November 25, 2007

On being thankful...

It's easy this time of year for me to slide into depression. Whether it is actual Seasonal Affective Disorder, missing my friends and family or just your regular case of depression, it's easy for me to dwell on things. With this Thanksgiving, I was reminded of a few things that helps me pull my head of my ass.

Giving Thanks...
  • I am thankful for a nice, warm place to live and sleep in
  • I am thankful for my health
  • I am thankful for friends who take me in and let me share Thanksgiving with their family
  • I am thankful for employment
  • I am thankful for being able to buy whatever food I want, whenever I want. The Vermont Food Bank is drastically low this year. Lots of that has to do with government assistance not being what it has been in the past. Food prices are high across the nation, so the government which usually buys overstock isn't. I got my company to do a food drive again this year. However, it seems that there are only a small handful of us donating when the company has 120 employees. I don't get that. I want to yell at the people and say "Can't you bring in ONE can of greenbeans or fruit? Instead of buying that $4 cup of coffee, how about spending it on 8-10 cans of food?
  • I am thankful I have money to spend on eating out and movies
  • I am thankful for my family and friends
  • I am thankful for being able to live in a country where I can say George Bush sucks and not be thrown in jail (well, for now)
  • I am thankful that I can go to church if I want
  • I am thankful I can read and write
  • I am thankful for my computer
  • I am thankful for my cat, Tabby
  • I am thankful I can hear and see
Sure, my life isn't what I thought it would be by now, but I have so much to be grateful for, the list above is only a little of what I have to be thankful for. I really need to work on the positive. It's so easy to be negative. There's a woman I hang out with from time to time who has got to be one of the most negative people I have met. She is smart and funny and a few years older than I am. Those are some of main reasons I hang out with her. However, her negativity is getting on my nerves. She has problems with men, her family, her job etc. (Who doesn't?) I don't think I can hang out with her very much anymore. It's too much for me, especially when I am dealing with my own depression. I know some of you reading this blog know who she is, or know people like her. I have suggested she get professional help, but she's not game to do that. I have told her that both of us need to work on being more positive at work, and though she agrees, she has so much anger and frustration it still comes out during work. When I got written up right after my vacation, my anger was one of the only things on the list that I agreed I needed to really work on. I don't hate my job (most of the time). If I did, I would quit. Maybe that's what she needs to do. Sigh. It's frustrating.

November 08, 2007

How are YOUR gas prices?

Check out this site to see what gas prices are looking like in your area or anywhere in the USA. It's pretty cool.