Day 3652: Make Up Your Mind Day

Today, according to the National Day Calendar site, is Make Up Your Mind Day.

I can’t make up my mind about many things, including whether people across the United States really observe Make Up Your Mind Day. However, I am celebrating, on New Years Eve Day and No Interruptions Day, the fact that I have finally made up my mind (after many interruptions) about the tiles, the fixtures, etc. to repair our severely water-damaged shower.

I don’t know why it takes me so long to make up my mind about certain things — maybe it’s a fear of making a mistake and having to live with it.

I do know that I easily made up my mind to spend a few days in NYC with my only son, Aaron. I’m so grateful I made up my mind to try to have a child in my 40s, after doctors changed their minds about whether it was advisable for someone with an unusual heart like mine to have a baby.

Now I’m going to make up my mind about how to arrange the images I have to share with you today.

I made up my mind to ask that question on Twitter after Aaron and I discussed who we would like to be interviewed by (among many other topics) on the train to NYC and before I saw that Barbara Walters had died.

There were many images I didn’t capture yesterday — including the throngs of people in Times Square and a local TV personality reporting about it — but I’m making up my mind, here and now, to let go of regrets about what I haven’t or have done in the past. I’ve also made up my mind to focus on hope and joy, even when there is so much pain and suffering in the world.

I’m glad I made up my mind for us to see “A Strange Loop” last night before it closes next month on Broadway. I’ve made up my mind to share this with you today:

Now I have to make up my mind about how Aaron and I are going to spend this precious day, besides finally seeing the musical Merrily We Roll Along together.

I hope you make up your mind to leave a comment below.

Every day, I make up my mind to end this blog with gratitude for YOU.

Day 3651: Highlights

As the end of every year, I make a list of my personal bests and worsts — the highlights and the lowlights.

Yesterday, I told my son that he’s always a highlight, no matter what the year. We also discussed how it can be easier to remember the worsts than the bests, so it might take effort to remember the highlights.

I expect that our trip to NYC today will be a highlight of 2022. Can you see highlights in my images for today?

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The Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning musical “A Strange Loop” is sure to be a highlight of our trip to NYC. Here are highlights from that musical:

Thanks to all those who are highlights to me, including YOU!

Day 3650: Changes over time

I’ve been contemplating changes over time because

• We’re approaching the end of another year,
• I’m approaching my 10th anniversary of daily blogging,
• I’m approaching my 70th birthday,
• My 24-year-old son (who has changed over time, of course) and I have been talking about changes over time,
• Plans for our shower remodel are FINALLY set after many changes over time, and
• There have been changes over time at Twitter (and everywhere else, actually).

Do you see changes over time in my images for today?

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Here’s what I find on National Tick Tock Day when I search YouTube for “changes over time.”

What are your thoughts and feelings about changes over time?

Timeless thanks to all who experience changes over time, including YOU.

Day 3649: Upliftment

I’m thinking about upliftment, here and now, because I saw this last night.

As I approach the completion of my 10th year of daily blogging, I only hope that my thoughts give hope, guidance, and upliftment to all (or, at least, to some). I know that blogging has given me the upliftment I’ve needed to face medical and other challenges, big and small, over the years.

And while “upliftment” keeps getting flagged by spellcheck …

… it gives me upliftment to discover that it really is a word!

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I like how that definition of upliftment says “countable and uncountable” because (1) that covers everything and (2) I believe everything counts.

Can you find countable and uncountable upliftment in my images for today?

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I get upliftment by arranging and sharing the images in these posts (including, today, four photos taken by my ex-husband Leon during the upliftment of Christmas Eve).

I can only guess what I’ll find when I search YouTube for “upliftment.”

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I also find “Upliftment” by Colah Colah.

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Thanks to all who give me upliftment, including YOU!

Day 3648: An important date

Today is an important date because

• it’s the third anniversary of when Michael and I got married (after many important dates),
• my son Aaron is coming over to stay for a few days before we take a trip together to New York,
• every day is an important date for somebody, and
• I have all these images to share with you.

Today is CLEARLY an important date.

Here’s what I find when I search YouTube for “an important date.”

Thanks to all who make every day an important date for me, including YOU!

Day 3647: Proud

When I asked this question on Twitter last night …

… I knew that some people would respond that being proud was not a good thing, while others would happily cite family members and their own accomplishments.

The definition of “proud” reflects this dichotomy:

Last week in a therapy group, I invited people to brag about themselves and, similarly, some people easily described what they were proud of and others struggled with that.

I think that many of us have been taught that pride is a sin and I’m proud of the fact that I’ve helped people realize that it is not a sin, but rather a healthy connection with one’s own self worth.

I’m proud that I wrote the above quickly with minimal rewriting and I’m proud that I’ve gathered all these images for you today:

The Daily Bitch seems proud about her relationship with cheese.

Here’s what I find on YouTube when I search for “proud.”

What something you’re proud of?

I’m proud that I have so many wonderful people in my life, including YOU.

Day 3646: Comfort

Last night, at a family Christmas Eve celebration, I saw this:

Because I feel so much comfort (and joy, which I’m just noticing now) in the presence of loved ones, I comfortably thought, “‘Comfort’ is the title of tomorrow’s blog post.”

Do you see comfort in my other images for today?

Puns are a comfort to me (although not to everyone).

Here’s Annie Lennox singing the Christmas song with “comfort” in it:

I find comfort in Nat King Cole’s version …

… and in this one by Simon & Garfunkel:

I also find comfort in the line “let nothing you dismay.”

Thanks to all who give me comfort every day, including YOU!

Day 3645: No worries

No worries, here and now, because

• I’m on vacation,
• I’m seeing my son and other beloved family members tonight and tomorrow,
• Almost everyone I love is healthy,
• I’ve got all my Christmas shopping done, and
• Worry never helps. It just doesn’t.

No worries about the images I have to share with you today.

No worries is a bitchin’ goal for many of us.

Here’s what I find on YouTube when I search for “no worries.”

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No worries but lots of gratitude for YOU!

Day 3644: Adapting

Yesterday, as I was adapting to …

• being back on-call for mental health crises throughout the hospital’s primary care practice,
• health insurance barriers to my own primary care practitioner’s easy coordination with medical specialists in different facilities,
• difficulty getting a prescription filled at my local pharmacy,
• a huge bill for the ambulance that took me to a hospital in Georgia after I had a T.I.A. (or mini-stroke) during my vacation in September,
• new advice about our months-long shower remodel,
• technological glitches as I was facilitating two remote therapy groups,
• more unexpected changes at Twitter, and
• countless other curve balls in the baseball game of life,

… I witnessed many people adapting creatively to their own life challenges, in my therapy groups and elsewhere.

Do you see adapting in my images for today?

As usual, I appreciate the Daily Bitch’s strategies for adapting.

Here’s what I find when I search for “adapting” on YouTube:

I also find this:

Thanks to all who help with my adapting to every new day, including YOU.

Day 3643: At this point

At this point, I use this blog to prepare myself for the day ahead and also to share thoughts and images with you.

At this point, I find inspiration from many sources, including The Daily Bitch calendar.

At this point, I’m ready to share my other images for today.

At this point, I’m grateful to be alive and explore every day (although Joan the cat might be more adventurous than I am at this point).

Here’s what I find on YouTube when I search for “at this point.”

At this point in every blog post, I express my thanks to those who’ve helped me get to this precious point in my long life, including YOU!