Happiness is Zoom and People You Like

~ Jenny

Krissie and I did a Zoom chat on collaboration last night with Amy Andrews in Australia, so that was two of my favorite people laughing with me. It would have better to be in Australia laughing with Amy, but for right now, I’ll take Zoom and the faces of people I like a lot.

What made you happy this week?

42 thoughts on “Happiness is Zoom and People You Like”

  1. Watching “Palm Springs” as a date night activity with my husband. We can’t do much, but we can still watch movies, darn it. This is not as easy as you think, as our tastes overlap in weird, specific ways (goofy, light sci fi is usually our sweet spot) dand I tend to fall asleep in front of the TV (he’s learned not to take it personally).

    Two people get stuck in a time loop together and have to decide what to do (or not do) about it. It may be the best thing or worse thing to watch, depending on how you feel about quarantine. I found it charming in a quirky indie movie sort of way. A little bit of the vibe of “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”or “500 Days of Summer.” Plus it had Andy Samberg and Cristin Miloti (the mother from How I Met Your Mother) and I find both of them endearing.

    Writing my fanfic is going fairly well, if I feel a bit like I’m in “throw paint on the canvas” part. At least the banter is flowing.

    I DNFed a few books I had checked on the library which is not “happiness” making exactly but it feels freeing after trying to force myself to read them over and over again.

    My son and I played hide and seek yesterday and he actually found some climbable trees. This is harder than you think (at least in city neighborhoods in DC). Trees are either spindly little things or giants with no low footholds.

    And I have a million things to do, but it’s summer and not a million degrees outside, so I’m going to sit outside on the hammock and re-read “Bet Me.”

    2. Jill, would you consider posting a link to your fanfic? If it’s for something I know, I’d like to read it.

      1. Hi Reb,

        I usually keep my real life and fanfic life fairly separate (b/c I’m a “respectable adult” in real life), but this is a good bunch of people and it’s not like I’m a celebrity;-) This most recent one I’m working on is not up yet, but I have a few things here. It’s a weird mish mash of fandoms, but almost all of them are romantic in their leanings and fairly lighthearted. That’s just my voice.

        https://archiveofourown.org/users/LydiaOLydia/works

  2. Apologies to everybody for being so absent, but I got sick, NOT the virus thank god, but it turns out other stuff keeps happening, too. Sometimes you just need to drop out and ache.

    But I am much better now and planning on hitting the grocery for waffles because I suddenly crave Eggo. No idea why, they’re terrible, but I have great maple syrup so who cares? Also, I don’t hurt anymore. Nothing but good times ahead.

      1. Hell, good maple syrup is good on most things. Especially scrambled eggs and bacon.

    2. Glad to hear that you’re feeling better. Given the understandable focus on the virus, easy to forget there are other bugs hanging around.

    3. Try and see if they have belgian waffles with pearl sugar, if you’re craving waffles get the good stuff

    4. Pain sucks, no matter what the cause. Our upstate NY weather has been crazy–weeks of 90 degrees (we usually get a couple of 90 degree days in a summer) and lots of storms. My fibro doesn’t approve and has made that clear. Sympathies.

  3. Jenny, I hope you are feeling better!

    Happiness this week has been eating all the vegetables from the garden. We are getting so much now we have to make a plan for what we will eat each night just to keep up. Right now we are finishing the garden peas and eating kale, chard, bok Choi (first harvest this week and it was sooo good), favs beans, mint and basil. We ate our first baby cucumber and are looking forward to green beans, zucchini, tomatoes, and more cucumbers.

  4. Dug and ate my first potatoes this week. Got my eyes lasered on Friday, and am really enjoying Having sharp vision again. Plus it was a lovely walk along the river from the bus station in Shrewsbury to the health centre: loads of wild flowers, horses grazing, etc. It took an hour each way, but I stopped for a picnic on the way back.

    Did some brainstorming on my fiction project yesterday, which made me really happy. More to do, but I can see my next step.

    And I filled up with petrol for the first time since lockdown, and actually drove more than twenty miles today – to Powis (a bit disappointing – turns out two gardeners really can’t do the work of two dozen – but my favourite picnic spot in the wilderness was still accessible), a nursery and a garden centre. Bought a honeysuckle and three bags of compost, and am researching other gardens to visit – preferably with lots of clematis and honeysuckle so I can make good choices for my garden.

    1. Wonderful that your vision is great now! I had Lasik in 2006 and it was a wonderful thing! I loved having great vision. However, as I read too much and don’t stretch my eye muscles enough by going outside and focusing on far away things, my vision deteriorated a bit. Then, when I was 53 (a few years ago ….), I had to get cataract surgery. At 53! Very annoying. Better vision than awhile, but not at good as Lasik.

      1. Yes, I was taken aback when I started developing cataracts at 58 – but apparently it’s not unusual if you’re very short-sighted. This laser treatment was to cut a hole in the growths that had started obscuring my vision – it’s a fairly common post-cataract complication. It’s great to have my post-cataract clarity again. I’ve got pretty good distance vision – good enough to drive – without glasses. Which is a delight after a lifetime of not being able to focus further than the end of my nose. (Although I did like the built-in magnifier that gave me.)

        1. Certain drugs can also hasten the development of cataracts. I used to use a steroid eye drop to control my allergies and started my first cataract well before my 55th birthday. As for my second, I learned about that when I went in for my annual exam and asked my doctor how my cataract was doing and she replied, “Which one?” That was almost ten years ago, I have stopped using the steroid and neither of my cataracts has gotten any worse. And I was farsighted when I started wearing glasses. Go figure.

  5. Zoom meeting with my book group this week. As we were discussing the book (The Dutch House), I realized how much I like this group of women. I knew some of them before we started the group but missed several meetings early on due to work. This week, I felt like I am finally part of the group. We finally got some rain so I pulled out weeds and planted several hostas a friend gifted to me. It was still hot but not as awful as earlier in the week. There’s huge raspberry patch in a ditch along my regular dog walking route – doesn’t seem like anyone’s picking it, so I take a couple of ripe berries when I pass by – so delicious.

  6. I got a big boost of happiness this week. Wednesday was my birthday, so I went to the beach for the first time since quarantine. It was only about a 45-minute drive. There are closer but more crowded beaches (in San Francisco); the beach I visited is both kind of isolated and in a county where more things are open, like the bathrooms at the beach (important). I took my chair, a blanket, a book, and a picnic and hung out for almost four hours, until sunset.

    There was almost no one else there, so no problem social distancing. It was pleasant but not hot, about 65°F/18°C. It was beautiful and relaxing, a total reset. I forgot how much difference a change of scenery can make. I resolved to do it more, maybe weekly, though this week I want to go inland to try to catch the comet from a high place away from city lights.

    3. Happy Bday Jen! I dream of walking on the beach. I lived on the Oregon Coast for 7 1/2 years and I would probably move back if I could afford to support myself. Being on the each is very cleansing and calming, isn’t it?

  7. Big news for me came at my 2-week post-op appointment for knee replacement. Not only is the fixed knee doing fine, but my other knee has so little arthritis that it won’t need replacing in foreseeable future.

    Sweet neighbors brought a blackberry cobbler over with the excuse that some of the bushes they picked are on our shared property. I have asked them and others for favors while my husband and I are recuperating from surgery. Everyone is very kind.

  8. I finally finished quilting a Christmas quilt top that I have had in my possession for 15 months. You can see it on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/p/CChrgyYpqyF/?igshid=1ojo9kow66f4d. Mind you I did not actually piece the top together. I just did the Quilting that joined the top batting and backing. It took 10.5 hours to quilt not including the time I spent unquilting when I made the mistake or two.

    We also got rain one day this week which was truly needed.

    Jenny, I’m happy you’re feeling better! That also makes me happy.

  9. Happiness is playing with two of my grandchildren. It has been a lovely week of hiking and exploring and rivers. The quarantine has been tough on the little guys since they normally live overseas, got evacuated back to the USA on a military transport and have spent this entire time in temporary housing.

  10. Happiness today was finishing the moving and disposition of 51 100-pound stumps left from the power company cutting down our 70-year-old street tree. Lugged them with a handcart, then scattered them around the back yard to feed birds and squirrels on. My back is aching, but the result is lovely, and I’m very relieved to have them dealt with.

  11. I’m happy everyone I know is healthy and being smart about things. And that the writing on the second cozy is finally moving along. Plus the few fresh peas the damned chipmunks didn’t get.

    I am not happy about chipmunks.

    But did have a Zoom chat with my daughter out in San Jose, which was nice.

  12. I was happy to have my work life settle back into a manageable flow after Hell June. Also happy it wasn’t horribly hot during the week. Happy the only plant that died during my not-going-outside-because-explosions (fireworks) watering strike was a plant I didn’t like anyway. Happy to get the second piece of July Publication Blitz done. Happy Jenny is feeling better. 🙂

  13. I woke up early on Sunday morning and took the opportunity to go to the local aquatic gardens with a friend. We chanced driving together—masked, me in the front and her in the back.

    The lotus are in bloom, so it was beautiful. Everyone was wearing masks, the paths were set to one way, and people were pretty good about social distancing. A very good start to the day.

  14. I went to see my doctor in person on Friday and it was really good to see her again. Although some of the news was bad, I feel more confident of my ability to go back on the diet. And that is really the answer to every thing for me

    Other pluses this week include absolutely perfect weather today. I opened my windows, turned off the AC and dragged Nourene out for a walk. Lake Michigan was six different shades of blue and green and the breeze was delightful.

    The antenna I bought arrived this week and not only was it really easy to assemble, but it also has improved my reception a huge amount. I will need someone to help me anchor it to the wall, but it is already worth more than double what it cost.

  15. Zoom classes with the yoga family. It was our individual practical lessons for certification. It brought me huge amounts of happiness.

    I’m very excited, almost giddy with joy. It’s nearly 6.15am SA time on Monday and I’ve been happily up since 3, being effective.

    I feel like I inhabit “I greet this day with love in my heart, and I am free.” Sending out good vibes to all.

  16. We had 15 friends over for lunch on Saturday. The last one left at about 10pm. We had a shared feast and lots of great conversations. That made me happy – exhausted but happy.

  17. And I hope all of of you who’ve been sick or operated on keep recovering well. It’s good to hear you’re feeling better.

  18. Yesterday, I took myself out for a short excursion to JoAnn’s (for yarn) and the grocery store. I had a kerchief around my neck, so that if people stared it would be “why does that woman have a kerchief” rather than “WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR NECK!!” It was great to get out (yes, masked) and drive myself around. I’m very much looking forward to the 2 week post-op visit Tuesday when hopefully, they’ll take this tape off my neck and allow me to shower again. 🙂

  19. Enjoyed the horse show last week. It went just about how I expected. There were about 10 people in our group but everyone was busy riding, prepping, etc and there was very little sitting around. We also had very hot weather so there were fans on everywhere. We brought most of our food or had take out a couple of times. I feel that we did everything we could and it was so nice to just be normal. No one in our group had any one who had tested positive so that made me feel even better. One more week and I should be cleared to be able to ride again so looking forward to that too!

  20. Zoom with CBs yesterday afternoon. We had a good turnout and a lot of laughs. Thank you Jenny for the role you played in bringing these people into my life!

    Got a haircut this past week with my long time stylist, and being independent now she was willing to come to the house so my mother got a haircut too. Professional grooming is such a luxury now! Masks all around, of course.

    Seeing how pretty my socks are knitting up.

    Gutter guy came by this weekend, so that’s off my list of things to worry about.

    The temp is ever so slightly milder today, so I’ve set up to work from my covered patio. The patio itself needs serious work, but being able to look at my garden and listen to birds while earning my paycheck is heaven. Although our area has moved to stage two, and people are on board with masks, businesses are asked to continue remote work if at all possible. None of my bosses are in a hurry to return, which I think has management a little nervous because without people in the physical office, there isn’t really much for them to do.

  21. Jenny, make no apologies for getting sick. It happens. It happened to me, also not the pandemic.

    Last week, I began feeling a pain in my lower back, right side. Without getting graphic, I began to believe I had a kidney stone. There was, at one point, a great deal of pain. I nearly overcame my fear of pestilence-ridden hospitals. I’ve been drinking large quantities of bottled water (and even some added apple cider vinegar) and the pain and other symptoms are gone.

    I missed my weekly Sunday Night Dinner-and-Shopping with the dotter, but the lack of pain makes me very, very happy. Be well!

  22. I tried to figure out if I had any happies for the week: they’ve been rather sparse on the ground. But I had two. The first was that the manager of our house (who has a property management company) gave me a part-time job doing the local work — such as going to the property, having issues addressed, checking up on the work — and she’s paying me under the table for a bit so I don’t lose my unemployment. It’s lovely and the work is going to be easy and will get me out of the house at least once a week. The second was a conversation with one of my roommates, the only one I have longer conversations with. It started with my telling her of a dream I had that jolted me awake (someone was trying to get in the front door while I was trying to lock it) — no, it does get funny after this! — and then we off from that to security systems and safe rooms. Then our safe room ideas off the rails and left us in tears of laughter. It took us about ten minutes to wipe off the tears and stop giggling. It was awesome. So, two happies this week for me!

Comments are closed.