Thankful Third Thursday

As you may know I've been a pretty lazy blogger for the last 2 or 3 months (so much so I missed my 1st 'blogoversary'. Oh shoot).  So I decide to eventually rear my head like a crocodile surveying the river, and what happens?  I immediately get slapped with 3 tags. *Thwok!*  Wonder if I can re-submerge and hold my breath for another 3 months?  I jest :)


Actually, that metaphor doesn't work for me.  Crocodiles aren't lazy, they're efficient and predatory and in need of some major dental work, for the most part.  I also empathise more with he hunted than the hunter, and that brings me to the meme I'm about to join in with:


The blah: on the third Thursday of every month I blog about ten things I am thankful for. Then tag three (note the t’s) people in the meme to pass it on.


I was tagged by the originator of the meme mummypinkwellies, and as I'm always one for a nifty bit of alliteration, I'm game.

1. Empathy: That's right, I am thankful for empathy - my own empathy, that is.  I'm very empathetic and I believe it makes me a good person - and not an effective crocodile.  I share this in common with many other sensitive, creative types, and although I've sometimes viewed it as a bit of a curse (it's hard to be wilfully selfish when your mind immediately jumps to the how the victim will feel), I'm actually quite thankful for it as it enables me to read people and situations quite easily.  Sometimes I get caught out, especially if hormones are at play, but I seem to have insights that not everyone else has.  I'm not talking about kooky psychic ability, I'm talking picking up on subtle nuances in body language or in what people do or don't say or in how they react.  Now this could make me a highly effective gossip queen as I instantly know who fancies who at work or who has had a fall-out before the information becomes public knowledge.  Instead, I'm going to channel it into my marketing activities.  That's right, marketing is all about understanding the customer and communicating effectively with them.  Isn't that obvious? Apparently not... If this lady were real, then as an 'Empath Betzoid' (geeky Star Trek reference) she'd make a brilliant marketer:

http://www.fanpop.com/spots/star-trek-the-next-generation/images/9406477/title/counselor-deanna-troi-photo

   2.    My 30s: As an avid reader of Hollywood gossip (hey, we all have our guilty pleasures) I can tell you that this week Jennifer Aniston told a magazine that her 30s "blew" but her 40s are great.  Well half of my 20s "blew" (the first half, to be specific) but I'm finding that my 30s are much kinder.  They have brought contentment and stability, a beautiful family, and a new batch of friends (mainly mummies).  Having quite a large number of friends is something which I've never been comfortable with as I'm quite reflective and often need lots of alone-time.  Sometimes this borders on hermitude (not a word, according to the red line that just appeared, but I'm sticking with) and I need to withdraw for a few days.  This is why not having a 'bestie' as such isn't an issue for me.  I've had best friends, and nice though that is that level of intimacy is it can be hard for me to maintain these days.  Having said that I do see my friends regularly (the ones that are local) and I hope they realise I'm always there for them and would do anything I could in times of need.  I certainly feel like the friends I do have I could call on, and that is precious.

3.    Living in a nice village: As someone who grew up in a rough economic blackspot of a northern town, I appreciate that I live in a nice calm place near the outskirts of a village.   It's a large village and borders the town of Hinckley on one side, so town is a mere 15-20 minute walk, but I still get the benefit of village life - important for someone like me who needs plenty of peace and downtime.

4.   Peppa Pig DVDs: I know it's terrible but sometimes you just need a break (like now!), and as my little one rarely naps nowadays Peppa comes in very useful when I need to get ready or just need 10 minutes of me-time.  I say it's terrible, I think every mum on the planet understands this one.

5.  Escaping teaching: I didn't enjoy it - it just wasn't for me.  That's not to say I didn't have some good times or meet some fantastic people (colleagues and students), but I just didn't have the stamina to work all hours god sends on prep, marking, and everything else that comes with.  I tried, but I felt like I was always dropping the ball and it was a lousy feeling.  Trying not to be too harsh on myself for a moment, I think it was the wrong subject and possibly the wrong age group.  I was passionate about only some of what I was expected to teach, and those parts weren't taught in depth.  I also had to teach an additional subject that I wasn't any good at - and that is enough to shatter anyone's  already fragile confidence.  It just wasn't for me, and I'm so thankful that circumstances enabled me to escape - even if it did take the PTSD breakdown and has meant I've had to take a part-time night job while I (very slowly) get my own business up and running.

6.  Social media:  It's what I love and am passionate about and it is what I do in my new business.  I believe in social media as a force for good (just look at Egypt) and an invaluable means of communication.  It's finding itself at the heart of everything and I could write lots on the subject (and currently am doing for my website) but this is not the place.  I'm just thankful it exists and that it enable someone like me to be able to communicate regularly and effectively without even having to leave the house!

7.  Impending Spring:  Be gone foulest cold winter!  It looks quite nice out there today.  Spring is coming, I can feel it.

8:  Employment and a roof over our heads:  The figures released this week show that the unemployment in this country is getting worse as business confidence is in the gutter.  Youth unemployment has also featured heavily in the news with the tragic suicide of a 21 year old graduate who had been searching in vain for a job for 2 years and I feel it for the young adults who left our schools and sixth forms to find there is nothing out there for them.  Many others - single or family men and women and older people not yet retired are in the same bleak situation, and so I have to be extremely thankful that we are not.  We might all complain about our jobs at times, but times like this make us realise that we are relatively fortunate.  I have known people lose their family homes after being made redundant, and I feel so awful for them.  any issues we have in regards to not being able to afford holidays or adequate childcare pale into insignificance.

9:   The spare car:  Okay, so we ourselves don't have a spare car, but my husband's parents do and they let us borrow it so that we can both drive to work (essential as there is a motorway involved in our commute!)  Life would be very difficult without this!

10: My family, especially this little lady:

So who to tag? Agh, this is the part I hate.  Ummmm.....

Looking for Blue Sky

Never found the plot