Things to be happy about

Things to be happy about (updated April 11, 2025, newest at the bottom)

I'm aetataureate, or aeta. I'm an artist and writer.

A neighbor's pink rose blooming in October
Remembering when I first tried feta on pizza
My cat Harrison's puffy "pants"
Looking up crystal tear lamps that remind me of my late grandmother
The 2024 Cramer Games (YouTube)
Putting together my first bird feeder
Seeing a new-to-me bird (the Eastern bluebird!)
Jonnycakes trying jack o'lantern cakes (YouTube)
Cleaning up the files from my desktop
Trans guy Ash Perez gets a pogi boy makeover (YouTube)
Friends coming over for dinner
Maesri curry paste
Seeing tiny little birds by our new feeder (I don't know what they are!)
Ice water
When people have complicated French braids
Bins full of craft supplies
A new Stardew Valley update
My best friend is picking up a new minivan for his growing family!
A squirrel using their own tail as a wind break
Stepdad Greg (my partner) on an academic mentoring call downstairs
Using a scented Flair pen to fill out my absentee ballot ("Homemade Raspberry Jam")
15 people have joined my sticker swap!!
Stepdad Greg correctly recognized Mr. Eko from Lost as the attempted assassination politician from The Bourne Identity
Before the internet, then before the wider and more useful internet, my family had a massive BOOK where you could look up movies and actors. We kept it in the living room and used it constantly
Therapist Reacts to 'Howl's Moving Castle' (YouTube)
Smithsonian's Fantastic Worlds online exhibit
My 39th birthday
nora's Miscellaneous Reasons to Live bot
The first season of Lost
Stepdad Greg got some very good work news :)
I'm excited for the upcoming Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays for myself and other holidays for you if applicable!
We successfully put some frosting cling film on the bathroom window that was just a regular window for some reason
For my birthday, I got a big rug for the living room (it's from Wayfair, not a sponsor!)
Cats basking on the rug like big potatoes (that's what they are)
Revisiting Battlestar Galactica with Stepdad Greg and it holds up and I'm enjoying it more than 20 years ago
Getting the heat pad arranged just right on my sore shoulder
Nichet Crochet's Will It Rat? crochet series (YouTube)
I remembered JC Penney got Google delisted for black hat SEO (here's a news story from back then)
21 Levels of Ballet, from Simple to Complex (YouTube)
Jon Batiste Hears Green Day for the First Time (YouTube)
Packages of index cards
Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996-2003)
A walk in the rain under a big umbrella
Matt McGorry on having long covid (The Guardian): McGorry is thoughtful and mentions major thinkers in disability studies while sharing his own experiences with ableism from doctors and more -- really moving to see someone as high profile as him talking about these things
Gene Behind Orange Cats Found at Last (Science)
Index cards
(& making a little PLAN using them)
Inviting friends over for dinner
The Beatles song "Helter Skelter" is literally about this real life British slide (Wikipedia)
Herkimer diamonds (Wikipedia)
Christmas crafts season (I'm making paper garlands)
10 Ways to Use Leftover Ham (Chef Andy, YouTube)
This FAQ on Earth's magnetosphere, as asked by children
Remembering the short lived and doomed streaming service Quibi
A gray and white cat just strolled down the sidewalk past our house, crossed the street, and disappeared through the little corner of a fence
A new-to-me YouTube channel, The Last Homely House, very calm and fun videos about quilting and fabric
The fact that "homely" means ugly in the U.S. and cozy in the U.K.
Asked my partner and another pal some questions for work and got really great helpful info
Helping my partner buzz his hair off!
A new high score at one of my favorite games, Dorfromantik
Remembering the spaghetti pizza in my hometown (yes. It's like a regular thin crust pizza but there's spaghetti stuffed between the crust and the cheese)
My partner and I were joking about him blaming me for ordering less spicy food, leading to a Ratatouille joke. He then said, "I always wanted to be in the Gundam anime but I didn't know I could BE the gundam"
The new episode of the Maintenance Phase podcast, about longevity blue zones
The Smithsonian Folkways album The Science of Sound from the 1960s (check it out)
I found a list of Leopard Appaloosa horses with names like Bold Extra, High Thunderbird, Stormy Jo, Little Booger, and Lucky Sunray
My orange cat Harrison curled up like a plump crescent moon
The new Carmen Sandiego game includes the word "wiseacre" which I like a lot
Cracking the front window and refilling the back bird feeder so the cats are surrounded by fun things
Very thankful for my backup laptop
Replaying a favorite game (Crop Rotation)
Trader Joe's frozen kimbap
Tazo Passion Tea concentrate
Domino's gluten free pizza
The current season of Severance
Seeing a robin at our bird feeder for the first time
When one squirrel sits in the bird feeder all day like it's a buffet
Seeing an outdoor neighborhood cat again!
Rewatching I Love You Man and Role Models and they hold up!
Moving a very heavy mattress in from the garage to make our bed better
The release of an indie game I was excited about for years, Spirit Swap!
A new-to-me YouTube creator, Pinely, who does funny cultural commentaries
The episode of Decoder Ring about the swing revival of the 1990s
My laptop will be in the shop quite a bit longer, but the problem is inexpensive to fix, and I did not lose any data
When I'm still not feeling back to normal after an illness, but I feel better than for the last few days
Lady Gaga was really good on Hot Ones
Our bathtub is leaking, but the plumber told us it's probably an easy and pretty inexpensive fix
The Monopoly card game, Monopoly Deal, which is really fun
Finishing a big tub of protein powder
Enjoying the Australian show You Can't Ask That, where marginalized and unheard groups of all kinds address a lot of preconceived notions and share their voices
Sushi from the Japanese market
Cats sunbathing by the window
We Do This 'Til We Free Us by Mariame Kaba
Loving the game Fields of Mistria
Seeing the second ever robin at our bird feeder!
Watching Taskmaster with my friend Matt over Discord
This episode of The Sporkful about restaurants in Southern U.S. gas stations
Signing up for a community supported agriculture (CSA) share for this season
Announcing when Queer Games Bundle submissions will be open!!
Feeling proud of my partner for attending a protest
Having pad thai and tofu in black bean sauce for dinner
Catching a squirrel taking a nap on our deck
Talking with my doctor, who suggests helpful things for my mental health
The four part documentary on the Lisa Frank Company, which is buckwild btw!!
Perfect weather, 65-70F and sunny
Taking daily walks with my partner when possible
Hearing a kid outside yell "FUCKER" hahaha
Going to Sheetz for the first time
Finally making appointments to figure out why I've been so sick
Grilled cheese and tomato soup for lunch
Enjoying Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
Helping people
The napping squirrel came back and I named them Peanut
Having friends over for Stepdad Greg's birthday
Really nice, big, crunchy green grapes
Continuing beautiful weather
Bringing our cat tunnel up to the living room where they'll use it more
Spam fried rice
Getting my repaired laptop back (after SIX WEEKS)
My partner complimented me for how I "say good morning to all the cats individually like you're a Disney princess"
Ruling out some bad possibilities at the doctor's office
A few days ago I realized a YouTuber I like hadn't posted in several months, then they posted TODAY
Enjoying The Riddle of the Labyrinth by Margalit Fox, about clay tablets that survived from ancient Crete
Max Miller mentioned very similar clay tablets on Tasting History! In both cases, they survived because they were dried and cured by a fire -- a real silver lining