On being appreciative

As you may know, from a relationship point of view the last few months have been really tough going. However, rather than use this space to wallow in the misery of a broken-heart (it wouldn't help and how dull would that be for you to read?!), I'd like to just acknowledge a few of the things that I've got to be thankful for right now (apart from the unspoken obvious ones, like er, my eyes and my legs and the fact that for the most part, my internal organs all seem to be doing their jobs just fine and that I don't live in Darfur, etc etc).

1. I have got the best friends in the world. I really have. You can't argue with me on that one because it's a fact. Even if you have extremely nice friends, I'm afraid they're not a patch on mine. Unless they are the same people.

2. Car karaoke. I can't sing, not even slightly. I don't have any desire to sing, or to do karaoke and make a twat of myself. However, in the little sanctuary that is my car, I couldn't be happier than when I'm driving through lovely giddy London on a sunny day, sunglasses on, windows down, singing along to Candi Staton (or whatever else it is that particularly takes my fancy*.

3. Dogs. Really, most types. Scruffy smiley dogs are obviously the best. But any happy dog larking about in the park just makes me smile.

4. Serrano and manchego. Crikey those Spaniards really know how to do ham and cheese, don't they?

5. The summer. Honestly, I'm sure this would all seem a lot worse if the weather was grim and dark.

Anyway. This isn't an exhaustive list, of course it isn't. I've got lots and lots more than 5 things to be appreciative of but I just wanted to get a few of them down here to remind me that it's not all bad.

* playlist for 'Now that's what I call car karaoke' (volume one) can be made available upon request if you are particularly interested