Enjoying The Now

 Enjoy the NOW

I've been dating the same person for 16 weeks. It helps that we are both work alcoholics, very involved in our community and share same passions of helping people.  We've both had some unpleasant dating/relationships and we decided at the same time to take things slowly

Enjoying the NOW is our mantra.  Making and keeping time to share a meal, watch a show we both like, work on projects that fulfill us all in moderation.    Since our 'date night is Saturday evenings' we both look forward to making that our now time.

What helps you to enjoy the now?

Hope Over Despair

 For those new to my blog I'm a queer man living with AIDS.  HIV positive since mid 1980s and in 1993 got the official AIDS diagnosis.  I'll go over why I choose HOPE over DESPAIR later or you can just scroll though any former topics so see what I mean.  Today is different

During a discussion in the group Positive Attitudes we talked about an article in POZ magazine about brain disorders. 

I do have two brain disorders, the first being HIV encephalitis and the second PML

Add a minor stroke 13 years ago and I'm shocked that I can work full time.  Seriously until  I got the PML diagnosis just two years ago I was on disability. 

I choose HOPE over DESPAIR and found employment where i can share my work skills and life lessons

Where do you find angst and do you fight it or combat it? 

Road Signs

There are many street sings advising us/ME on what to do, what to avoid, how fast to go, etc

I thought it would be super if such signs existed for my life.  Who knows how I avoided "that wrong road" or made an incorrect turn without warning.  Turns out there were road signs in my life:

Mom is one of them. Her wisdom gained from growing up with a family like the one I did helped her see the dangers ahead.  I joined the Boy Scouts and they taught "Do your best" 

Now I'm in uncharted waters in my dating life.  Thanks to having had rough roads before I think I know what lies ahead

Still I'll take head on the future   What sign do you  follow?

Same Thing We Do Everynight Pinky

 The cartoon "Pinky and The Brain" is about perseverance.  Through mishaps they try and try and try again to "take over the world"    A key word that Brain says is "TRY"

As Winston Churchill said never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never

When work leaves me weary, I say "I'll try", when a date goes bad, I try again

What tools do you use to "Try and take over the world"

It's a Miricle

 Happy New Year. That I survived covid free all year despite working in an assisted living facility is a miracle.  Turning 58 mid December having been "PROMISED" at 34 I'd have seven years to live is  a miracle. 22 years of sobriety and that is a miracle. 

Having been single for a few years I had a second date last night: that's a miracle for sure

These maybe small things to you but if you've gotten anything from this  blog I praise small things

What has been your miracle?   

From "Fiddler on the Roof"

Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles-

God took up Daniel once again,

Stood by his side and- miracle of miracles-

Walked him through the lions den!

Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles-

I was afraid that God would frown,

But like he did so long ago, at Jericho,

God just made a wall fall down!

When Moses softened Pharaohs heart, that was a miracle.

When God made the waters of the red sea part, that was a miracle too!

Life Goes On

 This past weekend I turned 58 years old.  I'm  still trying to figure out just how.  It's not worth it here to go on as to why I cant figure it out but I'll say John    Mellancamp is right.  Hard to admit it but the thrill is gone.  Going through Facebook memories I was reminded via a photo of me 30 years ago on my birthday at moms house.  My face was robust, my outlook fantastic.   Today I'm showing that I'm 58.  The settings on my stock trading site went from aggressive to moderate.  

My mom turned 96 last month and I'm still her baby.  Regardless I'm alive, employed and own my car outright.  The 'trill' isn't needed

Perhaps I'm being melodramatic but at  12am on a Monday night I'm allowed

My question for you, my readers is does aging frighten
you? 

     

Oh yeah, life goes on
Long after the thrill of livin' is gone
I say, oh yeah say life goes on
Long after the thrill of livin' is gone

attitudes are our eyeglasses

 Our/my attitudes and our ideas are the eyeglasses through which we see our lives.  If our “glasses” are smudged or dirty, our lives look dim.  If our attitudes aren’t well focused, the whole world appears distorted.  

To see the world clearly, we/I need to keep our attitudes and ideas clean, free of things like resentment, denial, self-pity, and closed-mindedness.  To insure our vision of life is in focus, we/I have to bring our ideas in line with reality.