What brings you joy these days?

[missy]

We live in strange and challenging times.
What is bringing you joy these days?

I'll start.

I try focusing on the small things and not thinking too far ahead.
Taking it one day at a time.
Grateful so far we are all OK.

And as cliche as it sounds helping others really does make a difference to my mood so not altruistic behavior at all because I too am getting something from it. Bringing food to my elderly neighbors and donating supplies to our local animal charities. If I could donate blood I would but unfortunately I don't meet the requirements. Right now that is. If I keep gaining weight I will be able to donate so I am slowly getting there.

And when I start feeling stressed and/or anxious I refocus my attention on something else that helps distract me from what is making me unhappy. We cannot control what is happening in the world but we can control how we look at it and feel about it.

And, this is important, I don't stress about being happy. I just take joy in the small moments. Like just playing cards with my DH or listening to some great music with him. Taking a short walk with my DH. Dodging people as best we can. These small things do bring me joy. Wearing a mask doesn't bring me joy but the fact that wearing one allows us to take a short walk does make it worthwhile.


To answer my question "what is bringing me joy these days" I guess there is no one thing but rather it is the fact that I am safe and sound with my dh and 4 kitties in our house. That my family is safe and sound in their homes. And the knowledge that we are going to get through this. One day at a time. And when that feels too overwhelming I am taking it one hour at a time.


And I am so not bored. I know some of my friends are saying they are bored. IDK why but I am just not bored. It seems the days fly by somehow and I just am not feeling bored in the least.


I guess I am not cool enough to be bored.

 

[dk168]

My pets are my rocks and constantly bring me joy.

Also progressing with my ability to play the clarinet, cooking and eating my own food, admiring the handiwork of my cross-stitching, and revising my French.

Virtual/online activities such as clarinet lessons, choir practices and social interactions also bring me joy.

However, I do need to be careful not to let others' negativity bother me, so I would just ignore and block.

DK

 

[Jadeite_101]

What brings me joy these days?

Taking care if my 15yo Chow Chow. Have had her half my life. Wouldn’t trade her for the world.

Reading makes me happy. Learning makes me happy. Realizing that there’s so much out there I still need to learn brings me joy and peace.

May sound cheesy but somehow PS makes me happy. Talking to like minded afficionados of gems and jewelry. Even friendly banter in Hangout makes me happy.

Facetime with my family and friends at night makes me happy.

Eating makes me happy. Something I never enjoyed and took for granted before now gives me that feeling of joy that I am able to eat.

A new found appreciation of my collections make me happy.

New found appreciation of photography makes me happy.

And lastly the Good health of my family and friends make me especially happy and thankful.

 

[missy]

My pets are my rocks and constantly bring me joy.

Also progressing with my ability to play the clarinet, cooking and eating my own food, admiring the handiwork of my cross-stitching, and revising my French.

Virtual/online activities such as clarinet lessons, choir practices and social interactions also bring me joy.

However, I do need to be careful not to let others' negativity bother me, so I would just ignore and block.

DK

I love your list. The furbabies are a source of joy. And so cool that you enjoy the clarinet. I used to play the clarinet when I was young and in fact played at Carnegie Hall with the All Boro Band when I was a teenager. Twice. As for other's negativity I am with you. That can bring one down and perhaps is as infecting as Covid 19. Staying away from negative people is a lifesaver.

Love that you ae taking French lessons. The french language is one of the most beautiful sounding to my ear. And it was the French who gave us the term joie de vivre.

 

[missy]

What brings me joy these days?

Taking care if my 15yo Chow Chow. Have had her half my life. Wouldn’t trade her for the world.

Reading makes me happy. Learning makes me happy. Realizing that there’s so much out there I still need to learn brings me joy and peace.

May sound cheesy but somehow PS makes me happy. Talking to like minded afficionados of gems and jewelry. Even friendly banter in Hangout makes me happy.

Facetime with my family and friends at night makes me happy.

Eating makes me happy. Something I never enjoyed and took for granted before now gives me that feeling of joy that I am able to eat.

A new found appreciation of my collections make me happy.

New found appreciation of photography makes me happy.

And lastly the Good health of my family and friends make me especially happy and thankful.

Does not sound cheesy at all. I love your entire list. And please hug your sweet Chow Chow from me.

 

[737liz]

My cat. We lent out fatcat to someone for lockdown but lessfatcat is more than making up for it by being incredibly demanding. She has taken to lying on my face. Presumably to assert total dominance and to humiliate me, but I choose to interpret it as love.

The blooming flowers, even daisies through the cracks of the pavement, on my walk to and from work. I have decided not to take public transportation to avoid potential infection and transmission.

Hearing all the birds chirping, even through a closed window, because the cars have stopped and they can finally be heard.

Seeing the beautiful bling people have been posting. Goes without saying.

And not necessarily joy, but gratitude that I live in one of the more developped countries, with a partner who earns a good living, and therefore am less at risk of losing everything, whether it's my life or livelihood. This is double edged as it also makes me sad that this is not the case for everyone.

And silly as this sounds, I'm grateful for my rum collection. My every dwindling rum collection.

 

[missy]

My cat. We lent out fatcat to someone for lockdown but lessfatcat is more than making up for it by being incredibly demanding. She has taken to lying on my face. Presumably to assert total dominance and to humiliate me, but I choose to interpret it as love.

The blooming flowers, even daisies through the cracks of the pavement, on my walk to and from work. I have decided not to take public transportation to avoid potential infection and transmission.

Hearing all the birds chirping, even through a closed window, because the cars have stopped and they can finally be heard.

Seeing the beautiful bling people have been posting. Goes without saying.

And not necessarily joy, but gratitude that I live in one of the more developped countries, with a partner who earns a good living, and therefore am less at risk of losing everything, whether it's my life or livelihood. This is double edged as it also makes me sad that this is not the case for everyone.

And silly as this sounds, I'm grateful for my rum collection. My every dwindling rum collection.

I am loving your list. Yes to it all.

I have a question. Why is your rum collection dwindling? Is it hard to source rum these days? IDK where you are located but I am curious as to what is happening with rum. Since here at least liquor stores are considered essential and are all open and delivering. And as far as I can see they have rum.

 

[dk168]

Oh, and I am going to start making the major component of this year's seasonal greeting cards, now that the requirement materials have arrived, woo hoo!

I like to start early and order mine from one of the online card shops around October time to benefit their early bird discount.

Even when I made them from scratch in the past rather than to order photo cards online, I would start around October.

However, I may as well start now when time is on my side, as I am likely to travel to Vancouver to visit my folks or out and about in my camper van towards the end of this year.


DK

 

[missy]

The blooms bring me joy as well.

 

[737liz]

I am loving your list. Yes to it all.

I have a question. Why is your rum collation dwindling?

I wish I could say it were a case of of short supply. No, it's a case of frequent consumption we are movingin 6 weeks time and it makes sense to abstain from buying more until then. We are not abstaining from drinking it though. I do know that quite a few operations are shutting down for the moment, but since the aged run takes years, there isn't a shortage. We are in Switzerland, and the only shortage we have at the moment is (still) toilet paper.

 

[missy]

I wish I could say it were a case of of short supply. No, it's a case of frequent consumption we are movingin 6 weeks time and it makes sense to abstain from buying more until then. We are not abstaining from drinking it though. I do know that quite a few operations are shutting down for the moment, but since the aged run takes years, there isn't a shortage. We are in Switzerland, and the only shortage we have at the moment is (still) toilet paper.

Ok so you can just re create/re stock after your move. Whew! That is a relief. Good luck with your move! And let's hope the TP shortage resolves soon. That is something that seems we are all needing a little bit more of these days. Never in a million years would I have imagined this.

 

[MarionC]

Missy, thanks for the reminder! This was Saturday. Whenever I have a camera in hand and do a walk about things improve drastically.

 

[missy]

Missy, thanks for the reminder! This was Saturday. Whenever I have a camera in hand and do a walk about things improve drastically.

Your photos are some of the things that bring me joy @Jimmianne. Thank you.

 

[Ally T]

Gorgeous photos @missy @Jimmianne

I am getting joy (& this is serious) for every morning when we are all at breakfast, with nobody displaying fever or new cough. I feel far more relaxed about this now that we're into wk 5 of lockdown than I did on wks 1-3, but I still say a thank you in my head.

I am also really enjoying having my little family at home. I collect us all together each afternoon & we head out into the glorious fields & sunshine. Sometimes we walk for an hour, sometimes we stop at a gate & let the girls climb & we just chat. And when school work is done & Mr T has finished working, we are having some really lovely quality time that we wouldn't normally get, due to evening swimming or ballet classes & Mr T not getting home until late or being away.

The blossom trees are all heaving with the most glorious colours right now.

The sky has been bright sapphire blue for weeks.

The sunshine is warm.

My house is the cleanest it has ever been

 

[elizat]

@Jimmianne that looks charming!

 

[missy]

Gorgeous photos @missy @Jimmianne

I am getting joy (& this is serious) for every morning when we are all at breakfast, with nobody displaying fever or new cough. I feel far more relaxed about this now that we're into wk 5 of lockdown than I did on wks 1-3, but I still say a thank you in my head.

I am also really enjoying having my little family at home. I collect us all together each afternoon & we head out into the glorious fields & sunshine. Sometimes we walk for an hour, sometimes we stop at a gate & let the girls climb & we just chat. And when school work is done & Mr T has finished working, we are having some really lovely quality time that we wouldn't normally get, due to evening swimming or ballet classes & Mr T not getting home until late.

The blossom trees are all heaving with the most glorious colours right now.

The sky has been bright sapphire blue for weeks.

The sunshine is warm.

My house is the cleanest it has ever been

I can just see you with your lovely family enjoying your walks in the warm sunshine amidst the flowers. .

 

[elizat]

We are both working from home. He has had to go on base a few times for classified stuff. We basically just go to the grocery and to get takeout, like everyone else!

But, we are liking evening walks with the dogs. We just moved into a new neighborhood and it is nice to check it out. We take a different route each time.

It's getting warm enough to swim. The pool water is still a little chilly, but I trying to swim a few times a week.

We have been cooking more together. That's been nice and fun.

 

[missy]

We are both working from home. He has had to go on base a few times for classified stuff. We basically just go to the grocery and to get takeout, like everyone else!

But, we are liking evening walks with the dogs. We just moved into a new neighborhood and it is nice to check it out. We take a different route each time.

It's getting warm enough to swim. The pool water is still a little chilly, but I trying to swim a few times a week.

We have been cooking more together. That's been nice and fun.

That sounds lovely. The silver lining in all of this. Rediscovering quiet time with our loved ones.

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

Planning for the future

 

[missy]

Planning for the future

Oh well that’s the very definition of “bundle of joy”

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

My family. Like @Alex T it's positive to have time together. Even if we all miss the ponies so much, it's very calm not to have to run constantly to be in school on time /pick up the kids for lunch/cook/run back/buy groceries/fetch them, /drop them off at different activities,/cook/pick them up / supervise homework/eat/shower / sleep.

This confirms: we all genuinely like to be around each other. ❤

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

Oh well that’s the very definition of “bundle of joy”

❤❤❤

We did figure out which jogging stroller to get now that DH is a "runner" so that felt like a major accomplishment I do LOVE the researching and planning part. I wish our pregnancy/parenting boards were still as active as they were 5 years ago!

 

[missy]

My family. Like @Alex T it's positive to have time together. Even if we all miss the ponies so much, it's very calm not to have to run constantly to be in school on time /pick up the kids for lunch/cook/run back/buy groceries/fetch them, /drop them off at different activities,/cook/pick them up / supervise homework/eat/shower / sleep.

This confirms: we all genuinely like to be around each other. ❤

Yes. So true. Very thankful we love spending time together. And your family is lovely @kipari. You’re all so fortunate to have one another. Makes all the difference.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

A good cup of tea

Nanny Piggins books

Cassava boiled in coconut milk

My pandan plant

Finding toilet paper

Having my own toilet

Top Chef

Pricescope

The fact that hubby and I are completely different with different temperaments yet see eye to eye on everything. I'm not even sure how I ended up here. It's amazing.

My dog who is so cute she looks like a toy.

Walks with my son in sunshine to get Vitamin D while eating finger limes.

 

[arkieb1]

My mother had 3 x heart valves replaced a few days ago and the surgery went well. She is still alive and am happy and deeply grateful to the universe for that.

 

[missy]

My mother had 3 x heart valves replaced a few days ago and the surgery went well. She is still alive and am happy and deeply grateful to the universe for that.

I’m so happy for your family @arkieb1. May your mom continue to do well and recover completely.

 

[missy]

A good cup of tea

Nanny Piggins books

Cassava boiled in coconut milk

My pandan plant

Finding toilet paper

Having my own toilet

Top Chef

Pricescope

The fact that hubby and I are completely different with different temperaments yet see eye to eye on everything. I'm not even sure how I ended up here. It's amazing.

My dog who is so cute she looks like a toy.

Walks with my son in sunshine to get Vitamin D while eating finger limes.

Truly all things to be grateful for.

 

[bling_dream19]

A good cup of tea

Nanny Piggins books

Cassava boiled in coconut milk

My pandan plant

Finding toilet paper

Having my own toilet

Top Chef

Pricescope

The fact that hubby and I are completely different with different temperaments yet see eye to eye on everything. I'm not even sure how I ended up here. It's amazing.

My dog who is so cute she looks like a toy.

Walks with my son in sunshine to get Vitamin D while eating finger limes.

Me want to see pic of your doggy sometime

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

Me want to see pic of your doggy sometime

This is her, begging for food.

I'm always torn between giving her what she wants (she's almost 11) and doing what's best for her health.

She has a great ability to make one feel sorry for her even if there's nothing to feel sorry about (indoor dog, as many walks as she likes, allowed anywhere in the house, carried up and downstairs by us when she doesn't want to climb up but wants to join us which is a feat since she's 27kg).

 

[bling_dream19]

This is her, begging for food.

I'm always torn between giving her what she wants (she's almost 11) and doing what's best for her health.

She has a great ability to make one feel sorry for her even if there's nothing to feel sorry about (indoor dog, as many walks as she likes, allowed anywhere in the house, carried up and downstairs by us when she doesn't want to climb up but wants to join us which is a feat since she's 27kg).

She's beautiful! Thanks for sharing and your commentary is great!