Category: Happy

Wednesday, day 3 in Palm Desert, California

6:17pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Wednesday evening, December 21, 2022. We are still in Palm Desert for a couple more days. I have been going to the office and working. Mom mostly hangs out in the room and goes down to the lobby for breakfast. Though reportedly, she went for a short walk today. My daughter’s mom texted this morning; she was diagnosed with pneumonia last night, which explains the shortness of breath. She is feeling a little better but, needs to take it easy the next couple of days. My daughter feels better as well. She has a cough and tires easily but otherwise is doing alright. Of course, it was reported she plays online until 4am with friends in Australia so, it probably isn’t illness sapping her energy. I look forward to Christmas. We are going to drive up to Valencia on Saturday and spend time with family before officially celebrating the holiday in Orange County.

Sunday in Orange County, California

6:39pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Lake Forest, California, USA, Sunday evening, December 18, 2022. I spent the whole day waiting for inspiration to write this post. Nothing overly amazing happened but, it was a nice day nonetheless. Went to breakfast with my mom, took a walk in Dana Point and ran to some stores. Later, we drove around for a while before taking dinner to the family in Aliso Viejo. Now we are back at the hotel and calling it a night. We will leave for Palm Desert tomorrow morning and stay there until next weekend.

Lake Forest, California, Saturday afternoon

4:10pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Lake Forest, California, USA, Saturday afternoon, December 17, 2022. Woke up last night in Salt Lake City to a very hot hotel room. Turns out the thermostat in the room was malfunctioning. That meant no matter what the setting said (64 with the air conditioning on) the heater kept running full blast. After two hours of sweltering frustration and nearly at my wits end, I finally realized I could unplug the unit and shut it off completely. But, by then I could not relax and go back to sleep. So I got out of bed, showered, and headed to the lobby to wait for the 5:30am shuttle. After a nice, short flight my mom and I arrived in Orange County just before 9am. We were both a little tired and ready to relax but because everyone is sick we could not go to the apartment. Instead, we reserved hotel rooms in Lake Forest. However, the rooms were not ready until the afternoon so we filled the time with shopping, lunch and running errands. Now we are comfortably settled in and ready for a quiet evening of much needed rest.

Friday night in Salt Lake City, Utah

5:09pm, mountain standard time, hotel in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, Friday evening, December 16, 2022. Hanging out at the hotel in Salt Lake City, watching Happy Gilmore. I flew in this afternoon and connected with my mom around 3pm. Now, we are going to grab dinner but, with no car and it being very cold, we will order in or eat at the hotel. Tomorrow we fly back to Orange County first thing in the morning. The good news is I feel better than I did yesterday. Perhaps it was wearing a mask that had sat in my trunk for a year that made me feel stuffy.

I cooked today

5:57pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Aliso Viejo, California, USA, Sunday evening, December 11, 2022. A rare occurrence happened this morning; I cooked. Normally, I avoid anything other than frozen dinners and take-out but, my daughters mom had some meal prep packages in the fridge and I was bored. So I made lentil soup, butternut-sage lasagna and a pear/walnut salad. Afterwards, I took a shower and drove to Laguna Niguel for a haircut. This evening it is just me and my daughter in the apartment. Her mom left for Los Angeles. She has an early morning court hearing regarding a work issue. Tomorrow, I plan to take my daughter to school and work remotely but, I suspect she has plans to stay home as well. She spent a lot of time with friends this weekend and is feeling rundown.

Saturday in Southern California

6:27pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Aliso Viejo, California, USA, Saturday night, December 10, 2022. Hanging with the family, watching anime together. We don’t always spend time as an entire group, watching one program. It is nice. The day has been good; went for the full walk in Dana Point this morning, drank coffee, did laundry and grocery shopping. All in all, today has been a good early December day in Southern California.

Good to be with a friend

10:32pm, mountain standard time, apartment in Chandler, Arizona, USA, Friday night, December 2, 2022. Got to Chandler at 4:30pm. Had some things to complete for work then sat down and watched the football game with my houseguest/friend. We both lived in Utah for some time so we had similar rooting interests. I am glad she is here. At first I was worried about having someone in the apartment but, it is nice to be with a friend rather than alone.

I am thankful

6:30pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Wednesday evening, November 30, 2022. This morning I had a breakthrough. A positive change in my outlook I hadn’t considered before now. Namely, I am living in the moment. I am not bored, or day dreaming, or wishing for a different job, different circumstances. The challenge of today takes all my focus and energy. Yes, at times I feel drained, but being fully invested is what I have been searching for. That is what I wished for when I started looking for a new job. Seeing things from that perspective gives me peace. Yes, work can be difficult, but I am in the battle, not standing on the sidelines waiting for something to happen. That is happiness in its own right. And for that, I am thankful.

More hopeful

5:51am, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Wednesday morning, November 30, 2022. Woke up this morning feeling more hopeful than last night. A good nights rest and figuring out a workout routine at this hotel helped. Yesterday, I booked the travel for my mom to visit over the holidays. I look forward to spending time with her again.