Today's Joy is shared by both Himself & I: Ally, Sarah & Matt. Upon hearing we needed help moving, they showed up, carried boxes up and down stairs and were cheerful the whole time! We even made it in one load. God Bless generous hearts!

Himself here...that was the easiest move ever and we are blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives!

Today's Joy: Our New Home! Got a few things in & unpacked in our gorgeous new apt. tonight. I love it already!

Today's Joy: A Little Meditative Prayer. When life throws me a curve, Reader, sometimes the only way to cope is to close my eyes, take a few deep breaths and be still.

Peanut Butter & Jellies

Dear Reader, here is another of my favorite party drinks for you to try. While it sounds a little strange, it's an easy crowd-pleaser and surprisingly delicious! I guarantee it will generate tons of conversation. Tastes just like a PB&J sandwich!

Peanut Butter & Jellies

Pour the following over ice in any tumbler or highball glass:

3 parts pure Cranberry Juice*

1 part Frangelico Hazelnut Liqueur

Stir & serve.

Also makes a popular shot.

*Use pure cranberry juice to avoid bitter after-taste associated with cranberry juice cocktail.

Photo originally uploaded by modomatic.

Today's Joy: Apologizing. If you're like me, Reader, and you suddenly realize that you've hurt someone by doing or saying something bone-headed (which I do with some frequency), that guilty feeling just hangs on and nags at you until you say you're sorry.
It's funny--the moment I acknowledge my insensitivity and remind the-party-in-question (usually Himself) that he is far more important to me than whatever irritation I felt, all is once again right with the world. He feels better too. Thoughtfulness = vindication? Or maybe it's just hearing that I've actually taken the time to see it from his perspective. While I can't exactly tromp around the house in his size 13's, I can at least make an effort to try on his point-of-view.
With any luck, my bone-headed moments will happen less often. That would definitely be a joy for both of us. :-)

Today's Joy: Catching Up with an Old Friend. Got a chance tonight to chat with Leaky Bucket, one of my best friends since college. Always feel better when I get a little girl time.

Today's Joy: Chunk.

Dear Reader, do you have a problem child at your house? Then you can probably relate. We have a problem Chunk. That is, we have a cat named Chunk.

How I met Chunk is a whole sordid story. The highlights include a cranky neighbor trapping him in a live animal trap and me sneaking onto her porch at 1:30 am to bust him out of jail. Then he was on the lam for a while. Eventually, Chunk and I went from an I'll-just-live-in-your-garage-and-wait-for-you-to-come-home sort of relationship to a full-on commitment. He is a 4-ish yr. old crabby orange tabby cat. Very crabby. And he's an Olympic-caliber complainer. There are few things in life that Chunk doesn't comment on. In the 3 years I've known him, I've heard a kitty dissertation on what's wrong with the world--namely what's wrong with living at our house.

True, a certain amount of "constructive criticism" is just part of having a cat. But you'd think an ex-feral stray might show a little more appreciation for his very comfortable living arrangements, sunny balcony for lounging, tempting array of food and 2 resident humans that are willing to cuddle. But, alas. We are too needy for Chunk. We want to pet him and heaven forbid--cuddle. This leads to daily tail-lashing, hissing, swatting, biting, crabbing, complaining and swearing (on Himself's part).

You're probably wondering where the joy is at this point. Chunk hates to move. He has been watching the boxes pile up in our apt. with great trepidation. Now that the move is eminent, he must be worrying he'll be left behind. So Chunk has done the only thing he can think of to keep us from leaving without him--he's become a cling-on. He sits with me, sleeps right up against me and can't be more than 2 feet away at all times. Shoot, he'll hardly let me use the ladies' room without beating down the door. He's stuck to me like lint.

For the first time in many months, I can cuddle him all I want. Ha! So, dear Reader, I am enjoying my neurotic cat's discomfort in a most un-Christian way. But at least, I'm finally getting some love.

Today's Joy: Lunch Date with Himself. As usual, we ate fabulously at Weinberger's Deli. He had the Stromboli (pictured) and I had the Wall-Streeter: the be-all-end-all for pastrami lovers. Soooo good! It was lovely to spend a little time lollygagging together before going back to the apt. and diving headlong into packing boxes. Can't wait until this move is over next weekend!