Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Happy, Thankful


  1. You are alive.
  2. You are able to see the sunrise and the sunset.
  3. You are able to hear birds sing and waves crash.
  4. You can walk outside and feel the breeze through your hair and the sun’s warmth on your skin.
  5. You have tasted the sweetness of chocolate cake.
  6. You didn’t go to sleep hungry last night.
  7. You awoke this morning with a roof over your head.
  8. You had a choice of what clothes to wear.
  9. You haven’t feared for your life today.
  10. You have overcome some considerable obstacles, and you have learned and survived.
  11. You often worry about what you’re going to do with your life – your career, your family, the next step, etc. – which means you have ambition, passion, drive, and the freedom to make your own decisions.
  12. You live in a country that protects your basic human rights and civil liberties.
  13. You are reasonably strong and healthy – if you got sick today, you could recover.
  14. You have a friend or relative who misses you and looks forward to your next visit.
  15. You have someone with whom to reminisce about ‘the good old days.’
  16. You have access to clean drinking water.
  17. You have access to medical care.
  18. You have access to the Internet.
  19. You can read.
Life is pretty good.

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Weekend Road Trip


I love three day weekends.  
Over the summer I had Mondays off every week.  While that was pretty great, there's something about those long weekends that only come around sporadically that makes a person appreciate them even more. 
On a recent three day weekend in October, Ryan and I took a mini road trip from Portland to Seattle and back down to the Oregon coast.      
What?  You don't fish while waiting for the ferry?