post is to thank everyone whose behaviors help me create this daily blog, including YOU.
Thanks to fellow blogger and fellow tweeter Crispy Confessions for today’s title question: What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever done?
Stand up comedy may not actually be the scariest thing I’ve ever done (agreeing to have open heart surgery in 2016 might have been scarier), but it was the only time my whole body screamed “PLEASE, CAN WE JUST RUN AWAY NOW?!!!” moments before. Also, performing stand up comedy for the first time was something I willingly chose to do, whereas that valve replacement surgery wasn’t really a choice — it was more a matter of survival.
So I’m happy with my answer to the question, “What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever done?”
Taking walks during the rain yesterday was a little scary, but so is almost everything we’ve done since March 2020.
Love can be scary.
Zombies, being brainless, and awkward moments can be scary, too.
Here’s what I find on YouTube when I search for “What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever done?”
What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever done?
It’s never scary for me to express my gratitude to all who help me blog every day, including YOU!
The Year(s) of Living Non-Judgmentally 