What I'm Thankful For

I spent the past few days trying to think the few things I must really be thankful for, besides my wife, baby, and immediate family.

I found inspiration in Dave Winer's essay on how to begin the "thanking" process, and the key is to focus on why you're thankful. With that in mind, it actually reveals many of the things we would overlook.

So, without any order:

Ofoto - With the birth of Mia, sending pictures and prints has been added to my job description. Ofoto make the process quite easy and painless. The prints are super, and really complement my digital camera.

Blogger - I'd pay a modest fee to keep up the service which generates the pages that you're reading and I'm writing. For someone like me with a creative 'bent', a BLOG is a perfect outlet, and Blogger allows me to concentrate on the content, and not the publishing.

My New Job - I've been with Mercury almost six months, and I've had a super experience so far. Aside from the technical challenge that makes the work rewarding, the job itself is quite family "friendly". I can leave work by 5PM virtually every night. I have full telecommuting capabilities (although I've only had to take advantage of that once). And the work is the kind that I can leave at work (i.e. I am not 'on call'). The new job makes it possible for me to be the kind of father and husband that I want to be.

Radio Headphones - I bought a a pair for my Dad, and I own a pair for myself. When I watch television or movies at night, I plug these headphones in, and I can watch from the comfort of the sofa without waking anyone up.

Caller ID - Sorry if you never reach us, but we don't answer the phone unless the caller id shows a number we already know. With caller id, we pretty much turn the ringer off, thus eliminating the stress of the evening telemarketing phone call.

Day Care - Jenn and I have grown to love the routine we've developed with Mia. Jenn is at home with Mia three days a week, then sends her to day care for two days. I then 'take over' on the weekends. Day care is an easy one to be thankful for, primarily because it allows Jenn the ability to work part time, and (I'm sure of this) keeps her sane. Mia gets a healthy dosage of social training too.

There's a lot more, I'm sure, but let me sign off with these. I hope it gets you thinking too. Thanksgiving is once a year, but every day we should be able to say "Thank goodness" for something, right?