Tis the Season to Count My Blessings

The end of the year makes me look back as well as look forward.  While I am now putting together plans for the new year, it is also important to remember to "count my blessings" so in no particular order, here are 50 things I am thankful for...

1. The hubby (he is a wonderful husband and I am lucky to have him).
2. Having a nice, warm, safe, home.
3. The weather (it is pretty amazing in Las Vegas and there is no snow to shovel!).
4. Having more than enough food to eat (not everyone can say this).
5. Having (very) cheap but (reasonably) good health insurance (not everyone, especially in the US, can say this either).
6. Having really amazing family and friends.
7. Having a safe and dependable car.
8. The internet (mostly a really really good tool if used properly).
9. Having the ability to learn nearly everything I need to know via the internet.
10. The ability to travel anywhere, anytime.
11. Having money available to cover wants, needs, and emergencies.
12. Free over-the-air TV.  Free TV is wonderful!
13. The ability to walk long distances (not everyone can do this so I am grateful that I can).
14. Our health, both mine and hubby's (which is improving every day!).
15. Living in a city with the best restaurants/shopping/entertainment/free stuff/etc.
16. The ability to cook and bake (a lot of people actually don't know how to do this so I am fortunate that I had home ec through high school as well as a grandmother who was a wonderful cook/baker who taught me how to do this).
17. A life of ease.  There are a lot of people suffering these days whether because of financial issues, mental health issues, general health issues, job issues, etc. so while we may not be rich in material things, our life is pretty comfy.
18. Wonderful bloggy friends.  I read many of your blogs each day (I'm usually scrolling and reading while I eat breakfast so while I don't comment because my hands are full with tea and breakfast, I do love reading your blogs!).
19. Social media.  Social media is kind of the bane on my (our?) existence while also being the best way to keep up with friends and family both near and far.
20. The ability to write (I've always loved to write and I love having so many opportunities to do so).
21. Free e-books.  Our library system is amazing and offers so many free things, including the opportunity to download thousands and thousands of free e-books.
22. Wonderful hiking opportunities.  Where we live there are so many great places to walk and hike and so many great people to enjoy these activities with!
23. The freedoms all Americans enjoy courtesy of the Bill of Rights and the Constitution.
24. Vaccinations.  Despite what anti-vaxxers say, we are extremely lucky to be able to prevent a range of deadly diseases by getting simple vaccinations.
25. YouTube and Reddit (these are my favorite places to hang out online).
26. Christmas stuff...from Christmas music to Christmas lights to Christmas treats to Christmas gifts, etc. Christmas is a wonderful time of year!
27. Living in a country with a robust economy.  There is a lot of things to complain about when it comes to our economy but I've been to many countries where there is hardly any economy and that makes for really bad living conditions.
28. The Goodwill and second hand shops.  These are the best places to buy great stuff, really cheap, and help the environment too!
29. Being able to do so many things online--like working, banking, shopping, etc.  We used to have to get in the car and drive all over town to get these things done.
30. Living in a place with a great cost of living.  When I see how much my friends in other parts of the country pay for things like property tax, utilities, food, etc, I feel very fortunate that my area has everything we need for living at very reasonable prices.
31. My guns.  Our state also has very liberal gun laws.  I like my guns.
32. Safety stuff.  Seriously, years ago we didn't have seatbelts, bicycle helmets, gun safes, etc.  I'm surprised so many people made it to adulthood!  I used to work in injury prevention and safety so seeing how far we have come in these areas is great!
33. Modern medicine and dental care.  Again, people complain about these things but trauma care, cardiac and stroke care, cancer care, and dental care has improved exponentially in recent decades.
34. All of the beautiful things in the world.  If we listen to the news, all we hear about is the bad stuff (of which there is plenty) so I try to pay attention to the really good things going on around us that we don't often hear about (examples here, here, and here).
35. Artists.  Even though I don't have an artistic bone in my body, there are so many amazing artists that it just makes me happy to look at their work (examples here, here, and here).
36. The range of foods available now.  On the one hand, we should eat seasonally, on the other hand I had the best watermelon at a buffet a few days ago...in December!  We are literally living better than kings these days.
37. Facebook groups.  I like being able to connect with like-minded people and FB groups seem to be the best way to do this.  Some of my favorite group include this one, this one, and this one.
38. Ice cream--it's my favorite dessert!
39. Having fun hobbies (I like walking, hiking, genealogy, reading, writing, and I hope to pick up the piano soon).
40. Music.  I love music--from rap and hip hop to country to classical to pop, I love all of it!
41. Technology...to a point.  The things we can do and the information we can access from our cell phones would be mind-blowing just a half century ago.  Of course there is a down side and we are still struggling with how to use technology ethically, but my cell phone totally rocks (great photos, maps so I don't get lost, etc).
42. Supporting organizations that are doing good in the world including PBS, St Jude, Unity, Project 150, etc.
43. Flowers.  I love flowers and wish I could have a rose garden at our house like we had at our last house (keeping roses alive in the desert is very difficult but our lemon tree seems to love the climate here!).
44. Religion.  I'm kind of a non-denominational person.  I've been to a silent Unity meeting, Catholic mass, a Jewish Synagogue, a Muslim Mosque...watching people celebrating their religion, no matter what they believe in, is cool.  This week my FB feed is lit up with pictures of Christmas, Yule, Simbang Gabi, Hanukkah, etc.  
45. Basic things like indoor plumbing, potable running water, hot water on demand, having a washer and dryer (I tried using a ringer washer once and it wasn't fun), etc.
46. Growing older gracefully...kind of :)
47. Poker.  Hubby loves to play poker and I am happy to watch him play something that makes him happy, gives him a social group, keeps his mind active, etc.
48. Kind people.  We usually hear about the worst of people, but even in my city, there are great people that I've randomly run into...helpful people, interesting people, nice people, funny people, famous people, brilliant people...
49. Nature.  Nature is amazing.  Always.
50. And from today...I didn't want to mail my passport renewal application at the post office because of the huge lines so I slapped a bunch of postage on the envelope and hoped for the best and today they cashed the check I sent so all seems to be well with the application!