January 03rd, 2023

Here we are, 3 days into a brand new year!   So how's 2023 shaping up for you so far?  I feel like 3 days is enough to have at least an inkling of where this year is heading.

For me?  So far Twenty Twenty-Three has been Very Exciting!  Of course what I deem as exciting may not seem so to you. I have, apparently, reached an age where small things start to feel very big.  Perhaps I should explain by way of example:

I actually said, outloud to myself, in the laundry room these words, " Hurrah it worked! I am so excited!"  What was I excited about, you may ask?  I was able to get iron scorch marks out of a pair of Tim's shorts.  Yee hah, ya'll.  I was genuinely excited about that.

Yesterday I was nearly jumping for joy when I learned that Vacuuming out the dryer vent from both the inside and the outside did indeed fix another problem.  I had noticed that the dryer was taking longer and longer to actually dry the clothes.  And of course, the longer the dryer runs, the more electricity it uses which means the more it costs.  A bad thing.  And I was dreading the cost of having to call in a repair person. And then it dawned on me that the issue could possibly be a clog in the dryer vent.  So I dragged the big old shop vac outside and put it to work.  Then I asked Tim to kindly move the dryer inside to the inside part could also be vacuumed.  I intended to do the actually vacuuming but he kind of got into it and did it himself.  I ran the first post vacuum load yesterday and holycats! It was like magic!  Terribly Exciting!

It's been unseasonably warm here this week but I see that it's already beginning to cool off and by Friday (possibly Thursday) I will have window all wide open again (and probably long pants on).  I am excited at the prospect of open windows once again.

I have a long overdue hair appointment tomorrow!  Hurrah!  That is always a reason to get excited.  I always feel so transformed after a haircut.  And quite honestly, just the being fussed over and pampered in such a lovely place is reason enough to look very much forward to it.  Yeah, I guess you could say I am excited about my salon appointment.

Inexplicably, on Monday, when I stepped on the scale I had, overnight, lost not the usually 2 pounds but 4!  Wow!  That is definitely something to get excited about.  I kept stepping on and off, on and off, trying to be sure that it was correct.  I even asked Tim if the scale seemed "off' to him. He assured me that his number was correct.  Dang! That is Hugely Exciting!  Like a little unexpected gift.

Oh!  Also very exciting is that I've been seeing birds using the bird bath almost daily now.  They may have been using it all along but I've actually witnessed it several days in a row since the new year began!  Very Exciting!~

Yes people, my excite - o -meter has an admittedly low "Wow" threshold these days.  But that's ok.  My friend Jan told me recently, that she loves how excited I get over simple things.   I guess I am a simple person. I find joy in very small, simple things.  Like cookies.  Cookies bring me great pleasure :)

I grew up hearing the expression, "Simple pleasures for simple minds" which feels a little insulting to me.  Personally I don't think there is one single thing wrong in finding happiness in simple things, small gestures, tiny delights, uncomplicated moments.  But then, I suppose I wouldn't since I appear to one of the small and simple things.

And I'm okay with that.