Metatalktail Hour: Giving Thanks

November 18, 2017 6:05 PM

Good Saturday evening, MetaFilter! Tonight's topic: What are you thankful for? Big or small, silly or serious, share the things you're thankful for this year.
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) to MetaFilter-Related at 6:05 PM (98 comments total)

Canadian Thanksgiving was a month ago but I'll still share some thanks because I have a lot to be thankful for.

• family
• friends
• coffee
• video games
• my mental health
• the MetaFilter community (all of you)

I'm still struggling with a lot and I haven't yet figured out how to adult properly. But, I'm thankful that I'm still here.
posted by Fizz at 6:14 PM on November 18, 2017 [5 favorites]

My kid did a craft at preschool where she told
the teachers she is thankful for underwear and shoes, so I think maybe I’m doing something super wrong maybe? Or right? It’s very hard to say.

Honestly I’m super thankful for her. She’s a pain in my ass like 60% of the time but the rest is an amazing psychedelic delight.
posted by uncleozzy at 6:36 PM on November 18, 2017 [22 favorites]

I am thankful for:

+my wife
+our new apartment
+landing a new job (it's retail but at least it's something)
+psychiatric medicine and talk therapy (oh, and health insurance!)
+this awesome polenta miso soup I've been eating
posted by lilies.lilies at 6:40 PM on November 18, 2017 [7 favorites]

I'm thankful the coffee shop/soda fountain up the street found a buyer and isn't closing after all. It is a small good thing in the grand scheme and 2017 can't have it. Let me know if you're passing through and I'll treat for ice cream.
posted by Flannery Culp at 6:53 PM on November 18, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'd also like to countersign this, from ~10 years in uncleozzy's future:

Honestly I’m super thankful for her. She’s a pain in my ass like 60% of the time but the rest is an amazing psychedelic delight.

Living with a brass-playing robot- programming autodidactic teenage nerd who has Opinions and is 100% her own person but still sometimes holds your hand in public is pretty great.
posted by Flannery Culp at 7:01 PM on November 18, 2017 [10 favorites]

I'm thankful for the people in my life who believe in me more than I believe in myself. Without them I'd have nothing.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 7:01 PM on November 18, 2017 [6 favorites]

Very thankful for -
- our perfect new house
- my partner who puts up with all my bad stuff
- being retired and able to live how I want
- being able to see, hear, walk and breathe
- electronics, games, books, and internet
- all the music I want, whenever I want it
posted by still_wears_a_hat at 7:07 PM on November 18, 2017 [6 favorites]

I'm thankful for:

+my children and all of their non-stop nonsense. Today Mini McGee was shouting wine-buying suggestions at the top of his lungs in Target (to the huge amusement of onlookers); Micro McGee sang Hannukah songs to himself, also at the top of his lungs; Nano McGee just got her first pair of shoes so she keeps toddling over to the shoes and grabbing hers and shoving them in my face to let me know she wants to go outside.
+living close to family for the first time since I went away to college
+mustard spoons, because they're so teeny
+my Kindle Paperwhite, for letting me carry 200 books in my purse
+my purse, for letting me carry 200 books around and also my car keys
+pens with green ink
+MetaFilter, and all you glorious nerds who make it such a beautiful place to work and to hang out
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 7:13 PM on November 18, 2017 [17 favorites]

+pens with green ink

<3
posted by Fizz at 7:16 PM on November 18, 2017 [3 favorites]

-- Espresso cups. Here's where I'm sure I horrify some of you by admitting that I really don't give a fig about the taste of espresso or anything like the caffeine - I just really like drinking out of those tiny cups. And yes, I know I could drink other liquids out of them, but it's just not the same somehow. I adore those little cups and that top layer of brewing bubbles and think they are just delightful. It makes me happy every time I get to drink out of an espresso cup, which is the only reason I get espresso.
-- Modern day oysters that look pretty identical to fossil oysters from the Jurassic
-- Metafilter and mltshp!
-- The show "The Good Place". It's just the perfect escape show and it makes me laugh and it's just a wonderful kind of unpredictable that's so much fun!
-- the people I love. They're so amazing and they're in my life! And! And! It amazes me all the time that so many of the people I love also love me back, and continue to love me despite. . . well, everything. Oh wow I'm a lucky gal. Oh my goodness.
-- All of our public lands
-- Dinosaur socks
posted by barchan at 7:30 PM on November 18, 2017 [7 favorites]

I'm thankful for:
- delicious food
- the internet
- my potential for health (really nothing about me is Permanently Broken)
- some amazing artistic opportunities this month
- my age-acquired cold tolerance
posted by All hands bury the dead at 7:36 PM on November 18, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'm also thankful for anime.
posted by Fizz at 7:41 PM on November 18, 2017 [3 favorites]

I am thankful for:

-Making it to the Saturday Night Metatalk at a reasonable time
-I have purchased all my feast ingredients! (although some at a dear price, I'm looking at you, Brussel sprouts)
- I get to have Friendsgiving this year - and one friend who hasn't made it is going to be here this year, yay
-Also my sister is in charge of dessert, so I don't have to
posted by Gyre,Gimble,Wabe, Esq. at 7:41 PM on November 18, 2017 [4 favorites]

mustard spoons, because they're so teeny

*googles mustard spoons*
*finds "list of types of spoons" on Wikipedia* Whaaaaat?! That.Is.Delightful!

Well, now I'm also grateful for this adorable list of spoons, and all those interesting spoons, and all the people who made a list about spoons and wrote spoon articles for all of us to read and learn from!
posted by barchan at 7:43 PM on November 18, 2017 [11 favorites]

barchan,

Some how, I've introduced tiny smaller size forks into my home and these are my favourite forks to eat with. I think they're for salads or deserts or something. I don't even know or care. There are 4 of them and I get made fun of for using the, but I don't give a shit. Tiny forks are awesome.
posted by Fizz at 7:52 PM on November 18, 2017 [8 favorites]

I am thankful for step by step guides on the internet for new ways to drive my wife crazy. In this case, she left her phone out unlocked and i have added several fun new replacement words to her autocorrect dictionary.

So, she may curse me when she finds this and thinks I did this as yet another juvenile way to send her out of her gourd (YAJWTSHOOHG) but in this case she's wrong. Autocorrect is doing it.

I tormented autocorrect.
posted by Nanukthedog at 8:23 PM on November 18, 2017 [7 favorites]

Right now I'm grateful for my two close friends, who put up with some serious shenanigans from me in the form of endless soliloquy, and who are miraculously under the same roof as I am tonight. And I am grateful for my other close friend, who is not with us tonight (we wish she was!) but who I will spend some time with under a roof soon, over the next chunk of holiday. Chosen family is very dear to me. I met all these women through Metafilter, for which I am also incredibly grateful. My life would be so much poorer and sadder without this site.

Oh, and also I am grateful for my cat, and truthfully for all cats, who are so good and pure and sweet and giving of their love and healing purrs. Special shout out for my dearest best feline friend, who is the Best Cat in the World.
posted by sockermom at 8:38 PM on November 18, 2017 [8 favorites]

My life, relative to a couple handfuls of years ago, is pretty damn boring- this is glorious.
posted by From Bklyn at 8:44 PM on November 18, 2017 [9 favorites]

"Well, now I'm also grateful for this adorable list of spoons, and all those interesting spoons, and all the people who made a list about spoons and wrote spoon articles for all of us to read and learn from!"

Okay so I need new silverware and I did TOO MUCH research and got kinda panicked about it and spent literally months dithering while basically not having enough place settings to feed my family and finally had to buy a test setting of my chosen pattern because I read reviews about how sometimes the fork tines in some patterns weren't sharp enough to pick up lettuce. Anyway I finally settled on a pattern just this weekend, and now I get to pick serving utensils! This pattern has mustard spoons! which I can't really imagine needing, but they're so cuuuuuuuuute I think I'll get a pair and use them to serve mini M&Ms and maybe horseradish sauce?
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 8:56 PM on November 18, 2017 [2 favorites]

I’m thankful I got my Mefi stickers in the mail! (And I put one on my truck)
posted by not_the_water at 9:18 PM on November 18, 2017 [2 favorites]

Also thankful for mefi stickers!

I'm thankful for:
- coming out the other side of depression
- staying in one apartment, in one country for almost five years! This is also well timed for Brexit
- friends who stick around through depression followed by chronic pain
- my parents' new puppy who I met last weekend, and get to hang with at Christmas
posted by ellieBOA at 9:43 PM on November 18, 2017 [5 favorites]

flexeril
apples
puppers
donovan goodboy

that's it
posted by poffin boffin at 10:29 PM on November 18, 2017 [2 favorites]

I've had a deeply awful two years or so, which makes me mindful of the things that *didn't* go pear-shaped. I am thankful for my amazing husband: Mr. Ant is kind, smart, funny, and thoughtful... even when he's beating me at Scrabble (which is extra painful because English is his second language!) I am thankful for my dogs, who remind me every day that they love me. In return, I do everything I can to make their lives rich, full of adventure and kindness.

My eternal gratitude for 2017 goes to my mother. She was my best friend, my housemate and my mentor in everything that matters. She died in her bed, here at home, on Mother's Day. Clear-eyed and clear-minded as ever, she set everything up to be as easy as possible. Here's the last photo I took of my mother, right after we voted for Hillary Clinton. Mom set up all her accounts, passwords, medical records, powers of attorney, so I could take care of her affairs with a minimum of hassle. I knew in advance, her attorney, her accountant and her funeral director.

If you are one of those people who declines to discuss your end-of-life wishes with your family, please reconsider. After a lifetime of being The Best Mom Ever, my mother's parting work was to make sure that I knew what she wanted, and I knew how to make it happen for her. Please talk to your kids (or other family) about these awful things. You don't have to do it at Thanksgiving, but please do it.
posted by workerant at 11:02 PM on November 18, 2017 [31 favorites]

I'm thankful for being on holiday with my mom, and that at a relatively advanced age she can still walk the legs off me all over town, and that we love pointing out pretty buildings and random amusing or beautiful or bizarre city bits to one another. (Regarding mothers in general, workerant, thanks for your lovely comment and, I strongly suspect, for being The Best Child Ever as far as your mother was concerned.)
Also for having found a partner who is the kindest man in the world, and for all kinds of other things like good food, good music, and good books.
Also for (at the moment anyway, knock wood) good health.
Best T-Day wishes to all.
posted by huimangm at 12:40 AM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

Today Mini McGee was shouting wine-buying suggestions at the top of his lungs in Target

Silvery tannins!
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 1:07 AM on November 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

I am thankful for, at this moment:

- The book Reincarnation Blues by Michael Poore, which I am still shedding tears over.
- my purring cat friend
- my beloved partner who makes me thrilled to be alive and in love!
- ginger ale and gingerbread
- having brunch with some of my favorite women for my birthday this morning.
- my job which I love so much and how I get to spend so much time with young children who are my source of light.
posted by fairlynearlyready at 1:25 AM on November 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

Happy birthday fairlynearlyready!
posted by ellieBOA at 1:45 AM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

You know, what I am most thankful for is that I am not a picky person. I can and will eat anything (they call me a dumpster at work, certainly only referencing eating habits and not personal hygiene), I have no allergies, I am not squeamish, and I am willing to try just about anything. I'm not sure if it is genetic, or maybe the way I was raised, or just good luck, but it means I don't have to have stress in situations that would cause other people trouble.
posted by Literaryhero at 3:04 AM on November 19, 2017 [9 favorites]

To friends who listen.
posted by runcifex at 4:21 AM on November 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'm thankful that I bought tickets to go home at Christmas in June when they were super cheap, so now I don't have to panic, I can just sit back and relax in the knowledge that I'll be there in a month. Luv u, past me.

I am also thankful for tea because I gave up coffee two weeks ago and tea is saving my life. (*whispers* I actually kind of prefer it now)
posted by lollymccatburglar at 5:10 AM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

There are a lot of obvious things but the big non-obvious think I am so so thankful for is my daughter, who turns 20 next month and is still 90% "pain in the ass" and 10% "making progress." She is the most challenging aspect of my personal life right now and yet I'm thankful every day I'm not shut of her.
posted by drlith at 5:15 AM on November 19, 2017 [5 favorites]

Trees, authors who ignore the constant long-term nonsense waffle of "The book is dead!" and continue to write good books, tea, the most useful apparatus ever invented (earplugs), those mini-cheese pies my local church does to entice people to special events, public libraries (the places where you can wander in at any time with an information query, or a vague feeling to browse and see what comes up, and at no point are you obliged or pressurised to hand over money for anything), sunshine, the baking skills of Satanists, cats, Nintendo getting its act together and providing gamers with one heck of a good year, my local pub, low fat hummus from Aldi to offset the high fat foods offered by various local faiths, the spin bowling of Moeen Ali, and boobs.

And the MetaFilter community.
posted by Wordshore at 5:16 AM on November 19, 2017 [8 favorites]

I'm extremely thankful that the presence of things I am most thankful for (family, partner, cats, health, job) has helped me decide to quit drinking. Maybe not forever, but right now I just can't. It's difficult to talk about, but I'm thankful because I know soon it'll be no big deal. I'm thankful it's getting easier every day I put a shiny star on the calendar. I'm thankful for the things that distract me through the hardest part of the day: cats, feather toys to play with said cats, coloring books, origami, giant mugs of tea, mystery novels, MetaFilter. Thank you all. <3
posted by Orange Dinosaur Slide at 5:49 AM on November 19, 2017 [9 favorites]

My husband, my family, my two shmoopy dogs, our house, my job, his job. The privilege of being able to get an education, hold a job, drive, vote, write. This life, which didn't turn out how I had planned, yet is still charmed. Dog noses, the beach, palm trees, the internet, lip balm, books, bloggers who still write for themselves and not medium.com, warm socks, coffee, kilts, lube, and the scent of high-quality paper.
posted by kimberussell at 5:50 AM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

It has been a very, very rough few...months.

I am thankful that my non-dominant side collarbone broke. And I'm thankful for the insurance that allowed me to fix it with the bare minimum of hassle.

I am thankful for my cat Sunshine. I am thankful that my financial position is such that I could put her kitten, my Abbey, to sleep without breaking my heart AND bank. Thankful for the ten years, though it was not enough.

I am thankful for my family, willing and able to gather so quickly after an unexpected and too, too soon death. Thankful for the thirty-one years, though it was nowhere near enough.
posted by carsonb at 6:08 AM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

With the long line of disappointments this year seems to be enjoying laying out for me, I'm especially thankful for parents, old friends, non-idiotic colleagues and conversations with Proper Listening Happening^TM.

Also, in a totally unexpected and somewhat embarrassing development yesterday, I became thankful for the station Juso, because it saved me a few precious minutes on a near-chaotic and highly stressful day.
posted by Juso No Thankyou at 6:27 AM on November 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

I try to be consciously grateful, everyday, for:
—the excellent medical insurance provided by my employer. This past summer was filled with many tests and a surgery, and would have completely wiped me out financially had I not had these benefits. I am beyond grateful.
—happy ending for the medical issue mentioned above.
—my lovely cat, Phoebe, who chose me at the shelter nearly one year ago.
—my job, which may not be the greatest right now, but I am employed when many people aren’t, I feel that I’m doing work that makes a difference, and that’s a blessing.
—a warm house, a full pantry, a library card.
—my fellow MeFites. I’ve never met any of you IRL, but the many events over the past year have made it very apparent that you’re my tribe.
posted by bookmammal at 6:27 AM on November 19, 2017 [6 favorites]

Last Thanksgiving was wife was just starting radiation treatment for breast cancer, and I had just taken a significant pay cut and had a contracting job with no health benefits. 12 months later she has had two clean post-treatment mammograms, and the contracting job turned into a W2 job, although the health insurance is still stupid expensive. The cancer may have crushed our finances, but it I think it actually made us stronger as a couple. We've moved to Richmond VA and downsized dramatically. Our kids are healthy, one is off to a good start in a career in public history after graduating from college last year, and the other is carrying a 4.0 into her final semester of college. Damn overachieving kids...

So yeah, I've got a lot to be thankful for.
posted by COD at 6:36 AM on November 19, 2017 [18 favorites]

Oh, also AskMeFi, which has gradually become my default online reference point for issues which are messy, emotional, and non-algorithmic. I rarely post or comment there, but the searchable archives have, for me anyway, become invaluable. Heck of a resource.

Related: the autocorrect on this smartphone tried to change AskMeFi to "Ask me first".
posted by Wordshore at 6:46 AM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

I have a lot to be thankful for. (The most immediate thing: I'm going to Paris this week for the first time since learning to speak French.)

But my real gratefulness pro tip, as it were, is that I downloaded a gratitude app for my phone: Every day I am prompted to enter something for which I am grateful, something that made me laugh, something I'm looking forward to, etc. I use Gratitude, but there are many. It's been a real boost for my mental hygiene. A+++ would be grateful again.
posted by veggieboy at 7:28 AM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

My doggle, who is a constant source of unconditional love and is smart enough to learn something after only two or three times as long as those things are /not/ “not barking at the mailman”.
posted by corb at 9:32 AM on November 19, 2017 [6 favorites]

serve mini M&Ms and maybe horseradish sauce?

I don't think horseradish sauce would be very good with M&Ms.

(P.S. I'm thankful for a place to tell my stupid jokes)
posted by Greg_Ace at 10:03 AM on November 19, 2017 [5 favorites]

The litter of Zhora's puppies have started to go home. The first to go was the little girl who'd been born via emergency c-section and almost didn't make it through her first few days. So SUPER SAD to see her go, since we'd fallen in love with the little shit while nursing her through her first few days, but also super happy to know that she's home now with her new mom-oid, who is one of those people who's so good with dogs that it's kinda spooky, and pop-oid and her (actual, literal) uncle Lobo. The boys start going home right after Turkey Day.

The other girl is now Alkemi Clear Air Turbulence, named for the ex-Hronish assault ship, and being called Alice. With luck we'll have her in the Nemesis Program.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 10:15 AM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

On this rainy Sunday, I'm thankful for my little wood stove and my little dog. I'm grateful that I will have a new grandbaby in April. It has been a rough year here in the US. I'm thankful for MeFi and the many MeFites who have helped it be less rough, and the many fellow Resisters trying to stop it be as awful as it it could be.

It's kind of small beer, as they say, but my thanks for you all who have made it possible to keep breathing this year are quite real.
posted by theora55 at 10:55 AM on November 19, 2017 [5 favorites]

Also, polenta-kale soup sounds delicious and I found a recipe and will make some, if I can get off my butt.

And I'm thankful for the joyful anticipation of Quonsmas, both giving and receiving.
posted by theora55 at 10:59 AM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

*Thankful that my daughter is starting to recieve college acceptances that come with scholarship offers that will probably make her favorite school a real possibility,
*that my (almost 21-year-old) boy will be home tomorrow for Thanksgiving,
*for my health,
*for my husband, who is delightful,
*for dear friends and busy weekends,
*for my job, which I still like,
*and thankful for this place and all of you.
posted by cooker girl at 11:18 AM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'm thankful as always for my little guy who tells me I'm pretty and a pain in his ass, sometimes in the same breath.

I'm thankful for my friends and for the help I've been given over the year.

And I'm even thankful that my life is incredibly ridiculous because one day I'll write it all down and it will be funny.
posted by 80 Cats in a Dog Suit at 11:34 AM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'm thankful for an ANA sale last January that we found out about just in time, flights from Japan with no fuel surcharges, and making the (hopefully) final switch away from teaching EFL in Japan that's allowing me to fly home for my first thanksgiving with family since 1998. I'm thankful that I'll finally have the chance to cook thanksgiving for my family, and that I'll have Mrs. Ghidorah (who's also become a badass cook) there with me to get everything ready, and to make it all look more beautiful on the plate than I can (because I'm still lousy at presentation).

Our thanksgiving is going to be smaller, sadly, than it was in 98, as we've lost people, too many of them, and I'm probably going to be trying really hard not to cry during the meal. I wish I could have had the chance to cook for them as well, but I'll just need to focus on those of us that are still here, and together for thanksgiving.
posted by Ghidorah at 12:45 PM on November 19, 2017 [7 favorites]

I am grateful for my furry monster and the fun-chaos that he has brought to my life over the last year. Including this morning when I woke to the sounds of him destroying the weather-proofing shrink wrap I had recently applied to the windows in the living room.
posted by janepanic at 12:47 PM on November 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

I am very thankful for my smart and kind and funny wife, who has saved my life in a hundred different ways since we started dating in 2010 (not just by calling the ambulance when I had my heart attack earlier this year), and who tolerates my manic silliness with more grace than I have any right to expect.

I am very thankful for my mother, who tried so hard to raise me into a kind and helpful adult, despite the obstacles of time and economy and genetics thrown in her way.

I am thankful for a dozen friends and family who have supported/tolerated me, even though I am bad about staying in touch.

I am thankful for Metafilter, which has helped me through some of my toughest times at work, by being a source of new ideas and new voices.
posted by Mutant Lobsters from Riverhead at 12:50 PM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

I keep waiting for the sky to fall but the sky never falls. I am thankful to the sky for not falling (so far) on everything I love.

'scuse me while I kiss the sky.
posted by pracowity at 1:12 PM on November 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

I am thankful for being here. I am thankful for building new homes and communities and for having a space to myself with a giant fluffy beanbag chair and a window and a fleecy blanket and warm socks and a book to read. I am thankful for gin and tonic, for good seltzer, mint tea, and the fancy bread store down the street. I am thankful not to be a graduate student anymore, thankful to be part of a representative democracy so that I can call my representatives, thankful for my agency and my privacy and my sense of self. I am thankful for my Most Wonderful Cat, and my parents, and my boyfriend, and my friends, and my roommates, and for the fact that right now I can see the sun set behind dark skeleton trees blowing in the wind while the squirrels reinforce their nests with extra leaves. And, of course, I am thankful for you!
posted by ChuraChura at 1:44 PM on November 19, 2017 [6 favorites]

I am grateful for the opportunity to engage in activities which I find meaningful. And for a job that provides for a comfortable lifestyle.
posted by Gorgik at 1:46 PM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

I am thankful for finding a new job that I will be starting in the new year. The current situation had turned pretty toxic and it was time to move on, so finding a better position relatively painlessly is a huge weight off my shoulders. I'm thankful to have some very supportive friends who I was able to talk to, get advice and networking from, and generally be incredibly helpful. The whole process would have been much harder and misery inducing without the people who helped me, and beyond the satisfaction of having a new job it's really great to know that there are people around me who care.
posted by backseatpilot at 1:49 PM on November 19, 2017 [5 favorites]

* a job I like a lot for the past two years and two months
* discovering wine in cans
* SSRI medication
* tea
* cutting back on coffee
* Stranger Things 2
* New Star Wars movies
* finding out my dryer problem so I could replace instead of fruitlessly repairing (18 years old)
* silly discipline projects - Day 29 of not spending any money on any type of eating out (including coffee)
* my family
* rediscovering reading
*deleting facebook
posted by smallerdemon at 2:27 PM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

I am thankful for my family, my son and my wife. They're both pretty neat. I am thankful for my friends, on-line and off, and especially for my bff all the way over in Portland whose brain cancer seems to be staying away for now. I'm thankful that I'll be seated at the Thanksgiving table surrounded by fellow liberal hippie snowflakes and there will be no political arguments. I'm thankful I no longer report to a paranoid, terrible director and manager and that my new director is really cool and nice and values us as human beings. I'm thankful for my workshop, a place I've built where I can be creative any time I get a whim. I'm thankful I've got some pretty good ideas as to what to make for my secret Quonsee. I'm thankful for the nice walk I took with my wife today, along a future rail-trail that we spent part of yesterday cleaning up with a few other volunteers. I'm thankful for the beautiful coyote that came through our yard last week and for the return of wildlife to the area. I'm thankful for this community and how it's helped me learn and grow over the years. Most of all I'm thankful for that magic digital first down line during football games. How amazing is that?
posted by bondcliff at 2:33 PM on November 19, 2017 [6 favorites]

I am thankful for so many things I couldn't even begin to list them all (pelicans! rain! oranges in the middle of winter! teachers! rooms full of books! Patrick Stewart as Picard and Avery Brooks as Sisko! bees! water brushes! Joni Mitchell! MIT's Open Courseware! Stephen Universe!) (okay, apparently I can begin) -

but the one thing I'm thankful for every day is nice hot water. I know what it's like when the hot water goes out; I know not everybody has hot and cold running water or even running water at all. When I step into a nice hot shower, every single time, I feel really lucky and grateful.
posted by kristi at 2:35 PM on November 19, 2017 [8 favorites]

Oh, so much to be grateful for.
My husband who has stuck by me in good and very bad.
My therapist.
MeFites and quonsmas
Flannel sheets
Coffee
A little land to grow some veggies and garlic
posted by Sophie1 at 2:56 PM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

In no particular order:
Food
Drink
Music
Cats
Books
Outdoors and all that nature stuff
Old friends who don't mind me
One or two other things it would be indelicate to mention
posted by JanetLand at 3:09 PM on November 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

I am thankful that I still have enough sense to not rescue all the kitties. But it's tempting until I get home and the fuzzy poltergeist have been at it.

And, amazingly: Monster No. 2 is finally learning to lap. I have no idea about his early kittenhood, but he was dumped at the store where I work weekends. He's typical scaredy cat but is starting to crave attention after 2 years. Yay gor happy kitties.

And I'm thankful that MetaFilter is here because it means I have lots of folks who have my back; just as I have theirs. I don't know that we'll win; but we'll not be defeated.
posted by mightshould at 4:16 PM on November 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

I've got sort of a short memory lately. So this weekend's thankfulnesses include

Socks on sale.
Friends who have goofy parties.
Friends who watch football (go Pats!)
My best fella.
Snow.
Electric mattress pad warmers.
My interesting family.

my mother's parting work was to make sure that I knew what she wanted, and I knew how to make it happen for her.

This was my reality too this year. There's a kind of grace in helping people have the death they want, and there's an amazing sort of strength of character to help people do that for you. It's a weird thing to say but as these things go, I am thankful things weren't so much worse.
posted by jessamyn (retired) at 5:00 PM on November 19, 2017 [7 favorites]

That I learned to make my own fermented hot sauce at home, and that it's better than anything ever. Right now I have a fatali-banana-peach, a pheno-passionfruit-plum, and a superhot-and-wine-barrel-oak on the go and they are smelling and looking better every day, which is the exact opposite of what I do, as a person. And pretty soon I'll be able to make this stuff 100% from my own crops, with about 30 plants at various stages on the cycle of death-and-hopefully-rebirth.
posted by turbid dahlia at 5:42 PM on November 19, 2017 [5 favorites]

A really nice visit with my daughter and her boyfriend over the summer.

Daughter's recent LEEP procedure went well, biopsy came back with clear margins and doc estimates 90% chance the abnormal cells won't recur.

Ex-husband's chemo is working and he's feeling better. Prognosis still not good but continuing to pray for a miracle.

Food, clothing, a roof over our heads. Sometimes when I see people on FB posting about their 3rd beach vacation this year, it is easy to forget that having the basics covered is not a given. We have more to be thankful for materially than many.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 6:33 PM on November 19, 2017 [6 favorites]

This year I'm thankful that my extended family noticed that I disappear into a vat of emotional distance and depression when my parents go out of town for 8 months out of every 12 and that I will go weeks without speaking out loud because I have no social life outside of my parents. My two aunts have decided to schedule weekly or biweekly activities, which has the side effect of forcing me to shower and do laundry and work on projects in between meetups so that I can show some sort of progress on my arm warmers or my coloring book. I get to eat real food that I didn't buy from the ready-made aisle in the grocery store or from McDonald's. It's really nice to have someone else worry about me for once.
posted by xyzzy at 6:43 PM on November 19, 2017 [7 favorites]

I am thankful for the infinite patience shown by my family and friends as I navigate through a deep grief.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for telling me and showing me that love.
posted by calgirl at 8:55 PM on November 19, 2017 [4 favorites]

Water. I am so thankful for water.

We were without power for 4 days during the latest power outage. We had no water. I was going down to the lake and filling up a bucket, so we could flush. Thankfully, we had jugs of water, and I bought some baby wipes, but I didn't shower or wash dishes for 4 days.

Thursday, I was doing dishes and then I wash bending down to clean the cat dishes and BOOM! I thought a tree had fallen on the house. I went outside to explore, but didn't see anything.

I came back inside, and turned on the faucet and no water.

It was the pressure tank, and it got fixed within 2 days, but by gum, I am so thankful for water now, you can't imagine. Just to wash my hands or rinse a spoon. Let alone take a shower.

I am so thankful to flush my toilet. To rinse my hands. Thankful to be able to wash dishes. So I guess my thankfulness is being able to flush.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 9:11 PM on November 19, 2017 [7 favorites]

After 3+ years of unemployment I have three really good leads. I’m 98% sure I’ll be employed before Christmas.

One of the great parts of having a job is being able to donate money to various orgs and to buy stuff from the Street Roots wish list.
posted by bendy at 11:39 PM on November 19, 2017 [5 favorites]

I am thankful for:

- being tasked with some interesting work at work that is maybe going to make it a better place for all my colleagues

- 'winter' starting and the mosquitoes dying so I can visit my friends on their island without being eaten alive

- Quonsmas/cookie exchange mefi shenanigans #marmoset #cookies

- Bangkok with mom + mates for Christmas - my favourite city!

- maybe getting some minor medical stuff done while down in BKK that's been on the back burner for a while because it's so inexpensive compared to home

- being sort-of involved in a football club my mates have and going to/playing games on a roof (!) and finally learning what a 'corner' is and how to kick!
posted by mdonley at 12:54 AM on November 20, 2017 [3 favorites]

So the nearly-a-year from November 2016 to August 2017 was pretty shitty for me. (Yes, I hear the calls of "TAKE A NUMBER" from the back.) I was long-term unemployed and Mrs. Example and I were in very real danger of being deported back to America because of my uncertain visa status.

As of last August, though, I now have the following to be thankful for:

- a shiny new work visa
- a new job
- a new (and much larger) house
- a palpable sense of relief knowing my immigration status is stable for the next three years
- a very realistic chance of finally getting permanent residency

We're so much better off compared to this time last year I can't even tell you...and as soon as Mrs. Example starts working steadily again and our finances finally settle down from the move and the holidays, it'll be even better.
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 2:00 AM on November 20, 2017 [4 favorites]

Oh, and I'm extremely thankful for these aspects of my new job:

- a twenty-minute commute
- not having to clock in and out on an inflexible schedule (I just have to be here during reasonable work times and get my hours in)
- unfiltered web access (I can get to anything and everything)
- admin access on my computer; I can install anything I might want or need without having to ask permission (not that unusual for a developer job, but still)
- a regular Friday afternoon pub gathering with three or four coworkers

It's really pretty amazing.
posted by Mr. Bad Example at 2:10 AM on November 20, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'll go food related:
+ aeropress and tonic
+ eating homemade cheese in six countries
+ catching and then salt curing mackerel
+ smoked butter with lobster fresh from the North Sea
+ spending two weeks picking as many gooseberries, red currants, black currants and strawberries as possible and turning them into pastries, ice cream, and liquors
+ perfecting the art of roasting artichokes and making aioli for the first time
posted by perrouno at 2:11 AM on November 20, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm doubly thankful, also, that this week brings (within a day of each other)

- A new Animal Crossing game worldwide. Australia have had it for a month, but expect to see a sudden surge of KK Slider, Tom Nook and other puzzling references across social media as of this Wednesday as the rest of the world gets it.
- The Ashes starting in Australia on Thursday (or, for UK time, Thursday at 00:00). Predicting 4-1 to Australia.

That's a large part of my winter taken care of. Easter Monday is 19 weeks today, so have set various alarms on various devices to remind me then to sort out summer plans (Norway especially, possibly Sweden and Finland, Midwest USA, possibly Seattle, Vermont and Wyoming too) if not done so by then.
posted by Wordshore at 2:47 AM on November 20, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'm going to cut it down to today only, and a top two.

Number one: This sounds silly, but after months off running because of a strained hallucis longus (calf foot thing), I gingerly eked out 4km on the treadmill tonight, and - so far... - no pain. To put this in perspective I was doing 45km a week before this hit.

Without the regular endorphin infusion, and the simple space I get whilst running, my mood regulation has frankly gone to shit, and I hate it, it makes me feel out of control, and weak. Hopefully, I can start getting just a little bit of running in.

Number two: My eldest. As always. When we get home, before running outside, "Daddy wait, wait wait! Before I go, I need a REALLY big hug, because I've had a REALLY big day!"

Right in the feels I tell ya.
posted by smoke at 3:22 AM on November 20, 2017 [6 favorites]

Oh my God there is so much to be thankful for this year:
My husband and I both have (good) jobs.
One of my kids is on new medication that seems to be significantly helping with his extreme volatility.
My other kid is finally learning to read with enthusiasm, after being frustrated by her inability to read/avoidant about it for ...ever.
We have money for everything we need, some to save, and some to spend on stuff we want (although we're still digging ourselves out of a hole from several years of one-job-ness.)

This is, however, our first holiday season without my dad, who died in February, which is frankly much easier on a practical level (only child of two parents who cannot be in the same house) but obviously also hard and sad, because my dad is not among us to be the only person eating the panettone, and we have no idea how to make the stuffing like he did.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 4:32 AM on November 20, 2017 [5 favorites]

I've been going through a rough time with a recovery from minor surgery, and I'm grateful for everyone among my friends and colleagues who have reached out to see if I was okay, and offered help and emotional support.

I'm grateful for Mr. Tech, who has done a superb job taking care of me.

I'm grateful that we have good insurance, so the surgery was covered, and the long string of prescriptions I've had to fill have had absurdly low copays.

smoke, I am so eager for the day when I have enough energy to start running again. Honestly, that's when I'll consider myself "recovered," regardless of what else is happening with my body!
posted by BrashTech at 8:09 AM on November 20, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm thankful for:
A family member completing some rigorous treatment for cancer, and having a clean bill of health as of the last doctor visit.
The company I work for getting its contract renewed by the client we work for, and some new responsibilities and a pay bump coming in 2018.
My lovely wife and our sweet cat
My lovely wife continuing to include me on her employer's health plan.
The wedding and corporate clients who continue to book my band after almost 10 years
posted by emelenjr at 9:29 AM on November 20, 2017 [3 favorites]

Late to the party this week, but the biggest thing I'm thankful for this year is everyone who recommended magnesium supplements in my recent Ask post about winter migraines. I have not had a single one yet this year, and only two days with prodrome symptoms that didn't turn into a full headache. This is so much better than last year, when I had prodrome symptoms nearly every day and usually two or three headaches a week. It turns out there were two medical reasons why I might be magnesium deficient anyway, but it wasn't a thing I'd ever really thought about. It's been life-changing.

I'm thankful that Christmas this year is hopefully going to be low-stress and involve a lots of catching up with friends and many cheesy bites. Last year I tasked my mother with procuring a buffet almost entirely composed of different kinds of cheesy bites, and she outdid herself - truffle mac & cheese balls, deep-fried brie, little cheesy quiches and about six other kinds I can't even remember. It was the best Christmas food ever and I will be requesting the same this year. Now that everyone who strongly cared about Christmas dinner is too old or dead to come over, we've started doing all-day party food rather than a full roast, and it's the best of all possible Christmases.
posted by terretu at 9:44 AM on November 20, 2017 [5 favorites]

i am ever grateful for my wonderful wife, who is kind and considerate and imminently reasonable.

right now I am grateful for a trimester that ends today and small class sizes, so hopefully my grading burden will be reasonable. the winter term will be less reasonable, but that's okay.
posted by dismas at 11:05 AM on November 20, 2017 [2 favorites]

I am grateful for family, job, health & health insurance, roof over our heads, teachers/librarians/Scout leaders/mods/other volunteers, and neighbors.

--
A few years ago we started a tradition that's worth sharing. We cut a turkey body out of a piece of a manilla folder, and we made "feathers" of colored paper. In the weeks before Thanksgiving, everyone takes a few feathers and writes on them things that they are glad to have. (Yes, little kids are grateful for TV. We have evidence of this.) Then the feathers are taped up wherever there's an open spot near the turkey's back end.

By the time family gathers for the big meal, our turkey has like three or four layers of feathers. It's hung up in the dining room, so we see it every night in November as a good reminder of even small things that matter.
posted by wenestvedt at 1:17 PM on November 20, 2017 [5 favorites]

I am thankful for my electric blankie.
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:56 PM on November 20, 2017 [5 favorites]

Right now I am grateful for all of the following:
The lovely (and one day not so far away soon-to-be) Mrs Chairboy
My wonderful Step-Chairlings
Our brilliant (and currently snoring) rescue dog and her rodent companion
Central heating
This refurbished ThinkPad
Photoshop
The ability/opportunity to still be making art
Thoughtful, creative colleagues and students
Not working in Market Research anymore
Not having been kidnapped (like I was in my dream last night)
Digestive biscuits
And Just Still Being Here
posted by Chairboy at 3:10 PM on November 20, 2017 [5 favorites]

I am thankful for my electric blankie.

I could not live without my heated mattress pad. I am one of those people who is perpetually cold, and it makes sleeping so much nicer in the cold months. So I am thankful for that.
posted by cozenedindigo at 3:30 PM on November 20, 2017 [4 favorites]

I'm currently thankful for the kickass little library in my two stoplight town. On my way home from work, I picked up the complete series DVD set of Jeeves and Wooster for binge watching during thanksgiving. And I get it on loan for 14 days with no extra fee or such.

So excite.
Much grateful.
posted by mightshould at 4:35 PM on November 20, 2017 [5 favorites]

Gotanda, I'm curious as to where this "beautiful, warm, autumn day" is where you are, because where I am, it's pretty dang blustery and cold, albeit with clear blue skies and bright sunshine...

I'm thankful that a repairman came to tentatively fix our broken water heater yesterday, though it turned out we have to replace it with a new one later this week. Having hot water is such a blessing.

Also, I pulled my lower back for the first time in my life this past weekend. But I could still get around, which my husband said I should be thankful for because he couldn't get up for a while when he pulled his a few years ago. So I guess I'm thankful that I can still get around, though I'm still pretty sore.

Aging sucks but at least I'm still alive, and I'm thankful for that.
posted by misozaki at 5:09 PM on November 20, 2017 [2 favorites]

I am thankful for Metafilter, and Ravelry. Thankful for psych meds that make it possible for me to participate occasionally, and that I can get them. I'm thankful for CPAP machines. I'm thankful that I can get front-close bras.

I'm thankful for kitties, and friends who have them so that I can visit.

I am thankful that I am in a position to help a friend who is a much better and more patient person than I will ever be, because I can drive and have a car I can use and can come when needed. I am thankful that there are people who are glad to see me. I'm thankful that my friend's husband calls me very rude names and hates me enough to remember me, because he CAN, which is so much more than he could do at this time last year.

I'm thankful for dimmer switches.

In a few hours, I'll be very thankful for compact portable hammock stands, Costco down throws, KAM snaps, elastic, and paracord. My sleeping situation is downright ludicrous, but at least I can now sleep away from home.

Seriously, KAM snaps are amazing.
posted by monopas at 1:50 AM on November 21, 2017 [3 favorites]

I am grateful (oh so grateful) that my husband and I were able to buy a home this year. It's such a relief to finally have our own space, even if the learning curve is sometimes pretty steep.

I'm grateful that my mother has finished her radiation treatments and is cancer free.

I'm endlesssly grateful for my kind, patient husband and our sweet little doggo. They make every day the absolute best, even when it's otherwise the absolute worst.

I am grateful that this year I've finally figured out effective (for me) ways to encourage some good habits I've wanted to form/improve upon; I am reading all the books and drinking all the tea and it is glorious.
posted by cellar door at 8:24 AM on November 21, 2017 [4 favorites]

This has been all over everywhere, so most people have probably seen it, but yesterday Barack Obama himself made a Joe Biden meme to wish the former VP a happy birthday.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 12:31 PM on November 21, 2017 [4 favorites]

I am currently thankful that I have 23456 favorites.
posted by Sophie1 at 12:37 PM on November 21, 2017 [1 favorite]

Today I discovered that I can almost get the classic hip hop radio station based out of the nearest city (70 miles away).

Considering that the local stations in my small town are either country, Christian, or Christian country (plus one JackFM station) and that classic hip hop is my all-time favorite radio format, I was very excited and listened to some incredibly fuzzy Public Enemy all the way to the post office.

So I'm thankful for hip hop.
And my parents.
And my cats.
But mostly hip hop.
And one of my parents and one of my cats.
posted by elsietheeel at 1:04 PM on November 21, 2017 [1 favorite]

I am currently thankful that I have 23456 favorites.

I'm thankful I currently have 11888, and that a full house beats a straight.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 1:38 PM on November 21, 2017 [5 favorites]

Teegeeack AV Club Secretary, I had my kidney transplant 14 years ago almost to the day (November 19th). We spent Thanksgiving in the hospital too and it was a very grateful year. Tell your wife: Welcome to the club!!! The chocolate is delicious post-transplant.
posted by k8lin at 2:15 PM on November 21, 2017 [5 favorites]

I am glad that my agent has rediscovered my existence and has started getting me local gigs again. I am also grateful for my main independent client, who reliably pays my rent for most of the year, has the nicest production people around, and is at least as lefty as I am. I am thankful for my gym, which is my endorphin loaded sanity; I may be mediocre at best at punching things, but it still makes me happy. I'm proud that I got certified and went diving in Mexico semi-alone (there were other divers on the boat, but mr. logical can't dive) and after rounds of frustration with all the gear and whatnot, had several moments of just total sensory drunkenness at the beauty of the reef in the sunshine. I'm deeply grateful that mr. logical has a stable gig with better hours, pay, and benefits than he did this time last year. The small delights, too: lots of F/SF TV and movies to enjoy (so many more than when I was a kid!), good books, my heating pad for my shoulders, that pretty much everything I've baked this year turned out well, that I have more people who care about me and whom I care about every year.
posted by tautological at 11:08 PM on November 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

Oddly, I'm thankful that my grandmother has finally died. She was a lovely old lady, but taking care of her has taken such a toll on my own mother (her daughter) that I was starting to worry over her health. She lived a nice long life (she died 8 days shy of her 101st birthday) and I think what really did it for her was the realisation that she wasn't able to leave the nursing home ever because her leg wasn't healing. it is sad, her passing, but also it was time. She had a good Halloween with her Great Grandaughter visiting dressed up as an old lady (she is 6 months old) and had a fun day that day, but then went downhill two days later and passed on the fifth. She famously "still had most of her marbles" although an occasional one would fall out lately. I know she wanted to pass in her sleep at home, but with the broken leg and not behaving and trying to do too much she couldn't go home without a live in nursing team to get her around. I'm sure it is an odd thing to be thankful for, but again we should all be so lucky as to live as full a life as she did. She was essentially the "adpotive" grandmother /mother to a lot of people in my hometown (and all over the world there are friends of friends that have come to visit her) She was still fiesty to the end and when asked who she wanted to vote for in the past election showed such an utter disgust for trump and said that she would be proud to vote for a woman for once. Before that all I remember is that she liked John Edwards because she thoght he was cute. "If you've got to see them on TV all the time they might as well look nice."
posted by koolkat at 5:02 AM on November 22, 2017 [5 favorites]

I am thankful for this thread, which alerted me to the fact that there are MeFi stickers for sale! Which have now been ordered, happy holidays to me.

And I'm thankful for this site, for you all, and the mods who work so hard. I get so much more out of this place than I put into it that it's embarrassing.
posted by lyssabee at 1:08 PM on November 22, 2017 [2 favorites]

Ok. It's the evening before tday and I'm finally home from work and the cats wants laptime. And it's almost 8 pm and I've done nothing towards the t-thing except purchase the ingredients. I'm not feeling it.

I'm beat from a week's worth of work in 3 days. Mom has dementia and cannot remember anything about "what we do" for tday. Why am I trying to simulate normalcy when all signs point to chaos?

It's because I need something to be normal damit. And because I love tday leftovers. And because I can try and create normal for her. Maybe for the last time that she's with it.

And then it's on to the third job which is retail hell black Friday weekend. And a friend is visiting for the weekend and I don't have time....

But the cat is in the lap and my socks are off and I have a glass of wine: life evens out. I'm good with that.
posted by mightshould at 4:58 PM on November 22, 2017 [3 favorites]

I second the being grateful for cats thing. They are truly the best. Also they allowed me to bond with a new found friend overseas this week by showing each other cat pictures on our phones.
posted by lollusc at 6:48 PM on November 22, 2017 [2 favorites]

I’m at the beach, with no broadband and very shitty cell reception. But I had to wander around to find the corner of the house with 3G so I could express my gratitude for metafilter. You all are amazing. Oh, and cats. Can we work in “feline” to gay space communism somehow?
posted by Glibpaxman at 7:18 AM on November 23, 2017 [2 favorites]

I was quite alarmed this morning when I noticed my urine had a rather orange-pink tint.

I was thankful a few minutes later when I remembered I had had beets at dinner last night.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 6:23 AM on November 25, 2017