Our apartment building is out of hot water – again.

That’s two days in a row where my morning routine is knocked off kilter.  Yesterday, I was able to perform some work from home during the outage.

First world problems: No hot water. Cat on lap, purring and nuzzling as I make up for lost time, doing #SharePoint support work from home.

— Theresa Jamone (@tjamone) May 14, 2015

Thankfully, I have today off but am delayed in preparing for a medical appointment, performing my errand run and eventually enjoying a slow dinner with writing friends.

These inconveniences and interruptions to lifestyle are good opportunities for us to pause and look at the big picture.  They help us see how lucky we are in comparison to others who have been affected and displaced by natural disasters or civil war.

Sometimes one may become overwhelmed by the calls for assistance. You can compensate by picking a couple of causes that you can afford the conscience, time and money to support.

For the rest, you rely on the compassion and foreign aid funding through your government.

I am grateful that I have:

• Access to clean, running water;
• A safe, comfortable home;
• Family and close friends;
• Access to safe, local food sources;
• Public libraries;
• Work I enjoy;
• Reliable electricity, Internet service and other essential utilities;
• Volunteer opportunities;
• The freedom to speak out and express.

I am lucky for the freedom of whimsy, creative license to express through my cats >^..^<  They don’t seem to mind my body odor as I sit and stew with my thoughts.

Thanks for dropping by. Where are you from and what are YOU thankful for?

T