Thankgiving

So I’m writing the obligatory “what I am thankful for” Thanksgiving day blog. I think that I will start with the big stuff. I am thankful for my wife, Christy. She has stood by me for over 20 years now. We were very young when we got married, and it wasn’t supposed to last because of our ages, but here we are 20 years later with a home and family. She has had a very rough time the past few years, but we are getting through it. She fights for her children, she supports me in all that I do, even though she hates the beard, and she keeps my on my toes. She makes me want to be a better person.

I am thankful for my family. Four kids, all of them very different. I am thankful for my home. We took a very round-about road to the purchase of this home, but because we have great friends and family, we were able to purchase a home that’s right for our family.

Employment. My state job pays the mortgage, and keeps the lights on. My other state job, through the McKay center, manages to keep food on the table and gas in the cars. The Albertson’s job pays for an occasional movie or dinner. While many are struggling and fearful for their jobs, I am pretty secure in mine. I will not go as far as to say that I feel totally secure, because anything can happen, but I feel comfortable in my job. At the McKay, I get to work with a great group of people, get to interact with the public, and sometimes get to watch a good event.

Patriotism. I am thankful for the country in which I live. An e-mail comes around every so often that says we should stop complaining as we live in the greatest country in the world, and what to we have to complain about. I think it is our duty as citizens to attempt to right the wrongs that we see in the world around us. I am thankful for President-Elect Obama and feel that he will take this country in the right direction. The standards are set high, and I hope that he can rise to the expectations that are put upon him. Health care in this country should be free for all citizens, just like defense and highways. Our taxes should go to take care of all who need it.

I could go on for a while of the things that I am thankful for, but I will just hit on a few more, but I will spare you the agony, thanks for sticking with me this long. I am thankful for the internet and the fact that it lets me post rambling blogs about my life and the things that mean the most to me. I am thankful for the beauty that surrounds this valley where we have chosen to raise our family. I am thankful for the few close friends that I have, and the extended family that has seen us through every little bump, and every huge crater in our lives. I am thankful for the 4 years in spent in the Navy, the 8 years I spent in construction, the 4 years I spent at the college, and the 3 years I have spent so far at ORS. I have had a job since I was 15 years old, and have never been eligible to claim unemployment benefits. I have been employed everyday since my sixteen birthday.