Finding the Good in the Bad

There have been a number of posts in the last day or so about finding the good things in an otherwise blah - or even bad - day. It's so easy isn't it to get caught up in the mundane details or to get dragged down by the monotony and drudgery of everyday life. Lena - over at Frugal and Thankful - took a step back to try to find the positives in a day where she was feeling sick and grumpy. And she succeeded in coming up with a list of things she felt happy about - thus turning a bad day into a good day.
What an awesome idea. I have been mindlessly going through the days since a certain someone in my life decided to continue his life without me. I'd have been hard-pressed to find anything positive in my days when he first left me but I believe Lena when she told herself "she had much to be happy about."  I have to agree...well, I don't have to but I will. I think no matter how badly the day is going you can turn yourself around by focusing on the positive things going on in your life.

So I thought I'd try a hand at making my own list. And stealing from Sonya Ann I'm going to use bullets to make them look more important!

Ahem...

• for a brief few minutes the sun shone in through the patio doors and the new paint on the living room walls (called Swan White) just glowed! (note to self - only show the house on sunny days!)
• I was feeling a bit under the gun because of paperwork due on top of visitors (student teachers) spending time in my classroom on top of a behaviour consultant observing one of my students today...however, I managed to get the paperwork (progress reports) completed this morning before staff and students arrived (that's one of the good thing about going to school for 6am), the visitors said they learned a lot and the behaviour consultant was pleased with the student's progress. YAY!! (I could have made 3 bullets out of that one!
• a co-worker emailed me an online coupon for 1/2 price pizza at Dominoes if you order on-line, which I did, and have just enjoyed a few slices (thin crust people!!)
• I forgot to brush my teeth this morning...no, that's not good is it? but happily I keep an extra toothbrush and toothpaste at school - yay me!
• I have managed to NOT drink coffee since Sunday thus saving myself $2.00/day AND drinking a super healthy alternative made of hot lemon and ginger instead. My body thanks me :)
• The above behaviour consultant is also a good friend so we got caught up on each other's life today :)
• I had an on-call today (that's when we have to cover an absent teacher's class during our prep period) and I knew it was going to be a rough class as I recognized several names on the attendance list as students with behavioural issues. So I took a bucket full of suckers and cookies with me and bribed them to be good. It worked. At the end of the class I overheard one student say to another - "that's the quietest we've ever been!" LOL!   I only believe in short term bribery!!
• No need to make dinner thanks to buying the 1/2 price pizza! Hallelujah!!
• I got caught up on my blog reading over my lunch period.
• Although it snowed today it didn't accumulate. Now THAT'S something to be happy about...I think.
• I gazed lovingly at my snowdrops today wishing I could get close enough to them to ensure they're not a mirage. I think they're real.
• Gas dropped by about 3 cents a litre so I stopped and filled up the truck.
• My hydro bill was $17.00 less than what I budgeted for it :) :)
• I am actually caught up at school...temporarily...it never lasts for more than a day or two but I'll enjoy it while I can.
• tomorrow is Friday and that means it's FUN DAY in my classroom. I can't wait to win at Scrabble tomorrow!! (just kidding - I just dole out the prizes to the winners!)
• my student Jess couldn't stop smiling today. This is the same girl who for the whole first semester bullied other students, made threatening gestures, swore at me and was otherwise disagreeable in every way she could think of (slamming her books down on her desk, rolling her eyes at everything I said...etc etc) Why was she smiling?? Her progress reports were just jam packed full of positive comments - she has really turned herself around. Instead of maintaining her "bad to be cool" attitude she now works so hard, tries her best, has confidence in herself and is just the nicest person to be around. SO PROUD!! 

You know I think I could go on and on. Once I get on a roll I can think of all kinds of good things in my day. Sure there were bad things too but it's all a matter of focus. Right now I can't remember the bad stuff, only the good. I should do this everyday!!

Tell me something that was good in YOUR day! 

Winter Blahs - Trying not to Complain...

Well, not trying hard enough!

Doesn't look like much in these photos but our kitchen now has a new floor of ceramic tiles.  By noon today the grout will have set for 24 hours so we can start putting the kitchen back together. I know a big part of my winter blahs is caused by every room in this house being in an uproar! Just finding a pair of scissors this morning I felt like Roald Amundsen looking for the Northwest Passage!

Another crinkle in the reno plans because they wouldn't be reno plans if there weren't any crinkles (or is that wrinkle??)- where the floor of the foyer meets the hardwood - can't put ceramic tile there as planned because then the ceramic would be way above the hardwood (floor wasn't level BIG SURPRISE so had to be levelled) so having to make a change to vinyl flooring which is thinner - I am SO NOT happy about that!. We went across the city yesterday to return the ceramic tiles which we can't use now only to find out that we only had 30 days to replace them AND we can't return them anyways on a Saturday as THAT person doesn't work on Saturdays...WHAT???  On the bright side (gotta look for that bright side) we are hopeful we can return the leftover ceramic tile in exchange for vinyl and we found a piece of vinyl that is on for half-price that looks almost the same as the ceramic. Michael will have to make another trip there tomorrow to see if it can be worked out. Sigh.

So it doesn't look like this place is going to get decorated for Christmas this year, which is too bad as it will likely be our last Christmas here. Things are costing way more than I thought AND taking a lot longer to complete. I did some number juggling yesterday to see if we could afford to stay in the condo longer than anticipated if we need more time for the renos before listing for sale. It could be done though it would be tight. I'm also going to let Kazi know that she has until June 30th next year to live here rent-free, then I'll be charging her some rent. It's time to spread your wings, little birdie, and fly, dammit, fly!

Are some of you in the path of that nasty winter storm going on in the U.S.? Looks awful! Most of our big snow has melted away so the world looks grey and grubby. Not that I'm complaining - HAH! Ok, time to look for the positives:

• only the foyer, 2 bathrooms and basement steps left to "refloor", then the painting can begin
• only 2 weeks of school left, then 2 weeks of holidays (trying NOT to think of the UNPAID day our lovely schoolboard is giving us (yes an extra day of holidays!! Who needs that day of pay anyways...right before Christmas...with all the extra bills and expenses...
• taking a mini-holiday with Kazi to see Les Mis in Toronto :) (will NOT think about the money spent...will ONLY think about the great time we'll have!!!)
• at lease I don't have to deal with fir tree needles everywhere this year...I wonder if we still have the fake tree in the basement somewhere - will have to go exploring again!
• I feel healthy again though have a bunch of tests to complete for my physical and I have to start taking iron supplements as my iron is low (I don't eat much meat) so perhaps that will help with my feeling tired most of the time

Okay, time to wrap it up. I'm going on safari as my cup of coffee is cold and I'm going to try and find the microwave!

Keep warm!