a Brief List of Thanks

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

In case it’s not obvious, you’ll have to be thankful for a free short story TOMORROW since today I ended up cleaning and other stuff that means I’ve only sat down now for the first time.

So here’s my list of things I’m thankful for in no particular order, and surely incomplete.

I’m grateful for the results of the 2024 elections. The economy is no great shakes, but it’s no longer plunging into the abyss.

I’m grateful I finally got No Man’s Land out of my head, and grateful it’s selling if not amazingly, steadily and well.

I’m grateful for my husband (always), my sons, and the daughters my sons brought home to me.

I’m grateful for the cats, and grateful Havey is still with us.

I’m grateful I got to see my dad this year, and that he was doing well and mentally fit.

I’m grateful for the roof over our heads, the food on our table, for computers that work and heating that also works. (Because it’s brrrrrrr. That’s why.)

I’m grateful my health seems to be improving, and curious about whether it will get better once they desensitize me to what seems to be a major allergy to cats. (I always thought it was minor.)

I’m very grateful for my local friends.

And most of all, I’m grateful for my readers; the subscribers to my substacks (I PROMISE there will be earcs in the next week. It’s been a bit stupid since September.)

And I’m grateful to all of you my commenters, those who support this blog monetarily, and those who “simply” hang out and become a part of the family here.

I literally could have not have through the last year without you.

Story tomorrow. (I won’t promise to do one a day but I’m going to try to do five of them, then put them out on Amazon before Christmas. Hopefully.

Now go have your turkey. Pet your cats and dogs and cuddle your infants for me.

We are all so blessed.

47 thoughts on “a Brief List of Thanks”

  4. I’m grateful for many things, family and friends in particular. I am also grateful I found your blog as it has been a breath of fresh air from all the doom, gloom and lies popping up everywhere for years. You are a voice of reason and the many people who follow this blog and comment regularly have given me much to think about. Thank you!

    Liked by 2 people

  5. Happy Thankgiving to all. I appreciate the refuge and conversations, too.

    And I’ll add something to be thankful for. Our son proposed to his girlfriend yesterday and she said, “Yes.” Still afraid something will go wrong, but….

    Liked by 6 people

    3. I worried for the six months in between, too. But everything pretty much went without a hitch for them to get hitched. A minor bobble with the reception caterers was the only bad part. (At least I didn’t hear about anything else, but as the father of the groom, my only duty was to show up and stay sober…)

      As far as the catering went, I was still satiated from the rehearsal dinner, to be honest. If anyone here finds themselves in Show Low, Arizona, you MUST eat at least once at a place called “The House.” If in the summer months, that is; it’s an open-air venue. Makes it somewhat pricey, but absolutely the best food I have eaten when not at home.

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      1. Oh, I do have something to work on yet, there. My new DIL and I are tag-teaming him about grand babies. Fool boy wants to be “financially secure” before starting the family.

        They are far more secure than his mother and I were, first one came just after the ’87 market crash (and I was working at a broker-dealer). More secure than my sister and BIL were (he was in Korea on the DMZ mere months after the first nephew was born). FAR more secure than my parents (Dad was in boot camp the week after the wedding, then sent to Europe right after D-Day, and she had a six-month old baby while in Seattle when he was convalescing from his wounds).

        There are better times to start a family – but NEVER the perfect time. And no matter how bad the timing, it all works out with determination and patience.

        Oops. Bit venty there. Ah, well…

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  6. Met my cousin’s new grandson this afternoon. Saw my oldest cousin who seems to have recovered from his heart attack.

    And our hostess loves cats, has had cats forever and is allergic to cats. Would it be rude to laugh?

    Happy Thanksgiving, y’all.

    Like

        1. Actually, it’s not uncommon. If your immune system decides it needs to attack, it goes for what’s available.

          Sphinx cats are horrifying from a breeding perspective (I mean, they took away a LOT of the cat’s natural protection), but Rex cats are almost as hypoallergenic, FWIW.

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  7. Happy Thanksgiving!

    Thanks to all and sundry for being your Odd, brainy, and oddly sensible selves. This place is an oasis of sanity and perceptive and informative opinions, and I treasure it greatly.

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  9. I’m alive for another day, not in pain, warm, well-fed, have a solid roof over my head, decent clothes, friends and family, and the entertainment of watching, “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

    Thank you, God!

    Liked by 1 person

  13. I’m thankful for reconnecting with my cousins this year, ongoing good relations with my siblings, and good friends. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

    Liked by 1 person

  14. At church the last few weeks, there was a display on which you could post what you’re thankful for. I was gong to write, “I’m pretty well fixed; I got no complaints.” I decided not to, as the sentence could be read in too many ways for my meaning to be clear.

    This week we traveled to upstate New York to spend Thanksgiving with our youngest. We had a look at Niagara Falls, and later on, had dinner at Cracker Barrel. Tomorrow, a bit of shopping. We’re enjoying ourselves, and I don’t see how I could ask for any more than what I’ve got.

    I’m pretty well fixed; I got no complaints.

    Liked by 1 person

  15. Amen.

    Thankful for what we’ve achieved.

    Thankful for 2024 election results. While the economy has room to improve, it is improving. Praying hard that it is enough to give our president the room he needs to have majority again for 2026 elections. That he can pass on the momentum to his successor (likely to be Vance, but who knows?) We need at least another 10 years to undo the last four in particular, and longer.

    Liked by 1 person

  16. I have food, clothing, shelter, a draft in progress, and another idea I think I found part of a fix for to make it more of a solid possible story. (I need a list of cantrips….)

    Also, still breathing. And here, a place to watch carpapults! ;)

    Liked by 1 person

        1. Definitely going to need the double-wide for the books!

          Fact which may amuse: the shallower 17L Really Useful Box is reasonably water-resistant, will keep them dry even with a few inches of water on the floor, and can be packed full of books/manga/story notes and still be a reasonable if not light weight to heft around. Say, tossing into the back and trunk of your car for a getaway, if needed. ;)

          Liked by 1 person

      2. So far I’ve been able to juggle everything just enough. If I can just get through another month or two without another emergency hitting….

        I do finally seem to have the plotbunnies telling me “okay, here’s how the rest of White Cat’s Bluff goes”.

        …Fun fact: Fengye’s cat form isn’t actually white, just very pale. The technical name is black silver tipped/chinchilla.

        So, this color type.

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_coat_genetics#/media/File:Fat_Cat_(3365844868).jpg

        But this body type.

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Longhair#/media/File:JPG_12.jpg

        Liked by 2 people

  23. Happy American Thanksgiving, you Americans. ~:D We had proper Thanksgiving a while ago, before there was snow on the ground. Little sprinkle of the white stuff here at Chez Phantom, we’re giving thanks for a full propane tank and a truck that works. Many a year I can recall when one or the other of those things was not necessarily ours.

    Best wishes from the Great White North, eh? Have some turkey and chillax.

    Liked by 1 person

  25. David Foster’s latest post at Chicago Boyz has a link in one of his own comments to what I think may be one of the best ever explanations of why Thanksgiving is, and should be, the National Holiday of the USA — unlike that of any other country (should they even have one).

    This one goes to Zerohedge; you can read it directly at Enoch Times if you subscribe.

    https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/day-i-understood-american-spirit

    Liked by 1 person

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