Gratitude Journal.

It was really difficult to think of enough things - even if it's only five - for this week. I considered leaving it out altogether, but in a way, I need it more than usual. It's easy to think of good things in better times, but it's when things are bad that they're most needed.

So, things I'm grateful for.

1) This link, which I found via Yasmin's journal. If you bnelieve Afghansitan should be carpet bombed, please read this.

2) The way the usual fueds and fights in the chat rooms have been put aside in favour of helping people.

3) This story by Dark Mark, posted on OTL this week.

4) The good news that Seraph has been able to get time off for the Great Australian Slumber Party, to be held at my place the weekend 5th-7th October. Now I just need to track down an Melancamp. ;)

5) That for whatever reason, the funk I've been in for the past three weeks abruptly lifted on Tuesday morning (our time), freeing me up to be as much support as required for folks online. I'm not sure how much that was, but I'm glad I was capable of it. And will be, for as long as necessary.


***

I'm tired. My shoulders and neck are a mess too - it's bad when no matter what position I lie in in bed, I get a headache. I think a bath is in order, and a bit of a break from things computer-related. I still have to finish my two short stories so they can be betaed - Dex and Mitai and Farli have consented, which is good. I need honest opinions on these. But the stories may just have to wait until tomorrow afternoon - half-day for work, and then lunch at mum's so I can pick up the beer Dad bought for a certain Canadian whilst in northern Queensland, at my request. Now you'll have to get down here for AussieCon, Dex, or wait until next year. ;)

You think I'd know by now...

... that a really hot bath is not a Good Idea. Especially since I've already demonstrated (quite spectacularly, the last time) that I tend to faint after soaking too long in very hot water. I lay an hour in the bath, and then had to lie for ten minutes on the cool bathroom floor to get my body temperature back down to sometign approximating normal. Silly bint.

Fainting is especially not an option tonight, as BRM isn't here. He's got a job interview in Robinvale (about 400km near the Victoria/SA/NSW border). He'll be back tomorrow afternoon, but in the menatime, I'm home alone again. Not that I mind. I actually quite like these moments of solitude. I can put on whatever music I like, as loud as I like (within reason, I do have neighbours!), and spend the evening as I choose. Which, tonight, involved a short Subreality fic, the aforementioned bath, and then work on my short story entries. Got one finished, and a tad more done of the other. Now I just have to get the silly magistrate into the police cells for his Moment.

I've always been happy in my own company - at first out of necessity, but now it's by choice. It's great to have friends, and to have some kind of menaingful human contact, but sometimes I need that time alone in my head.

***

It's strange. Just when I am reconciled to not having any friends up her, people start popping out of the woodwork. Friday night I went to Greta's birthday party with BRM, and David, one of BRM's classmates, was there. Those of you who were reading this thing back in April might remember my mentioning David, in reference to a bushwalk up Bogong, and a mountain bike ride. Well, it seems that he was wodnering where I'd gotten to - he asked me why I hadn't been to any of the various social things they'd been doing.

"I wasn't invited," I said, hedging a bit. I didn't want to dump BRM in it completely.

"Yes, you were," he replied, a bit puzzled. "We told (BRM) to tell you."

"Ah."

What followed was a garbled explanation (I had been drinking, and said housemate was in the vicinity and I didn't want to start a fight) of how it was felt that we should have our own friends. So David grinned and said I'd have to come out with them whilst he was in America - that way, I wouldn't be tagging along.

*grins* I feel much better about this place now.

See, BRM had told me his friends from school thought I was a bit weird, and obsessive, and other stuff. Which may be true, I don't know. All I do know is that they stopped coming over. But now I find out some of them at leat - alright, one of them - has been wondering where I've been. A small, but welcome, boost for the ego.

I'm going to get David's phone number off BRM this week. Even if I have to torture it out of him. *grins evilly*

***

I also caught up with Alex, my best friend from uni. I'd forwarded something to her, and managed to catch her online - she's in London at the moment, but coming back to Brisbane in November. She's also recently-single: I've told her we are going out on a pub-crawl and picking up some handsome young toyboys.

It'll be great to see her again.

***

Working in an office has made me such a wuss. I have a blister on my hand from the sweeping I did outside today. Methinks I should get back into waving the sticks around again. But a fairly productive day, in all, spent largely outside. A good day for it, too - lovely and sunny and warm. I took my tea and toast out and sat on the concrete slab that is awaiting the construction of the shed, soaking in the Vitamin D. Another month and I'll have to break out the sunscreen again, but it was nice to just sit and be.

That's it for tonight. That headache is still lurking, and I have to work tomorrow.

Take care.