Day 2882: Wait for it.

Wait for it.

Joe Biden has been declared the next President of the United States. Again.

Wait for it.

I sang “The Impossible Wait” at a remote Open Mic last night.

Wait for it.

I had to wait until everybody else had performed first.

Wait for it.

My ex-husband wrote me this: “That was worth waiting for. I hope it was recorded. If it gets posted online it could make you a star.”

Wait for it.

Wait for the photos I took yesterday.

Wait for it.

It takes steadiness, character, and commitment to wait for it.

For those who are waiting for my 3000th blog post, I’ll be publishing that on a very special day.

Wait for it.

Unless I’ve miscounted,* that special day is the long-awaited inauguration of Joe Biden as President and Kamala Harris as Vice President of the United States.

Wait for that day, along with millions of others. Good things come to those who wait.

If you have any thoughts and feelings about this wait-for-it post, don’t wait to express yourself in a comment, below.

Wait for my gratitude to all who have helped me create this daily blog since January 1, 2013, including YOU.

* I TOTALLY miscounted. Next time, I’ll wait to check my math before I publish a post. Those will both be special days, but not the same one. I’ve been waiting to be more forgiving of myself when I make mistakes, and that special day is here!

Day 2869: Dancing in the streets!

Yesterday, after Joe Biden was finally projected to be the next President of the United States, there was dancing in the streets!

While there was dancing in the streets all around the world, I took these photos on a gorgeous day:

Michael didn’t dance in the streets with my friend Barbara and me, but he danced in his own way yesterday.

I’m looking forward to many more days of dancing in the streets (which I do when I listen to music, no matter what day it is). There’s sure to be a lot more hope and joy in my street dancing now.

Thanks to Barbara, Michael, everybody dancing in the streets, and YOU!

Day 2864: Election Day 2020

I’ve been thinking about Election Day 2020 since Election Day 2016, and now it’s here!

I’m going to spend Election Day 2020 with my fingers crossed, working and watching from home, and probably capturing images like these:

How are you going to spend Election Day 2020?

I’ve already spent part of Election Day 2020 looking for music to share in this post. Here is “Election day BIDEN HARRIS Music video: ALL ON THE LINE” by Andres Useche.

I’ll also be spending Election Day 2020 expressing gratitude for all who helped me get here, including YOU.

Day 2784: Antidepressants

As a clinical social worker, I cannot prescribe antidepressants, so I talk to people about other types of antidepressants, which I like to call “personal medicine.”

Do you see any antidepressants here?

For me, all those images are antidepressants, including that homemade, well-worn window sign that says “THANK YOU HEALTH CARE WORKERS.”

What are your antidepressants, these days?

Music is  an antidepressant for many.   Here are Blood, Sweat & Tears performing “Manic Depression” in 1980:

Comments are also antidepressants for me, so I look forward to taking that personal medicine later today.

As always, gratitude is an antidepressant, so thanks to all (including YOU) who help me combat depression with this daily blog!

 

Day 2782: More smiles

I’m writing yet another blog post about smiles because of this description of Kamala Harris from today’s news …

Gliding past President Donald Trump’s sexist depictions of her as “mean” and “nasty,” the senator from California shredded Trump’s White House record with the agility that comes from her years as a courtroom prosecutor. Yet she delivered those critiques with bright notes of hope and optimism — accentuated by the smiles that are expected from female politicians.

… and because of this mask:

I’m also thinking of the smiles (and other facial expressions) I’ve been having about “We Have Her Back” , a memo sent by a coalition of powerful women to the news media calling for anti-sexist and anti-racist reporting, which includes this:

“Women have been subject to stereotypes and tropes about qualifications, leadership, looks, relationships and experience. Those stereotypes are often amplified and weaponized for Black and Brown women.”

I smile thinking how often the current President of my  group therapy organization  and I tell each other that we’ve got each others backs. I also smile thinking about this bag I gave her last year:

Now, my smiles are related to all the pre-pandemic photos I went through in order to find that one.

Can we find more smiles in these recent photos?

 

Which photos made more smiles for you?

Here‘s “More Smiles” by The Jump Ups:

There are more smiles in this video of these twin brothers hearing Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” for the first time:

And more smiles as I watch the twins listen for the first time to Whitney Houston, singing another Dolly Parton-written song:

 

I’m looking forward to more smiles when I read the comments on this “More Smiles” post.

More smiles and thanks for all who help me smile as I create this daily blog, including YOU.

Day 2781: It’s going to be a really ____ day

Hello, my really wonderful readers!

On this really ____ day,  how would you fill in the blank in today’s title?

Yesterday, I woke up thinking it was going to be a really difficult, depressing, demoralizing, down, distressing, disheartening, discouraging, and dismal day (and those were just the d-words I had in my mind). After I wrote yesterday’s blog post, I felt better, but I still thought it was going to be a really difficult, etc. day. And my day became less disheartening but still difficult as I worked with people in individual and group therapy.

Then, when it was announced that Joe Biden‘s  running mate would be Kamala Harris, the whole day really changed for me and I really believed this mug I’d been using during that previously really down day:

For me, trust turns a really bad day into a really good one.  What about you?

It’s going to be a really ____ day, according to my other photos:

It’s going to be a really distant day when I go to a mall again.

It’s going to be a really weird day when I forget to share music with you. Here‘s “Good Day” written by Nik Day, sung by Liahona Olayan, and featured in the 2020 Youth Music Festival …

… and here‘s “Good Day” by Nappy Roots …

… with this very good comment on YouTube:

TrulyRJ
3 months ago
Let’s play this song when quarantine is over !

I look forward to very ____ comments on this very ___ day.

Every day is a grateful day, so thanks to all who help me create this very ____ blog every ____ day, including YOU!

Day 2220: Heartbreak to Happiness

Yesterday, I went from heartbreak (about my wonderful, trusted, and long-time cardiologist Dr. Mark Estes leaving Boston) to happiness about the kindness, caring, commitment, and competency of my new cardiologist, Dr. Munther Homoud.

While I was waiting to see Dr. Homoud for the first time, I noticed all this:

 

 

 

I’ve gone from heartbreak to happiness about my unusual congenital heart disorder many, many times during my almost sixty-six years on this planet.   At this point, after a miraculous and happy time when my heart reverted to a normal rhythm after my valve replacement surgery in 2016, my heart is back in atrial fibrillation for the rest of my life.  I have no heartbreak about that, only happiness because of my caring and committed team of cardiologists.

Do you see any paths from heartbreak to happiness in my other photos from yesterday?

 

 

My boyfriend Michael (who makes my heart happy  with his nutritious, delicious, low-salt home-cooked meals) helps me go from heartbreak to happiness, every day.  Last night, after a  typical heartbreak-to-happiness-to-heartbreak-to-happiness day, we danced to this:

What helps you go from heartbreak to happiness? For me, gratitude always helps.