Thanksgiving

Warning - a bit of swearing in this one.

Well I have been pretty quiet this month, as I often seem to be when I travel. I have not been idle and I have a few half formed posts waiting on projects to be finished but this post is not going to be about miniatures or painting of the hobby.

Every year, at this time, I like to write a post about the things I have to be thankful for. (You can see my original post in this vein on another blog of mine back in 2014 here). In successive years I have written these posts somewhat haphazardly and in various places but it is a practice I have come to value as Thanksgiving grows in my heart to be my favorite holiday.

Looking back on that original post, it is interesting to see the things that have changed and the things that have stayed the same. I debated doing a review of the points in that original post but looking back, it just doesn't seem as relevant. Instead I am going to go through the things I have to be thankful for right now.

Right at this moment, it feels like life is a loosing battle. My wife and I are separated by 6,000miles as we face countries with growing xenophobic policies, finances are tight, there are health issues in the family and our futures seem to be held entirely in the hands of others. At a time like this, it is pretty hard to see the silver lining but I think it makes the task of looking for it even more important.

So, what am I thankful for?

My Wife

I'm married... sometimes that's still weird to say. I have a wonderful, loving wife who makes me amazingly happy. Fuck the world - we'll keep fighting anyone and everyone until we can actually be together.

My Friends

I have some fucking amazing friends. Whether I am in the US or UK, there are people there who love me, who will step up and help out, support us when we need. All of you are fucking awesome.

Technology

Yeah ok so this is not the 'normal' thing to be thankful for but I can fly halfway around the world and when I have, I can use a machine to speak to and see the people back home or anywhere else. I can hear stories told to me, get news minutes after it happens, take a hot shower any time of day or night, deep fry a turkey... for all the issues - it's pretty fucking cool some of the things this species has done.

My Job

I've taken on a lot of changes this year and this new job is a huge shift from Google, but it's fascinating, challenging and really taken me out of my comfort zone. I need to constantly up my game and it feels much more like I've returned to the real world after a holiday in candy land.

My Hobby

Ok so I know this isn't a 'hobby' post but painting, blogging and gaming have been a constant in my life for the last few years and helped a lot. Painting in the last year has really given me a focus and the motivation to do more, get better and faster has really driven me and helped me stay happy in the face of everything else that's been going on.

And finally I am thankful for being able to Deep Fry Turkey:

- Raggy, signing out