fandom snowflake challenge 2019 - day one

[fox]

("January 1–15" is a little optimistic, because here it is January 2 and I'll be more or less off the grid this weekend, but I'll do what I can.)

Day 1

In your own space, talk about your Happy Place—the things that give you joy, calm you, or keep you sane. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Maybe the fact that I'm thinking so hard about how to answer this question is a little bit diagnostic.

Things that give me joy: Music. Knitting. My two-year-old, 98% of the time. (When he's being a brat, especially when he's doing so deliberately, I am not joyful. It's all age-appropriate boundary testing, but man do I not like it/him/myself when that's the place we're in.)

Things that calm me: Music, sure. Knitting, sure. My two-year-old, at snuggly times. (Hugging him can make the knot in my neck let go a little bit. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that his head on my shoulder might lower my blood pressure.) Coffee; it doesn't even have to be good coffee. Wine.

Things that keep me sane: Um.

So nu, it's been a tough couple of years for me. In addition to the raging trash fire that is our current administration, which has generally been making it a tough couple of years for everyone in the world (whether they know and admit it or not), I had a baby two weeks after the last presidential election; then when he was almost 10 months old my mom had a stroke. She survived and is actually recovering very well, given the odds, but she's still not the same as she was and never will be again. So the kid is two and I've basically had a new and different mom for 15 months and counting. I probably do need some more conscious Happy Place in my life. (I did buy a 20-lb weighted blanket a couple-few months ago, and I like it very much.)