800 Seconds of Gratitude

 Eight Hundred Seconds

Decide to honor

my sister’s 800^th post

on her gratitude blog

with 800 seconds of gratitude.

How hard can it be?

Hmm, 800 seconds?

That equals…?

(insert math problem here)

thirteen minutes, twenty seconds.

Do the two minutes

for the math problem

count toward the 800?

Okay, eleven minutes plus

of total gratitude

starting now.

I’m grateful for:

this coffee,

Tom – even though he was pesty at 3 a.m.,

my writing group (currying favor),

Potter’s Marsh,

my health,

oh rats! I forgot to make dental appointment.

Get back into gratitude Aileen.

Okay where was I?

I am thankful for:

Hotdish Haiku book Zita sent me,

sleeping in,

the novel I’m reading,

last night’s movie

and leftover popcorn.

That reminds me:

I need to get cat food.

What else before I leave Friday?

Better buy new tennies.

Back to gratitude A.

Think it’s easy

to have 800 straight

seconds of gratitude?

You try it!

I’m going to weave

the 800 seconds

throughout my day,

threads of appreciation

brightening the hours.

   A.H. 9-30-14         

Why Catholics Can't Sing

Multiple Choice
Catholics can't sing because:
a) they might enjoy it and that would be a sin.
b) they have PTSD - Post Traumatic Singing Disorder - from Catholic grade school music lessons.
c) the acoustics aren't good in churches.
d) there is no commandment "thou shalt sing."
e) I don't know because I haven't read the book yet.

The most correct answer is e) I haven't read the book yet. What book, you say? "Why Catholics Can't Sing: The Culture of Catholicism and Triumph of Bad Taste." I am not making that up. This title called to me at a garage sale. Chapter headings include: The People Without Music, The Irish Way and Mr. Nice Guy. In the unlikely event I read this book I will report back.

A.H.   9-24-14

Things I Rarely Say

1) This coffee is too strong.
2) This dessert is too rich.
3) Wish I hadn't taken that nap.
4) That vacation was too long.
5) This brownie is too chocolate-y.
6) There's too much sunshine. (Thanks to Kelly for this one)
7) I'm entirely too thin.
8) My car is too fast.
9) Wish I hadn't stopped at that bakery.
10) I laughed too much.

A.H. 9-19-14

R.I.P. Baxter

Baxter - our big, brown cat -died unexpectedly on Monday. John, Tom and I have lost part of our family. We've had Baxter (or he's had us) for about 11 years. We adopted him from Petco. He had apparently been "returned" by someone else, thus he was a "used" cat, as someone called him. Thanks Baxter for the laughs, the joy and the love.

I had the thrill of seeing a Kodiak brown (grizzly) bear on Wednesday and decided it was Baxter reincarnated. Thus, the following haiku:

Kodiak brown bear
running wild, gulping salmon,
it's Baxter writ large.


I think I can still hear him purring. Goodbye Baxtie.

A.H. 9-13-14

Haiku Times Two

A bevy of birds
bursts from top of neighbor's tree,
the party's over?

A flirt of a day
promising to be pretty
then turns cold shoulder.

A.H.