Hello, dear readers, and welcome to Thursday! The morning is already getting away from me, and it’s only just after 9am.

It’s been a good week, for the most part. Work has been a little bonkers, but not in an unmanageable way. We’re still totally in love with our dog. Last night we started obedience classes, and she did great – we definitely have a lot to work on at home, but I was impressed by how attentive she managed to be despite the room full of other dogs.

I don’t have a whole lot of really cogent thoughts this morning, so let’s make the end of this blog a gratitude list. Here are a few things that are making me happy these days:

• The thing about having a dog is that I end up leaving the house a lot more now than I used to, and I’m walking, on average, even more than I did pre-pandemic in Chicago, when I was taking public transit everywhere. I am grateful that my body is making the adjustment to increased activity with a minimum of complaints. (My right leg definitely has some opinions and my sciatica flares up now and again, but it could be so much worse.)
• Last weekend I had a conversation with some friends about community and what it means to us. I am so grateful that I have multiple places where I can show up as I am and be seen for who I am and have that celebrated. Thinking in particular of my “house church” and my D&D groups, but it’s definitely not exclusive to those two scenarios. I’m a very lucky human.
• Nova continues to be the chillest dog (*knocks on wood*). I am so grateful that we were able to find this magical being who is already teaching me so much about patience and play and wonder. She really is the best and I’m so happy to have her with us.