HappyUP!!! Day 489

HappyUP!!! - group of guys golfing
Why it happened - it was my buddy's 50th birthday
Why it makes me happy - there is a strange thing that happens when multiple groups of guys that know each other get together to play golf. Even if you don't know some of the guys, it's like you already do. Afterward, you get together and meet up for a beer or two....or a lemonade. It's just nice....and man fun.

HappyUP!!! - GOLF
Why it happened - see above
Why it makes me happy - it was another GORGEOUS day to be out in the sun....absolutely perfect weather . Mid 70's to 80.

HappyUP!!! - my playing partners
Why it happened - they had to put me with someone
Why it makes me happy - I knew two of the guys from a long time ago. It was great to see them . I had never played golf with them so it was nice to spend the time. I played crappy but one of them didn't (see photo to the left) and he got the prestigious trophy.

HappyUP!!! - bowling
Why it happened - it was all part of the 50th B-day
Why it makes me happy - I hadn't done it in a long time. It was fun. I even bowled a 150 which is respectable.

HappyUP!!! - bowling accompaniement
Why it happened - I took a friend along
Why it makes me happy - the person is good company, wasn't doing anything tonight, and gave me someone to talk to that I knew amidst some strangers.

HappyUP!!! - breakfast with my unofficial family
Why it happened - every Saturday
Why it makes me happy - it's a very nice grounding.

Let's look at this - breakfast with my unofficial family, golfing with a nice bunch of guys on a gorgeous day, bowling and a birthday party with a good friend in tow. Life is pretty good for the Nutster!

HappyUP!!! Day 488

HappyUP!!! - drinks
Why it happened - a buddy set it up
Why it makes me happy - I got to see a couple of ladies that I hadn't seen in awhile. It wasn't pleasant to hear what they are going through. The HappyUP!!! is that I got to use my compassion skills.

HappyUP!!! - call from another old friend
Why it happened - he went out of his way
Why it makes me happy - he called me regarding my retirement. We had a great conversation. He is going to get me down to his house outside of San Fran in June. This means we will be taking his boat to somewhere cool for lunch. It will be a fun day.

HappyUP!!! - e-mails
Why it happened - I do e-mail?
Why it makes me happy? - I got some good ones today....exceptional. They lifted my spirits on a day when I didn't need them lifted...they cranked the spirits stratospherically.

HappyUP!!! Day 487

HappyUP!!! - dinner
Why it happened - I get hungry?
Why it makes me happy - I got to spend some face to face time with an old friend. You'll find that the Happiest of my HappyUP!!!s revolve around meeting with people. This was a rare HappyUP!!! and one of the best. I hadn't seen this person in 4-5 years. We could have spent even more time than we did.
Bonus to this HappyUP!!! - speaking with my friend's daughter. My friend rang her up after dinner. I hadn't spoken with this young lady in forever....she's all grown up, through college, and has a cool job working for the governor's office. They do grow up fast!

HappyUP!!! - e-mail from another friend
Why it happened - I noticed that she had been "in town"
Why it makes me happy - this friend lives in Paris. I noticed from her blog that she had just been in San Francisco. I shot her an e-mail guilting her for not calling me for lunch. She said she is coming back in July. We'll get that lunch in then. It's something to look forward to. I once heard a phrase that life is about having something to do, someone to love, and something to look forward to. It's something that has always stuck with me.
HappyUP!!! - haircut
Why it happened - it was time
Why it makes me happy - it was a packed house down at the barber shop today. While I can't say that hanging around that crew on a daily basis would do anything but get you in trouble, it's a fun place to drop by once a month. No, you won't find Old Floyd in there clicking the scissors...it's a little younger and edgier crowd. It's not my normal environment....it's good to get out of normal (whatever normal is)_.

HappyUP!!! Day 486

HappyUP!!! - a dinner invitation
Why it happened - I'm popular?
Why it makes me happy - we are going to have some great conversation

HappyUP!!! - call from former co-worker
Why it happened - she just heard that I had left
Why it makes me happy - she is a good gal. I enjoyed working with her. It was nice of her to call. It's not that I need it but it's nice to hear that my conduct and professionalism was appreciated.

HappyUP!!! - pickin it on the front stoop
Why it happened - my neighbor caught me outside
Why it makes me happy - he's a banjo picker. I showed him one of my guitars. We got done talking. He went back to his house. The weather was PERFECT.....72 degrees with a slight breeze. It was nice to sit out and play .....and write a new tune.

JollyJottings

Call from former co-worker
Talking with my neighbor
Pickin it on the front stoop
Dinner invitation
Good day in the stock market

HappyUP!!! Day 485...Tuesday of a Short Week

Short week? - wait a minute.....every week is a short week for us retired folks. It doesn't mean I can't be happy for those of you who have fewer days to get to until the weekend comes.

HappyUP!!! - Toastmasters presentation
Why it happened - a member asked me to help him out
Why it makes me happy - I nailed it......on a topic I knew virtually nothing about prior to doing a little bit of research. I was able to take a somewhat technical topic (glaciology and the matter in which they melt) and break it into an easily understandable format.


HappyUP!!! - invitation accepted
Why it happened - I threw the invite out there
Why it makes me happy - I am going to a friend's gig on Saturday and now it is going to be more interesting

HappyUP!!! - 21 mile bike ride
Why it happened - I got off my fanny
Why it makes me happy - I got out there....it's been awhile since I rode. I actually bonked a little bit which made my protein shake on the end of the ride a HappyUP!!! in itself. This is just a step in introducing exercise back into the lifestyle.



Jolly Jottings

Toastmasters Presentation
Toastmasters Guests
Toastmasters
Invitation accepted
Chipping
Gigantic invitation
21 Mile Bike ride
Smoothie after Bike ride
Bonking/exhaustion
Lunch set up

HappyUP!!! Day 484......Muck OFF!

HappyUP!!! - mucking a pool
Why it happened - I was just so attracted to it I couldn't resist.
Why it makes me happy - while this wasn't my motive, I now have unlimited access to this pool for the year. The real happy part....helping my buddy out. I know how tackling tough projects on your own can be. We knocked out a bunch of this one today and we will be swimming soon! Good bye golfer tan!

(I thought about bottling that green liquid at the bottom of the pool. Hey, I hear that consuming algae is all the health rage these days. And, yes, THAT pile of MUCK that is in the foreground was IN the pool prior to the mucking).

HappyUP!!! - Mucking time
Why it happened - it is how my life is structured
Why it makes me happy - I honestly had nothing better to do today than to muck that pool. How good is that? To some of the judgemental sort, I can already hear, "get a life." My only answer is, "did you do something better than this today?" I ended up with the gratitude of my friend and a place to swim (soon).....and I got to get a little tan while I soaked up some Vitamin D to boot.

HappyUP!!! - a gorgeous, top down day
Why it happened - I didn't have anything to do with it....other than I was driving the convertible
Why it makes me happy - running errands is like HEAVEN on a NorCal day in the 70's. It's like your "to do" list can't be too long..........well, other than that pesky $4.50 a gallon for premium!

HappyUP!!! Day 483.....There is Good in the World

HappyUP!!! - I got my babies back
Why it happened - good kids
Why it makes me happy - I left a couple of wedges by the 18th green at a public golf course on Thursday. For those of you who don't understand that, wedges are highly desirable items for golfers to have. On a public course, you are not likely to ever run into the golfer who these clubs belonged to. In other words.....adios, wedgemigos! There were also a couple of teenagers playing in the group behind us. I will leave the stereotyping to you as to whether they are more or less likely to have turned my babies in than an adult. The fact is.....they turned them in. They looked like they were serious golfers....who may have seen that these were serious clubs. Who knows the real "why" behind it. The next time someone tells me that "no one ever turns lost clubs in at a public course," I know what I am going to say.

HappyUP!!! - squash...and peppers...and carrots
Why it happened - they were ready
Why it makes me happy - while not an abundance, I did a little harvesting today. First crop?....how can you be anything but happy?

HappyUP!!! - tri-tip
Why it happened - I dropped off carrots
Why it makes me happy - my bro and sis-in-law insisted that I stay for dinner. Carrots for tri-tip? Nice trade! ....and a HappyUP!!!!

HappyUP!!! Day 482

HappyUP!!! - a great breakfast
Why it happened - it happens most Saturdays
Why it makes me happy - we had some interesting discussion as usual

HappyUP!!! - getting in contact with an old friend
Why it happened - we stumbled across each other
Why it makes me happy - while it is a friend, there is more possibility there....it's not everyday that you think about the possibility of someone moving into that innermost circle.

HappyUP!!! - rain
Why it happened - who knows?
Why it makes me happy - the ol' Nutster Almanac says that rain on Memorial Day weekend means a very pleasant summer......just what I was looking for this year.

HappyUP!!! Day 481

HappyUP!!! - getting the lowdown
Why it happened - I made a phone call
Why it makes me happy - I have a good idea of what I am going to do with a key decorating item. Getting the house a little closer

HappyUP!!! - picking up the car
Why it happened - the car was ready
Why it makes me happy - I really like the couple that own the shop that works on my car. I even forgot my wallet. No problem...car is not in hoc. They even remembered to fix my brake light....which I had forgotten to mention to them when I took the car in

HappyUP!!! - chatting with my friend
Why it happened - he called me
Why it makes me happy - he's doing well....which was a little bit questionable. His welfare uplifted me.

HappyUP!!! Day 480

HappyUP!!! - golf with two old friends
Why it happened - I set it up
Why it makes me happy - it was great to spend some time with these guys......and keep my golf partners in check and up to date. The network keeps building.

HappyUP!!! - great golf shots
Why it happened - I still have some skills
Why it makes me happy - my score was no HappyUP!!! but I am hitting some fabulous shots. I hit some punch shots from the trees that were incredible. I pured an 8-iron. I hit another perfect 8-iron. I hit a cut 3-wood from 230 within 10 ft with a strong cross breeze blowing....no one can hit a shot any better than that. This is why I play golf. You can go an entire round and not hit any of these shots. Now....I just have to get that putter squared away.

HappyUP!!! - helping a friend recruit
Why it happened - he asked me
Why it makes me happy - I have all of these contacts....I have people that are ready to make a move....I might as well put my skills to the benefit of someone. Who better than a friend.

HappyUP!!! Day 479

HappyUP!!! - coffee with my friend
Why it happens - it happens every Wed
Why it makes me happy - I have a new job....airport ride! OK...that's not the HappyUP!!! but it's all cool. We just had a nice chat today

HappyUP!!! - chatting with an old friend
Why it happened - I called him
Why it makes me happy - this is a friend and former colleague. Why/how do we let YEARS slip away between us and good friends/people? No matter....this was a great call....and potential business opportunity

HappyUP!!! - a nap
Why it happened - I was tired
Why it makes me happy - had a touch of the insomnia last night. The afternoon afforded a nap opportunity so I took it.

QuoteUP!!! 8 -Nutser

If you find comfort in chaos, you will not find peace to be a fruitful friend

-Nutster

Wow.....now I am off quoting myself - what do you think about that? NO! That was a rhetorical question so zip it and stick to what the above means to you.

I'll start you off - I have run across people that are living a frantic life....too much going on.... they complain about it.......

....yet, without the "unwanted disruption" - they would go out and create some more...it is all that they know.

Do you know anyone like I am talking about? - what is up with that behavior?

HappyUP!!! Day 478...Tuesday, May 20 2008

HappyUP!!! -Lunch with my girls
Why it happened - it will be a regular occurrence
Why it makes me happy - my two admin staff love me and I love them. While working, I was not much of a lunch guy...I don't think we ever went to lunch. We had a lovely time.


HappyUP!!!-Decorating help
Why it happened - I took advantage of someone
Why it makes me happy - one of my friends gave me a ride afterwork. When she dropped me off, I asked her to give me some ideas on how she thought my house should layout. She had some pretty good ideas. It's time to make things happen!

HappyUP!!! -Hearing another's pain and seeing transparency
Why it happened - interesting things bubble up during table topics
Why it makes me happy - Toastmasters can be more than just a place to improve speaking. The club becomes a community of friends. While the member didn't totally breakdown, she almost did. It is at these times when we see a human side of people.......and can offer whatever it is that we can to help. The ultimate HappyUP!!!

JollyJottings

A tremendous feeling of gratitude and appreciation - it was like euphoria. The cloud just moved in and enveloped me and I drank it up
Starting a new song
Starting a new speech
Toastmasters
A call from my friend P
Anticipation of Thursday golf
Freedom to take off and golf tomorrow if I choose
Gorgeous weather
Trip to car mechanic

QuoteUP!!! 6.....Hindus on Pleasure

"Pleasure is only the shadow of happiness"

-Hindu Proverb

I would challenge you to spend some time conjuring upon that - and bring back to me what you find.

HappyUP!!!! Day 477

HappyUP!!! - zapping a toleration
Why it happened - I went with a tip
Why it makes me happy - there is one less unfinished part of my house....and it was easy to fix

HappyUP!!! - call from a friend
Why it happened - people care about me
Why it makes me happy - this person was just checking in on how I was doing since retiring. A lot of people are thinking this is going to be tougher on me than I think it actually is. It is good to be cared about.

HappyUP!!! - studying happiness
Why it happened - I decided to take my interest seriously....well, more seriously
Why it makes me happy - I am not sure what direction this will go in. It is going to need some structure. This is one of those times that I think you must move forward.....even if you aren't exactly sure where the destination is.

HappyUP!!! Day 476....Recuperating Sunday

HappyUP!!! - sleep
Why it happened - oppressive heat and a futon pad
Why it makes me happy - to the faithful here, you know that my sleeping has been encumbered for the last 8 months or so. I can't count on it like I used to. Due to an electrical malfunction and 100 degree heat which has not cooled that much at night, I have thrown the futon pad in front of the screen door to find the coolest situation that I could. Miraculously, both nights I have done this have produced very pleasant slumber (except for the person wandering by singing "Hey Jude"........who the heck chooses "Hey Jude" as their nocturnal wanderings anthem anyway?"

HappyUP!!! - tightening the screws
Why it happened - the electrician was here
Why it makes me happy - it seems to have worked. The issue could have been as simple as my main breaker being a little loose. Plenty of AC on yet another 100 degree day here in the big tomato. It was also cool (no pun intended) to get my electrician out here on a Sunday.

HappyUP!!! - lunch with my best friend
Why it happened - he was hungry?
Why it makes me happy - he had just come from putting his dog down. We didn't talk about it much....but I know that he loved his puppy. He had the dog for over 13 years. Besides the dog, my friend and I never have a conversation that is uninteresting.....meaningless? Oh yeah...plenty of those. Entertaining? Always. I was doubled over in uncontrollable laughing mode at one point....always a HappyUP!!!

JollyJottings

Sleep
"Tightening the screws"
Electricity
Lunch with my best friend
Reading/Napping with my cat
A Good Book

HappyUP!!! Day 475

HappyUP!!! - closest to the pin...again
Why it happened - I will be modest.......I'm GOOD!
Why it makes me happy - my brother and I did not do well in our tournament. The dough brought in for "stuffin it" a couple of times took a little bit of the steam off of the loss. Plus, it feels good to have hit a couple of exceptional golf shots.

HappyUP!!! - finding an electrician who will come out tomorrow
Why it happened - I think a breaker may have fried
Why it makes me happy - tonight, I will create some sort of adventure by not being able to live in my house.....it's 6:30 and probably still 100 degrees outside. For one night, it will be an adventure.........it could have been two nights but my electrician buddy is going to take care of me in the a.m.

HappyUP!!! - life
Why it happened - I live one?
Why it makes me happy - last night my power was out so it was sweltering.....but I McGyvered a solution to get some sleep. My bro and I didn't play well in our tournament...but had a good time. I then came home to another power outage that I thought was fixed this morning. It seems like this would be a bad day.......but, for whatever reason, I feel very lucky to be in a position that none of these things are big deals. These are luxurious problems to have and I am just feeling extremely grateful today.

HappyUP!!! Day 474

HappyUP!!! - an opening birdie
Why it happened - I put a couple of good shots together
Why it makes me happy - today was round two of the Sunsetter Golf Tournament. My brother and I needed to make a move. I got us off on the right foot so we had the momentum going. It was a definite HappyUP!!! (at least while it was happening).

HappyUP!!! - bread
Why it happened - it comes with dinner sometimes
Why it makes me happy - who would have suspected that, at a banquet-type dinner, we would be served one of the best dinner rolls that I have ever had in my life. I'm not kidding. This was PERFECT bread.

HappyUP!!! - dinner company
Why it happened - I have enjoyable friends
Why it makes me happy - we had very enjoyable mealtime banter. One of my friends was tagging along with me. Dinner got over and we decided to take the long road back home and do some top down driving on a warm Spring evening. Did I say Spring? Technically, it is but it's been over 100 degs the last two days. Anyway, it was still a nice night to just go for a drive and continue chatting about life.

HappyUP!!! Day 473....Bad Lies and Brownies

Today was round one - of the Sunsetter Invitational. Last year, I made a posting about one of the worse lies on the golf course I ever caught. You can see it here
(Scroll down past the cute photo's)

<------This is not my ball - which could be a HappyUP!!!

Unfortunately - it was my brother's ball and he is my partner. That's him...he's walking in the direction that he wants to hit the ball....he's right handed....it was a problem.





Meanwhile - here is my ball across the fairway. Not a very good lie either but playable....especially when just TWO SHOTS LATER on the par 5....the ball would be in the hole for....

HappyUP!!!! - an eagle
Why it happened - I played a great shot
Why it makes me happy - today was a struggle on the links. It was hot.....and windy. It was over 100 degrees. This is unseasonably warm in Sacramento. I haven't had an eagle in FOREVER. For you non-golfers - go ask a golfer what an eagle is and let them tell you if that would be a HappyUP!!!



HappyUP!!! -brownies
Why it happened - I have a nice neighbor
Why it makes me happy - the neighbor lady kittykorner across the street saw me outside and whipped over with some brownies. One.....just the gesture that someone is thinking of you to bring you brownies should be a HappyUP!!! Two......they are DANG good....and sans NUTS! I love female brownies! Moist...moist...moist.

HappyUP!!! - a weird occurrence in the stock market
Why it happened - can't pinpoint this one
Why it makes me happy - while no major trader, all of you know that I like to do a little investing. Today, every single one of my stocks was up. In the long run, this daily phenomenon means nothing. In the framework of this blog, I got a little kick out of this. It was kind of like seeing a rainbow or a full moon.

HappyUP!!! Day 472

HappyUP!!! - GOLF!
Why it happened - today was a practice round for the tournament
Why it makes me happy - it was great company...my brother, our friend, and a guy that I used to play a lot of golf with back in my younger days....hadn't played with him for years

HappyUP!!! - SUSHI!
Why it happened - my sis-in-law wanted sushi
Why it makes me happy - it was great to sneak out to dinner. I hadn't had sushi in some time.

HappyUP!!! - seeing a former co-worker
Why it happened - he was playing a different hole on the golf course
Why it makes me happy - I hadn't gotten a chance to talk to him when I left the company. He had heard the story and he pretty much got the straight scoop.....which makes me happy.