These Are a Few of My Favorite Things...

Laughs: going through many old pictures.

Honestly, it doesn't much to make me happy.  By the time I got to Tuesday/Wednesday night, I was in a good place.  Here are some of the up's and down's, but mostly up's.

We've been remodeling and redecorating on a grand scale ("grant" in terms of us, not the Rockefellers) since 2009ish - a huge stressor for anyone, much less for those who are already sick.  What brings me down is that I'm too picky and a bit of a perfectionist. (OK, family, laugh to your heart's content about the "bit of a perfectionist.")  And the house is certainly not a "museum," as one my kids described my house, clean and clutter free.  No, dear one, you can't get out of your chores.  

Anyhoo, one of my biggest stressors is the renovations.  It kills me that because of my CFIDS/ME/CFS, fibromyalgia, migraines, severe insomnia, crushing fatigue and so forth, I can't supervise what happens in my own home.  Instead, I've had to put up with many days and weeks where I couldn't and can't oversee what was being done, to see if the work was up to par. The house had gone downhill tremendously because we had to spend any "discretionary" income/savings on three college educations at once. The construction started in 1997 when the roof had to be fixed for the gazzillionth time and continued through several more roof leaks and, in the process, having to fix the ruined ceilings and walls.  I'm beside myself because it IS my fault that things go at a tortoise's pace and that we can only have work done when hubs is around. (And he's so awful at it, though I must say that I've seen significant improvement!)

The house is literally falling apart around us.  We're constantly discovering new leaks again with the paint sliding downward, creating balloons in a few areas which then harden into a Plaster of Paris look and feel. 

Because I took on (too) many chores/projects in the last two days I know there will be a huge price to be paid. Hopefully, I'll have enough energy to get to my doctor's appointment tomorrow and THEN collapse.

So, what gets my mood feeling fantastic, perhaps breaking into a belly laugh from joy?

• When I see my makeup area cleared up, cosmetics in one spot/box, sunscreen, blushes in another, out of sight, all products in various boxes, I perk up. I love no clutter -  sayeth the hoarder!  It drives me crazy but I try to focus on the thought that in five years we'll hopefully be done so we can rest.  And realizing that I love my home as it hobbles into the 21st century is joy, though I try not to dwell on how OLD I'll be by then.
• When I've found a book that I really, really like. It's so uplifting!  And if I can handle the plot it's heaven.  That's quite the achievement for this CFIDS/ME/CFS and fibromyalgia gal.  I'm convinced that my daughter's two cats have better brains than do!
• When I can follow the plot of a book or even the characters.  (I'm hopeless with characters' names.)  I realize that I still have some sort of brain left...
• And then there's the beauty of the fresh produce that's coming in, as we hit real  harvest times. Our produce market has fantastic fruits and vegetables all year long but it's most especially wonderful in the spring, going into summer. (Can't wait for the homegrown tomatoes to come in.)
• Looking out the window and seeing perennials coming up. Enjoying the fresh air: well, as soon as I get the energy to venture outdoors. Hope springs eternal!
• When I discover new followers on my blog. (Yippee and hint! hint! please subscribe.) 
• Rearranging my books into categories on book shelves. 
• Finding books I'd forgotten I had - but hadn't read yet.
• Red poppy growing with purple irises... gorgeous.

Looking at my family's and my BFF's family pictures seeing how our kids changed over the years.  The best jackpot is sending great photographs to each other when we discover a picture of an ancestor: great-great grandparents and then we dissect him/her for hours, LONG DISTANCE!  And great belly laughs when we realize that we don't have the same genes!)

And there you have it.  I certainly hope that everyone's doing their best - only better. Ciao and paka.


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