It’s amazing that it’s already here. I saw it coming, and yet when I take a closer look at the year, it flew by. There have been some really fun things and serious things that have helped the time pass for me. While the first part of the year was moderate, the second half just seemed to fly by. And, I’m grateful for all my adventures.

moving

Relocation was a big deal at the midpoint of the year. I returned to my former apartment complex, (different unit). It was a tough move, as are all moves. Still, I’m glad to be back. I miss the company of my mom. She’s glad to be back at home though. I’m grateful for the chance to move again, and for the fun of rediscovering my things that were in storage. It was even a good challenge to have to neatly store all the things I’m saving for my mom. (Although, I may not have been that positive about it, when I first stared at all the stuff.)

Yes, I claim to be working from a positive, grateful stance most days. However, I also claim my humanness, my view of things as half empty sometimes. Still, I see that gratitude makes the self-pitying time largely non-existent. Self-doubt is more a habit that I need to break, and still something that I can usually work through.

computer training

Part of what made the move hard for me was that it came near the end of my computer training. It brought on a wealth of distractions that have yet to calm down. Still, I finished the course. I made some good friends in the course and I have a good grasp of the material from the program. It was fun and I’m grateful I could complete it.

I’ve not taken the certification exam yet because of more life stuff. It doesn’t help much that I don’t much care for tests. On the other hand, the eleventh hour is often my best hour. So, I continue. I fit in the studying here and there, and resolve to take the test before the end of the year. Is this eleventh hour or what?

writing admin stuff

Job search is a full-time venture, don’t let anyone tell you different. It keeps me occupied, perfecting and re-perfecting my résumé, searching, contacting and following up on applications. That writing goes hand in hand with the writing for my website. Adding different details to my résumé has led to me adding new things to my website as well. So, I’m grateful for the things this process is inspiring for being self-employed.

website development

I’m always adding to my website development skill set. I learned to use PHP. Not a lot of PHP, mind you. But, I have command enough to separate out repetitive sections of my static website. PHP makes it easy to add pages to my site since I separated out the top and bottom navigation, as well as the sidebar section. Without going into too much detail, this coding lets me update one file and it’s automatically propagated throughout the site.

I converted my work site, The Word ’Mage, to PHP files. I wanted it done before expanding my site with a publishing section, and before other major projects I’m considering. I’m grateful that I was able to learn that quickly, as I really wanted to have this well in hand before I started to grow my website. Blog development is on the way.

gratitude: always the big deal

No matter how difficult things get at times, no matter how much I might struggle with a new concept, time, learning resources, I still find it easy to be grateful. I’m grateful for all that is behind me in accomplishments, training, and experiences. I’m grateful for all that is yet to come, getting through the known, and the excitement of the unknown. Also, I’m grateful tat I’m back on track with the November PAD Challenge.

As much as this day reminds me of gratitude, it reminds me that the year is nearly over! And that’s a great time for review and reflection. One of the best ways I have of reflecting and appreciating is to write through things. It’s a pleasure to be able to appreciate my life events. I can’t imagine how difficult life would be if I couldn’t smile during the easy and the hard parts.

I find that gratitude makes smiling effortless, don’t you?