It’s time for another week’s worth of gratitude, led by Elisabeth as part of this month’s F.I.G. Collective.
Sunday, February 8: I made these apple crisp bars on a whim, and they were SO GOOD. Easy to make, delicious, and they reheat exceptionally well.
Monday, February 9: GUESS WHAT?! My treadmill has magically healed itself!!!! My husband came home last week and took the treadmill apart, trying to fix it. To no avail. Then he and our child and I researched treadmills all weekend and even went to a big box store to try out the most likely candidate. Then, for some reason, he decided to plug in our existing treadmill one more time, and it WORKED. (We think that it may never have been broken; instead, we may have accidentally removed the emergency stop key, which makes me feel like a Grade A Dumbass, but whatever.)
Tuesday, February 10: The temperature SOARED to 40 degrees F (5 degrees C) today! I took a walk outside and I wasn’t the least bit chilly. The SUN was out. It was magnificent!
Wednesday, February 11: YOU GUYS. I went to the post office to mail a couple of books to some out-of-state friends, and I decided to ask whether my mail carrier might have accidentally removed a package from my mailbox. The postal clerk was very friendly about it, and said she would find my mail carrier… at which point I fretted and fretted about how it sounded like I was accusing my mail carrier of stealing my package. My normal mail carrier was out, so the substitute came over and I explained my issue to him. He said that Amazon isn’t supposed to put packaged in mail boxes (did you know that?!) and that the post office had a storage locker where they kept Amazon and FedEx and other non-USPS packages that they would simply send back to the shipping companies, and he would check the locker for me. So he did, AND HE FOUND MY TEA!
Thursday, February 12: Usually I drink a smoothie (made with high protein yogurt and high protein milk) for breakfast, but sometimes I opt for sourdough toast with butter instead. No regrets.
Friday, February 13: Carla mentioned recently that she was hoping to find a necklace that matched her favorite earrings, similar to this one. She told me that she’d seen the exact necklace that she wanted – and had taken a photo of it. Well, I looked back in my photos and she took the picture in September of 2025. So I was pretty sure the store would no longer have the same necklace in stock. But I went while she was in school and, lo and behold, the necklace was there! And it was only $6.99. What an easy way to make her Valentine’s Day a little more fun and special, right?
Saturday, February 14: Family movie night! We borrowed Psycho a week or so ago from the library. I have never seen the movie before, even though I know the general idea. And reading Birchie’s Hitchcock rewatch recaps has piqued my interest about trying some classic Hitchcock movies… plus, my husband and I watched Monster: The Ed Gein Story, the subject of which helped inspire Psycho, which edged up my interest a little more. (I would not necessarily recommend this series. It was riveting and fascinating and horrifying, but also felt problematic in a way I’m not sure how to pinpoint.) (Also, there are a few scenes in Monster: The Ed Gein Story that depict the audience reaction to Psycho in the theaters, and I am always interested, if a little wary, of watching something that causes people to vomit, faint, and run out of the theater.) The three of us watched Psycho and I will admit that I may have dozed off a little bit at one point, but mainly we had a blast making fun of the characters. Horror movies have come a long ways since Psycho hit theaters, and all three of us – yes, even Carla – have a much higher tolerance for gore and terror than 1960s moviegoers.
That’s all I have for you today, Internet! I hope you’ve found many joyful moments in your days lately.