2026 Happy Blog Challenge

  May 31st Yesterday I forgot that while most of us were out, there were bears on the property. A mama and her cub. I suspected there were bears nearby. They hung out not too far from one of the out buildings for quite a while. Some happy things from today: It was another full day at the store trying to get it packed and emptied.  I spent a bunch of time going up and down the ladder taking down lights and decorations from the ceiling.  People came and volunteered their time to help.  We are very thankful for that.   I took a before picture, but not an after picture.  😂 When I got home I realized I still had to do laundry.  Someone else was using it so I went to the old house to do it.  When that sells, that laundry option will be gone.  It was nice to see the irises blooming.   ☮ Continued listening to: Paladin's Strength , by T. Kingfisher.  Continued to read: No Time Like the Past , by Jodi Taylor.  Thank you for be...

 May 30th Some happy things from Saturday: Eventually I got motivated this morning and went to Keziah's store (store in hiatus) and sorted through totes and covers again to make pairs.  It seemed that I was the only one who could do this, and then another friend arrived and Keziah asked her to help me.  We worked together for a while and got things even more organized.  Eventually I left her to work on it while I went to archery practice.  She did a great job while I was gone.   So...Many...Totes... This was towards the beginning. There were many newcomers at archery practice today.  My shooting wasn't the greatest, I think because I was cold, but I still had fun.  It was good to meet a few people and visit with those I already know. Around dark, the U-Haul that was packed today was unloaded into the storage container at the house.  The totes with lids are being put to good use.   The night sky was glowing tonight. Soon after s...

May 29th Some happy things from today: Instead of paying for parking in the city, I parked near the studio and walked less than a mile to get to Keziah’s store.  At the studio, an employee has torn apart the steps to the building and will be putting granite ones in there.  I think it will look great. That picture of the stairs is the only one I took until evening because, for some reason I am forgetting to take pictures lately.  I was surprised at Keziah’s store today when I learned that people had decided to dress up for the last day that the store was open.  I didn’t get the memo, which is fine.  They all looked great.  But I wish I had taken some pictures.   Walking back to the studio in the evening is when I thought to take some pictures. I pulled out the phone camera for the roses and some other flowers. ☮ Continued listening to: Paladin's Strength , by T. Kingfisher.  Continued to read: No Time Like the Past , by Jodi Taylor.  Than...

 May 28th Happy Thursday things: It was my last day of the work week and it went well.  Next week I will be interviewing for the interim position I applied for a few weeks ago.  I learned that there are a total of eight people that applied for it.  I'm not holding my breath, but will try to continue to do my best and hope that is enough.  The hours would be 3 AM to 1:30 PM.  My work day would start a little later and that really appeals to me right now.  I'm happy this work week has come to a close and that I have made the decision to not try to pick up any extra hours over the weekend. It took me a while, but I was able to take a short nap after work and before going out this evening.   With an attempt at planning for Pennsic I met some friends at a local diner for dinner.  The couple is who I am hoping will someday be able to take over the Pennsic encampment so that I won't have to do it every year.  She has been doing the cooking...

 May 27th Here are some happy things from Wednesday: This was the second day in a row that I stayed a little bit late at work to finish clearing out the hazardous materials area.  Some days working in Haz Mat things go fast, other days there is research that needs to happen so that a product is disposed of properly.  On those days things take longer to do.  Today was a high research day.  I'm happy that things were completed. During a walk around the yard I noticed Irises blooming next to the driveway.  The geraniums that go most of the way around the front yard are starting to bloom.  There are some lilacs that are almost finished blooming and others that will be soon.  There are many lovely flowers, in different varieties, around the yard. Iris Geranium Lilac Lilac ☮ Continued listening to: Paladin's Strength , by T. Kingfisher.  Continued to read: No Time Like the Past , by Jodi Taylor.  Thank you for being here and being part of my d...

  May 26th Tuesday’s happy things: After work I went to DIY Craft and Thrift again to help Keziah and friends get the store ready to open tomorrow.  Only three more days and it will be closed indefinitely while they restructure the business.  I was exhausted from working all night. I rallied and some general cleaning up and vacuuming until it was time for me to go home.   One of Keziah’s friends came by to visit.  She is very pregnant and so the three of us had a conversation about pregnancy and childbirth.  Keziah was remembering being three and a half-ish when I had Bel.  This led to conversations about grandparents.  This led to tears as Keziah and I looked at each other remembering my mom.  It was happy memories bringing on tears of nostalgia and missing someone who is no longer with us.  Apparently my mom was the best Gramma ever. On the lighter side of happy I doodled today.  While on the phone with TF I found some color...

  May 25th Here are some happy things from today: This morning I made it to the studio for about ten minutes or so.  It was enough time to bring one thing there from the house and to take in two more pairs of jeans.  If I am right, all of the jeans I generally wear have now been taken in so that I won’t need a belt as much.  I’d love to say that this is because I have lost weight, but it is because I am pear shaped!   The rest of my day was spent helping out at DIY Craft and Thrift.  They are only open for three more days: Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.  Then we have two days to get everything that is left out and into storage.  I’m not sure what the timeline is on reopening.  Keziah has a long list of things to do.  Somehow, I think the hardest one will be to find a new location.   The backroom is mostly empty containers in the midst of being sorted. Keziah is trying to stay happy amid the turmoil. Shelves are getting e...

May 24th  Somehow, Sunday came too fast. Here are some happy things from today: After some procrastinating, I went to the laundromat to take care of that recurring task. I was able to go longer between washing and had garb to wash from last weekend. It was probably three loads at home. I sorted it into two loads for the laundromat. Being able to do it all at the same time was worth the trip. I’m happy that it is done.  Some general kitchen cleaning took a lot of my time. After that, I made time to tackle one of the boxes in my room. There is still a very large amount of things that I need to go through, sort, find a place for, or get rid of. It needs to become a priority again. There was a shirt or two that were the beginnings of a new donation pile. I did find my marbles in today’s box, so that was good. 😅  It is important to have one's marbles. There was rain today so I went on the treadmill for steps.  That makes a 223 day streak. ☮ Continued listenin...

  May 23rd Happy Saturday things! This morning I decided to go to work for a three hour shift that turned into three and a half hours.  It was good to be able to go in and help out.  By the time I left, a little after noon, I had my step count for the day. This coming Friday my daughter’s store, DIY Craft and Thrift, will be closing, hopefully temporarily.  The plan is to reopen as a non-profit organization.  The rent is too high and the volunteers that work there are burning out.  I went to help out this afternoon.  I started by untangling a bunch of yarn.  I find this very relaxing.   If only the customers didn't make a mess sometimes. My next task was to sort through the empty plastic containers and try to match up lids with the bottoms.  This is also something that many people might find tedious but I enjoyed it.  I started by sorting them by brand.  As I did that I looked for tops that went with the few bottoms t...

  May 22nd Some happy things from today: Last night I slept… for almost ten hours.  I did wake up in the wee hours of the morning for a short time.  I considered getting up and doing dishes and getting things done.  Instead, I fell back to sleep, thus achieving almost ten hours. The azalea flowers that I took a picture of earlier this week was from a well manicured bush. Most of them have opened and it is quite lovely. Azalea. Bel, Corvidae and I went out for breakfast this morning.  Well, it was my second breakfast and their first one.  It was also around noon.  😂  We went to the old house after and got some of the gardening supplies that were still there.  There is still much to do at the old house.  There is a cherry tree in the garden area that continues to live even though the trunk looks like it is half eaten by insects and critters.  I am amazed that it keeps holding on. Cherry Tree I went to Craft Night.  I would love...

  May 21st For some unknown reason I was unable to access my files to write my Blog on my phone on Thursday. Then I fell asleep from exhaustion. So, from my laptop, a day late, are my Happy Cemetery Day things: Work went well.  I ended the shift by almost completely catching up things in the Hazardous Materials Area.  I had to leave an hour early or those last three items would have been taken care of too.   After work Bel and Keziah picked me up so we could meet family members to plant flowers at the cemeteries.  This is a yearly tradition that I missed last year because I was backpacking. It was nice to visit with my family and clean up the grave stones.  We also went out to eat at Hodgie’s.  This is the first year I remember that they take cards.  They were cash only for a very long time.  I love their peppermint stick ice cream. Unfortunately my aunt’s barn has collapsed.  It was one of many fun little jaunts down memory lane....

 May 20th Happy Wednesday things: At work I got to spend the second part of the shift training new hires.  It is something I enjoy doing, I just wish I had a cheat sheet so I don't forget silly things that don't happen often. Another walk around the yard revealed more plants that I don't think I've shared yet… except the Lilac, expect to see lilacs until their season has passed.  Plants previously not known to me are sort of identified using Google Lens. This seems to be some kind of geranium. Burning bush. Possibly a lithodora or glandora diffusa. Maybe I'll get a better picture later when more buds open. Autumn Olive. Lilac.  ☮ Finished listening to: Paladin's Grace , by T. Kingfisher. Continued to read: No Time Like the Past , by Jodi Taylor. Thank you for being here and being part of my daily happy things. Stay safe!