Thanks

I try really hard to avoid cliches. If there's a trend, I'll do the opposite for no logical reason other than it's "just the opposite". As Groucho said "Whoever commenced it...I'm against it."

But I can't resist one cliche, and that's giving thanks on Thanksgiving.

My girlfriend, Valerie, told me this morning that she follows the idea of a fellow teacher of hers. She has these paper figures of turkeys. She scatters them around the Thanksgiving table, with pens, and asks all the guests to fill out things they're thankful for.
I keep a list of gratitudes on my refrigerator, in alphabetical order (sometimes more than one item per letter). So, here it is: (even without the paper turkey figures)
Al-Anon: My program is my bedrock
America: We're not perfect. But feet don't lie. This is where people want to live.
Andy: One of my best friends. We go back to 1980, Los Angeles, and we've been through an awful lot...together.
Baseball: More than a game. It's life, and some of my best memories.
Brian: My son. Somehow, despite every way I've screwed things up, he still turned into an amazing young adult.
Cindi: Along with Andy and Greg, my 3 best friends. Plus, she introduced me to Valerie (see below)
Cold weather: Walking in brisk weather is magic for my spirits, as is the first snowfall.
Depression: I deal with clinical depression. It's brutal when I'm in it, but a source of wisdom when I'm not. Fortunately, that's increasingly most of the time.
EFlat Major: I can hear musical keys and there's something magical about that key. As is also true for its darker companion, Bminor.
Empathy: I seem to have been born with it. Although prone to vacillation at times, it's served me well.
Eva Cassidy: Best singer I've ever heard. We lost her too soon. 
Faith: Even in the darkest hours, I still have it.
Greg: My conservative alter-ego. One of the kindest people I've ever known, and one of the best musicians I've ever met.
Health: Not perfect (hey, I'm almost 57) but I still have it.
Income: Not much at the moment. But I'm still better off than a lot of other people.
Introspection: Another quality I seem to have been born with. It's inspired some of my best songs.
Jeff: My bro. He's done so many cool things for me over the years, but topping the list is the CD mixes he makes for me. A real talent that I'm proud to be the beneficiary of.
(Uncle) Ken: He took me and Jeff in after our mom died. Probably saved my life. He turns 80 in April and we're still close.
Leaves: Since "A" wasn't used for autumn, this is the same thing. My favorite season.
Mom: I had her only for 13 years, but she took us to Broadway shows, paid for my piano lessons, and was a schoolteacher who went back for her masters degree while raising us. Some awesome examples.
Music:I may be the most musical person I've ever met. Music has saved my life. Everything is music to me. Too much to explain.
New York City: Where I'm from. I get OD'd on its energy, so I can't live there. But taking the train down a couple of times a year is major fun.
Old souls: They come at any age. But I know them when I'm with them.
Peaches: My favorite food.
Plattsburgh, NY: Where I went to school undergrad. 4 of the best years of my life. 
Quiet: Increasingly rare in our ADD/TMI society. But I do savor it.
Rivers:I love watching their personalities and moods. The rivers of my life; Hudson, "Harlem" (not really a river), Saranac, Congaree, Los Angeles (a bipolar wadi that is dry except during El Nino, when it becomes a holy terror), Cumberland, Housatonic, Quinnipiac.
Sunsets: Especially in winter.
Travel: Hope to do more, but grateful for where I've been.
Unitarian Universalism: Currently not on the path, but it's taken me a long way.

Veterans: My life's work. That I can write and speak without fear of retribution is due to their efforts and their lives.
Weather: I am a proud weather freak.
Xmas: Magical season, regardless of theology.
Young minds: The "yang" to the "O" above. Again, they can be any age.
Zero: An ongoing search for zero judging, zero intolerance.

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all...gp