Counting My Blessings

[Trebuchet]

I had a bit of a rough morning, with some stuff I didn't want to hear, so I need to think about what's awesome in my life!
1. I've been married for forty years to the love of my life!
2. We have the most fantastic new house!
3. With a gorgeous view!
4. And the cutest and sweetest kitties ever! (YMMV)
5. Despite a couple seconds of foolishness and several months of pain six years ago, I'm alive, fully mobile, and largely pain-free.
6. We're financially secure. One of the things that stressed me this morning was what to do with the money I have to start taking out of my IRA/401K...
7. ...Because I'm 70 and a half years old and in generally excellent health. Everyone should have such problems.
8. I had delicious pizza for dinner.
9. And Edgar Martinez has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. About time!

[George]

People who are a blessing often feel blessed, and you fit that bill. Aren't you even more secure with that trebuchet?

[Gillianren]

One of the reasons I was concerned about thinking the forum was closed for a few days (before ToSeek kindly let me in on how I had to enter it into my browser) was that I was going to miss talking to you.

[grapes]

One of the reasons I was concerned about thinking the forum was closed for a few days (before ToSeek kindly let me in on how I had to enter it into my browser) was that I was going to miss talking to you.

Was that because of the new cq front page?

[bknight]

I had a bit of a rough morning, with some stuff I didn't want to hear, so I need to think about what's awesome in my life!
1. I've been married for forty years to the love of my life!

Going on forty for us

2. We have the most fantastic new house!

Same place for 12 years

3. With a gorgeous view!
4. And the cutest and sweetest kitties ever! (YMMV)

Not cat people, but two little loving dogs for us.

5. Despite a couple seconds of foolishness and several months of pain six years ago, I'm alive, fully mobile, and largely pain-free.
6. We're financially secure. One of the things that stressed me this morning was what to do with the money I have to start taking out of my IRA/401K...

Ahead of you by two years.

7. ...Because I'm 70 and a half years old and in generally excellent health. Everyone should have such problems.
8. I had delicious pizza for dinner.
9. And Edgar Martinez has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. About time!

10. Beset with finanancial problems dealing with the IRS.

Other than that we are ok.

[Gillianren]

Was that because of the new cq front page?

Yeah, I think so.

[Trebuchet]

I'm glad it's back now after being down almost two days.

[Nicolas]

The first time the forum failed for me was when trying to open this page. So far for counting my blessings.

But apart from a Cosmoquest hicup, I can't complain.

[cosmocrazy]

So many people worry too much about what they don't have instead of celebrating what they do. A good friend of mine was told last week that the cancer has spread and she is now terminal. They haven't given her a timescale, but they advised that she returns home to spend time with her family. She is 49 years old with 2 young teenagers. I spoke to her over the weekend and she is in remarkably good spirits, I suspect this is a front though.

Good on you Trebuchet!

[Trebuchet]

Wow, so sorry about your friend. Much too young.

One of the things that triggered this thread was learning I have yet another skin cancer. That'll be removed, however and will not affect my life significantly. Another thing to be glad for.

[bknight]

Wow, so sorry about your friend. Much too young.

One of the things that triggered this thread was learning I have yet another skin cancer. That'll be removed, however and will not affect my life significantly. Another thing to be glad for.

I know what you mean, I've had one that was removed and probably 30 frozen. So far nothing serious just annoying. I hope your next appointment will be negative.

[Nicolas]

I've got a large number of not too tiny moles (always had) and if you apply the "signs of moles to have checked" I should have died of skin cancer 40 times by now. But I'm in my early thirties and live in a not particularly sunshine state, so it seems a bit over the top to have them all checked yearly. (and I'm a man and I'll run to the doctor the moment they start closing my coffin and all that...but seriously, it's a bit of a double feeling how to deal with them. Having yourself worry at every checkup is also not a happy foresight, but is ignoring it all wise, and when do you start to have them checked...Not asking for medical advice on the internet here.)

[Trebuchet]

Not asking for medical advice on the internet here.)

But I'm going to give you some anyway. See a dermatologist. Have them look at everything. EVERYTHING. Moles, in particular, because melanomas are nasty. I've not had one of those yet.
We northern Europeans (my ancestry is British and Danish), with our fair skin, are especially prone to skin cancers. It'll take a couple of hours and maybe prolong your life.

[cosmocrazy]

So many people worry too much about what they don't have instead of celebrating what they do. A good friend of mine was told last week that the cancer has spread and she is now terminal. They haven't given her a timescale, but they advised that she returns home to spend time with her family. She is 49 years old with 2 young teenagers. I spoke to her over the weekend and she is in remarkably good spirits, I suspect this is a front though.

Good on you Trebuchet!

I've had the very sad news that my friend Kate passed away at 8 am (UK time) this morning. Although we were expecting it at some point this year, its come as a big shock that it's happened so soon. She did not suffer and died peacefully at home with her family.

[Cougar]

2. We have the most fantastic new house!
3. With a gorgeous view!

Yes, major congrats on your new place! Such a big change for the good can really color your outlook every morning!

[Nicolas]

You could have just bought a Bob Ross painting and call it a day...

[Trebuchet]

I've had the very sad news that my friend Kate passed away at 8 am (UK time) this morning. Although we were expecting it at some point this year, its come as a big shock that it's happened so soon. She did not suffer and died peacefully at home with her family.

So sorry. Good that she had a peaceful end, but still very sad.

[Riddler]

You are surely blessed! I was just glad my truck hit 100k miles without major issue. Rewarded her some good stuff from 4WheelOnline and my eldest son is up to help installing them.

[Gillianren]

You could have just bought a Bob Ross painting and call it a day...

I've looked into it, and that's nigh on impossible to do, though there are plenty of people on eBay willing to sell their own paintings with his name on them, and if you read the fine print, it's a "Bob Ross-style painting."

[Swift]

it's a "Bob Ross-style painting."

So instead of "happy little trees" you get "reasonably content shrubs"?

[Nicolas]

I've looked into it, and that's nigh on impossible to do, though there are plenty of people on eBay willing to sell their own paintings with his name on them, and if you read the fine print, it's a "Bob Ross-style painting."

Given he made like 30.000 paintings (according to the best estimates) and didn't keep the vast majority of them, it's amazing how few are on the market. The prices are also quite high, partially due to few coming on the market, partially due to the Bob Ross name being very famous. You're not paying the high price for the painting itself. Bob Ross was about the technique, the voice, and only a little bit about the end result.

Also, unless we're talking about a painting featured in the show, it's hard to prove the authenticity of a Bob Ross painting.

[ozduck]

I have to admit that I have never previously heard of Bob Ross or his paintings and had to look him up on Wikipedia.

[Nicolas]

This gives a slightly ironic note to your avatar picture. Sky, mountains, lake and happy little trees.

[Gillianren]

I use the show to soothe myself during panic attacks.

[Trebuchet]

You could have just bought a Bob Ross painting and call it a day...

Stuff that bugs me: I read "Bob Ross" and thought "Thomas Kinkade". Totally different guy!

[Roger E. Moore]

I am grateful for modern medication, which not only enables me to be alive but also sane.

Relatively sane. I'm not ruling out the opposite, just saying I'm functional. Mostly. Sometimes.

[Spacedude]

Stuff that bugs me: I read "Bob Ross" and thought "Thomas Kinkade". Totally different guy!

The Bob (Bobby Ross) that I recall was the head coach of the Chargers, Lions, and Army to mention a few.

[Nicolas]

I use the show to soothe myself during panic attacks.

Medical science backs you up on this; they have investigated the effect of his voice (while painting, not back in the day when he still was a drill instructor). And apart from being more effective, it will also be more entertaining than a meditation tape. When I think of it, the combination of his calming voice and watching the painting process has lots of similarities to the medical hypnosis techniques used during surgery. Bring your focus to a happy place while listening to a calming voice. I'm quite sure an overhead TV with some Bob Ross episodes would be sufficient for most people to get them through local anesthesia surgery.

(as long as you don't hear the surgeon mentioning a "happy little accident"...)

[Jens]

Medical science backs you up on this; they have investigated the effect of his voice (while painting, not back in the day when he still was a drill instructor).

Sorry to be a stickler, but do you have references to back that up? It just seems weird that scientists would go out of their way to investigate a particular person’s voice, unless they were either proponents or skeptics of that particular person...


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[Nicolas]

I read it online (so it must be true...) not too long ago; I'll see if Google is my friend today. As far as I remember, the article that stated it did not use a reference, but I'll give it a try.

He was enough of a cultural phenomenon that somewhere some scientist would want to devote some time to him though.