Thankful

2007 has been a rough year... a very rough year. We have suffered through several of the events you might find on lists of top stressors. We have experienced unemployment, two interstate moves, personal and family health issues, the death of a close family member (he wasn't "just a dog"), financial issues, and starting a new job (again, twice - one for each of us). We have suffered through each of these and more, I'm sure, but we have survived. It is for this survival that I am primarily thankful but these events and this particular holiday have caused me to stop and take stock of all of the other blessings in my life. Below are just a few of the things I am thankful for this year.

1. I am thankful that we have family who love us and will help us in any way they can... even when we screw up.
2. I am thankful that when our first move didn't work out, we had someplace to move back to.
   
3. I am thankful for the ability to share these thoughts and these parts of my life with my internet friends.
4. I am thankful to be among friends again.
5. I am thankful that those friends have helped to keep me sane and keep me employed.
6. I am thankful that my niece has found somebody she wants to spend the rest of her life with.
7. I am thankful my nephews seem to have inherited a level of intelligence and an unconventional way of looking at their world that continues to elude my attempts to adopt.
   
8. I am thankful that my employer truly values its employees and has the resources to train and certify us if we wish to pursue it.
9. I am thankful for my kitty cats, who follow me around every morning, waiting for me to put canned food in their bowls.
10. I am thankful for my commute because it gives me a chance to listen to podcasts.
11. I am thankful that I posses the knowledge to hook up a home theater system, wire network cables, and generally get a signal from point A to point B and understand how it got there.
12. I am thankful that, even though I started my IT career a little late, opportunities for growth and learning continue to present themselves.
13. I am thankful that my wife sticks around and puts up with all of the crap I tend to dish out.
14. I am thankful that God grants me enough.

There is much more that I could list but I will stop there. The next time I am feeling that life is beating me down, I'll refer to this list and perhaps silently add to it.