thankfulness, day 7: our future

I'm thankful that we here in the United States have a bright and shiny future with our newly re-elected president. That may sound cheesy or way to optimistic, but it's how I feel. We have a chance to overcome our looming issues (debt!) and make moves on other issues (equality in marriage and non-discrimination!).

Man, I was on fricking pins and needles last night watching the election coverage. I fretted when President Obama first started out with 3 electoral votes to Mitt Romney's like 58 electoral votes, and then I still felt unsure later on when the president jumped ahead. Anything could have happened!!

But I'm thankful that we have him back, and he and others in Congress can get on with business. There were some AMAZING and AWESOME results last night (Elizabeth Warren, Tammy Baldwin, Tammy Duckworth, Claire McCaskill, gay marriage in three more states, legalization of marijuana in two states). If we can keep our

Yet we still didn't manage to fluoridate our water here in Wichita, haha.


Jes

thankfulness, day 6: President Barack Obama

Yes, that's right! I'm thankful for President Barack Obama. It's not often that I post political things, but I felt the need to make this known. It's for a multitude of reasons, really, but there is one overarching reason: he cares about people like myself. And it's not just me--he cares about you, too.

He cares about all of us and our well-being, which is more than I can say for his main opponent.

I voted, have you?


Jes

thankfulness, day 5: our dog, enu

There are days when I come home beaten down and completely out, and all I have to do is say "hello" to our dog, Enu. She instantly brightens up my day. Not only does she have an awesome sense of humor (she's sneaky, that one!), she can sense when we are feeling down.

My girl has become an old lady. Enu will turn 8 years old in February, and every time I think about life without her, I get super sad and feel totally dumb. Yesterday, my husband and I were watching TV, and a commercial came on that showed a dog getting older. I started crying, like a blabbering idiot. Even the mere thought of her dying one day gets me all teary-eyed. I feel like I want to say that losing her would be like losing a child (which might piss off others who've had trouble reproducing), but it's totally true! I would miss her as if I'd lost a child. She's been our girl for almost as long as my husband and I have been together.

Great, now I'm tearing up *harumph*. I'm just really thankful for my dog.

{she was so small back then! this must be circa 2005 or 2006}

Jes

thankfulness, day 4: lazy sundays

I am thankful for lazy Sundays, in which I relax so much that I forget to post about my thankfulness. Well, it was a mostly lazy Sunday. I did laundry, and we shopped for groceries. And then we came home for a nap. :)

If it wasn't for lazy Sundays, I wouldn't be able to get through the week.

Hopefully you all enjoyed your weekend!
Jes

thankfulness, day 3: juice!!

I'm going to try to not make this in the same tone as my first post this month, but I LOOOOOOVE JUICE!! I love love luuuuurv juice. Not the crummy shit from the store, Juicy Juice and that business, but real juice that you make at home.

{gorgeousness in a glass}

{one of my first concoctions}

If I feel bloated, gassy, crummy, and just downright icky, juice is the best. I tend to fall on the sweeter scale of juices, though green juice with a little apple and lemon is totes tasty, too. 

So, I am really thankful for my Breville juicer and the awesome year its given me, and I look forward to many, many more glasses of happiness in my immediate future.

Like tomorrow morning.

{heellloooo, baby!}

Jes 

thankfulness, day 2: water

What's one thing I need, can't live without, and probably take for granted without realizing it? Water.

I am thankful for clean water.

{double-fisting water, partaaayyy!}

Yes, I know it doesn't seem like an "exciting" thing to be thankful for (who's excited to drink plain water when there are so many other possibilities??) But think about it--it's in everything, which makes it way more interesting than you would think. Clean water is already a key topic and an issue in today's world. Watch "Gasland," a documentary by Josh Fox that SCARES THE EVER-LOVING SHIT OUT OF ME. The fact that we haven't put into place more stringent regulations and rules for fracking is bizarre and frightening.

This is why I am thankful to have clean water right now, even with being in the midst of a state with a lot of potential for fracking (Kansas). Clean water will become an increasingly more valuable commodity as time goes on because it plays such a fundamental role in life. It's only when we start experiencing shortages and unclean water that we'll realize how good we had it.

If you want to contribute to an organization that brings clean water to places in the world where it is needed, here are some admirable candidates:
The Water Project
UNICEF Tap Project

I'm also interested in saving more water at home, which I already try to do ("try" being the key word). Here are several great websites for how to achieve this:
25 Ways to Conserve Water in the Home and Yard
100 Ways to Conserve Water


What do you do to conserve water?


Jes

thankfulness, day 1: my husband

Sadly, Vegan MoFo 2012 is part of the past now. I know I had a blast cooking, taking photographs, sharing Meatless Meals, and perusing the blogs of other MoFo-ers out there. And I don't want it to end!

So I'm going to attempt a Month of Thankfulness during November. I've never been big about Thanksgiving (especially not during an entire month), but I do enjoy the feeling of thankfulness that comes with it. It's a holiday in which we reflect on our relationships with others and with the world, and I'd like to use this time to flesh out 30 of the things and people I am thankful for in my life.

First up this month--my husband, Philip. It almost seems as though our worlds were intended to collide at some point. 10 years ago, I was a shy girl, sitting in his father's senior year Economics class. Philip used to drop by during my class to visit with his dad and borrow books to read (he's a voracious reader!). I thought he was cute in the turtleneck sweaters he'd wear but completely unattainable for me. He was several years older than me and was out in the world. His dad used to use Philip's financial woes as teaching tools for my Econ class. But being 17 years old, I thought he was cute nonetheless.

Then I got to meet him on December 31, 2003 at a party he and his friends threw at their loft. We met in their kitchen very briefly, maybe less than 5 minutes, and then my friends and I ended up leaving the party. Philip was still cute and was wearing glitter eye shadow (and another turtleneck sweater, I think).

Fast forward to spring break 2004, a few months later, and we ended up actually meeting. I was invited to another of their famous parties by a mutual friend, and by the end of the evening Philip had asked me for my MSN screen name (good lord, times have changed!). We followed up with awesome conversations, book recommendations, music sharing, some time together at my college, and a trip to Kansas City for my birthday. And BOOM! We were together :)

I find that I am really thankful for him more and more as time goes by. Here are some of my favorite things about Philip:


He has an awesome sense of humor.

He's a fantastic artist, though he feigns ignorance about his abilities.

He's loves animals, though his allergies get to him.

And he's great with children, even though he says he doesn't like them. I think he'll be a fabulous dad some day.

I'm thankful that he's always there for me but is cool with me doing my own thing at times. Yes, we're not perfect or always nice to each other (Sundays are usually our "angry" day of the week), but I care for him and he cares for me. And sometimes that's just what you need.

{i swear i'm thankful...}

{i mean it...}

What are you thankful for in your life?

Jes