Ever struggle to come up with a gratitude list? I have.
It doesn’t make you an ingrate. It’s tough sometimes to get creative, so I hope this A to Z Challenge will bring a little spark out in me. For Day 2, the letter, as you might predict, is B.
Friday is #GratitudeAndShit Day here, so everything must start with the letter B.
Bert and Ernie would be proud. I’m doing five, not 10, items of gratitude. For all the folks who are trying to read a ton of blogs every day, dropping 1K words on them is cruel.
1. Bibster, the old dude cat
The young guns around here tend to overshadow my old boy, who is up there in double-digits (old, for a cat.) Yet, he’s still a badass, living in his little lean-to by the house and chasing off young cats who drift near his kibble. He’s like that old dude at the gym who you know could kick your ass.
2. Baseball
Baseball, I’m certain, is Hebrew for “great eternal hope in the face of having no reason for hope at all.” Pundits have predicted another abysmal season for my beloved Colorado Rockies. But I felt jitters on Opening Day and jubilation when they closed out the hated dodgers 8-5. #We’reNumberOne
3. Before COVID times
We were wild and maskless, jamming into elevators and coughing out into the ether with no regard. (Well, some of us.) We skipped work for day baseball and kissed with wild abandon. (Well, a few of us.) We didn’t know what was about to hit, which leads me to believe we’ll so appreciate the day we can do it all again (Well, most of us.)
4. Better lives
… as a goal, to assess, especially in lockdown, what we wanted to leave in, what we could leave out. It hasn’t been a perfect ride for me, and I want to bring back some of the good stuff I learned along the way. But tonight, I’m better than I was last night, and that’s something not insignificant.
5. By the birdbath
That’s where Jayda always sat and waited for me to serve her meals throughout the day. She went missing a couple of days after getting spayed, and I missed her. Yesterday, she sat like a loaf of bread in that spot and I definitely gave thanks.
What are you grateful for today? Bonus if it starts with the letter B.
A to Z Challenge
A is for A new name for this blog
-30-
Just a dad ... 
Today I’m grateful for discernment, for spirit, and for reaching a place of surrender about something that was stressing me out. And for some scrumptious buns I bought today .
good choice of b’s. especially #2 -did you see Cabrera’s Snow White out blizzard homer yesterday at our opening day? he slid into 2nd because he couldn’t see that he hit a homer and someone had to tell him)
Beth, you’re another B I’m thankful for. I did see that home run! Nice win, too. Some dumb sports reporting said he did it to celebrate, the slide. But you’re right … he couldn’t see that it was a home run!
Did you see the home run the dodgers hit against my Rockies that didn’t count? The clown who hit it passed the clown on first base who thought it was an out and was rushing back to first base. I cried no tears for that one 🙂
Omg
I’m grateful for my Best Friend. We’ve been friends for 45 years. She keeps me grounded and will sometimes call me a b*tch – always in good humour. 😀
Best friends must be awesome, right Lyn? And yes, that other B word, (I’ll say it, bitch) can often be a term of endearment today. Much love 🙂
LOL yep, we call each other the B word periodically – but always in love. 💜
B💜tches, that’s a thing.
I’m grateful for my boys, ages 12 and 8. I’m so often focused on getting through the day that I forget to pause and appreciate them as they are now: their sweet, sleepy-eyed good mornings, their video game obsessions and trampoline breaks, and their willingness to serve as an encyclopedia of all things Avengers when watching WandaVision.
Boys, that counts as a B, Liz! I love the tribute here, and your realization that we need to appreciate the current state of kids, always.
Beautifully done, fellow TNR warrior!
It’s not easy, Sharon. I know it’s for the best overall, but I struggled with the decisions on Jayda and Nash. Jayda is Nash’s mother.
Late in 2020, I trapped, had neutered, and released Nash. After a couple of days, he disappeared. My hope is he found new stomping grounds, or was adopted, although he’s feral like his mother.
Jayda was in recovery for almost a week, and was understandably skittish upon release. She comes only at dusk and dawn, and I missed feeding her this morning. I hope she’ll grow to trust me again. It was a wonderful part of my day, working at home, to see her by the birdbath waiting for me to fed her. I’d stand outside with her until she was done, and she’d often finish, stretch, bathe, and sit close to me for several minutes before sauntering off into the woods again. Now, she comes in the cover of dark and darts away after eating.
I’m grateful that she’s in better position to have a healthier life, though, being fixed and getting her vaccines.
So glad you’re a warrior, too. It’s not always easy.
Eli, great to read you again… I know you’ve been posting but I miss reading or if I do it’s a quick glance through the post and a smile and then on to something else. Most of the time it’s to the urgent and not the important, but it takes off the present. Gratitude is the key to life.. I do a fair job, but I can do better. Love your B list – baseball is my favorite and though I don’t have a Bibster the cat I have two dogs Ivy and Fern and I am thankful for them. Stay safe and well. Peace dude.
Clay, good to see you, my friend. I’ve been trying to filter the urgent and important too, and little by little, I’m seeing some progress. Peace to you, my man, and to those two dogs.
Thanks Rockies, for beating the Dodgers! I’d love to see more of that.
Yes! Although we won’t talk about how the rest of the weekend went … who is your team, Liam?
I grew up a Mets fan but from living in Boston for 23 years I’ve adopted the Red Sox as my second team.
Great post. Bibster is a cutie. How kind of you to help the stray, I hope she gains trust quickly.
Thank you Ellen! I love this sweet girl, and I want to trap the two boy cats (and two others who have come once and I’ve not seen since) if I can.
Bodacious list of gratitudes Eli. I’ve got bees on my list. I’m always reminded of a saying taught to me when I was young – “see a flower, thank a bee.” I love flowers, and hence I love bees.
That’s one of the Best words for B, isn’t it Deborah? Bees are good too, so long as they don’t sting me. This is the season! I considered becoming a beekeeper this spring … true story.
Gratitude lists are great! I actually posted a blog a few months ago about rethinking my gratitude list during COVID. There are always moments to be grateful for no matter what is happening. My B grateful for today would be that my Brother painted all the new cabinets at my dad’s house so now I only need to do a final coat and that we bought bagels for breakfast tomorrow. Yum! Gratitude big and small.Weekends In Maine
Gratitude of all sizes is needed, for sure. COVID definitely redefined gratitude in some ways, didn’t it? Here’s hoping the Brother and Bagels wishes came true!
Glad your kitty friend came back!! 🙂
Me too, Janice. She was less skittish with me today, and hopefully more tomorrow. She’s late for dinner tonight, but I’m looking out!
It was awesome to watch the first Cardinals baseball game yesterday. Even sweeter that they beat up on the Reds
Looks like the Cardinals and Reds got stuff started with a little heat this weekend. The next three days didn’t go very well for my Rockies … but there’s 158 games to go.
I feel like grumpy Statler or Waldorf but I’ll say it anyway: Baseball was on TV as we sat down in a restaurant in Vancouver a few years ago. We asked the waiter if there was any chance to change the channel to a hockey game? His response was priceless: “You’re my kind of people. Baseball feels like a lot of excitement for… not much to happen, doesn’t it.”
I’m grateful for the Brownies I made today. You may not approve because they contain shredded carrots, but don’t don’t knock it till you try it.
https://thethreegerbers.blogspot.com/2021/04/a-z-2021-cross-that-bridge-when-you.html
I think people could also say hockey is a lot of action and not a lot of scoring! Luckily, I like both. I can deal with carrots in my brownies – just don’t tell me about it.