Silver Lining List

It's Tuesday.  Ho hum.  Not a particular exciting day, and truth be told, I dragged my bum out of my apartment with a certain struggle.  You know those days when you just want to stay in bed and cuddle with the cutest furball you've ever seen?

This guy:

Today is totally one of those days.  

This morning, he even sabotaged my effort to get in a little yoga:

But of course I love that little dude like nothing else, and it was with great sadness I had to put on my big girl pants and get to the office today for a Tuesday.

So, in an effort to add some sliver to my cloud, here is a Silver Lining List of 10 things guaranteed to make me smile today.

A List In No Random Order of Happy Things

1)  Just 2 and a half weeks until sunnier days!  Remember to "Spring Forward" on March 10! 

2)  This video of dogs making babies laugh.  Instant frown flipper.

4)  Ben Affleck's adorably honest ode to his wife from the acceptance stand.

5)  The Mediterranean diet is getting primo attention!  My Sicilian penchant for olives, fish and eggplant rejoices.  A favorite Greek blog here: www.olivetomato.com 

6)  Unintentional matching of iPhone case and necklace.  Does anyone do that intentionally? I'd like to meet them.

8) I get to take a picture with a real life Oscar tomorrow (yay Brave!)

9)  I made a slight change to a common hairstyle, and Webb happily noticed.  Points for the lazy girl braid, girls!  

10) Positive news stories like this one about a restaurant owner who hired a broke-but-earnest guy off the street.

Okay, there's that pep in my step I was missing!  I feel better now.  Feeling glum?  Make a list of life's simple pleasures and I guarantee your cloud will find its silver lining.  

America

Millions of Americans voicing their opinion?

That's just dee-lightful.

Regardless of who you wanted to end up in the Oval Office, what's clear is one man isn't going to make or break a nation.  We all need to work together.  

I hope you enjoy this inspirational speech by the President.

My election day was fairly standard compared to 2008 when I was in London.  Boston University's online magazine BU Today put together a great piece on that here (and yours truly gets some airtime).  This year, I woke up early, headed downstairs to wait in line (thankfully my polling place was in my building) and checked off the people  I believed in.  As a first time California voter, I enjoyed researching the various propositions and having a choice on specific issues.  While I didn't get an "I voted" sticker to Instagram, I felt proud. After work, Webb and I went into the city to feel the electricity in the air.  After watching results unfold in an Indian restaurant, we then made it over to Brian and Jane's to watch the speeches.  I always love being reminded about our freedom here and what a great, diverse nation we live in.  That is something worth celebrating.