November 2020
by Tom Swift
30 Monday
- Areas of opportunity.
- Your little space heater: your little buddy.
- Real whipped cream.
- Winter bedtime.
- Christmas lights.
- Hunger.
- People who study the effects social media have on our minds.
- The month of November.
- The sound of your breath.
29 Sunday
- Waking way early and making progress on a project you were resisting.
- Signs your at-home workouts are working.
- Flax seed oatmeal. With cinnamon. Of course.
- Darkness. Your old friend.
- When the solar lamp stays on all night.
- Chuck Klosterman.
28 Saturday
- Even-numbered days. They are just better.
- Free pie.
- Social connections.
- Shared interests.
- Books that read fast.
- Messes in the morning. Gotta get up for those.
- Tuna.
- The clarifying energy of purpose.
- Birds that make your power-line shake.
27 Friday
- Turkeys.
- The second turkey dinner of the day.
- The young woman behind the counter who gives you extra whipped cream and doesn’t charge you for it.
- John Candy.
- Movie night.
- The bald eagle spotted by the young boy on the path during your walk.
- Stuffing.
- November nights.
26 Thursday
- Health.
- Home.
- Never missing a meal you don’t have to miss.
- Books.
- Clarity.
- Your job.
- Your little buddy.
- The language you have learned.
- Having a convenience store half a block away. And they stock fries.
- Simplicity.
- Extra blueberries just because.
- The sound of the newspaper landing on your step.
25 Wednesday
- Planes, Trains and Automobiles.
- T-day takeout.
- Progress.
- Evening workouts.
- Taking it as it comes.
- Studying in advance of a discussion.
- Being true to you.
- Born to Run.
- The day before a long weekend.
- Frozen vanilla bean cheesecake.
24 Tuesday
- When all the lights work.
- Chilly walks.
- Second workouts.
- Reading time in the evening.
- A hungry dog.
- Food you don’t have to cook.
- Not caring what people think.
- Resistance bands.
- A book that gets you excited to read.
- Deep sleep.
- The staying power of cauliflower.
23 Monday
- The Riverview Theater.
- Popcorn. With butter.
- Reading time.
- At-home workouts that work.
- The sound of your house filling with warm air first thing In the morning.
- When a plant tells you it needs a drink.
- Creative projects.
22 Sunday
- President Kennedy.
- How quickly the body (including the mind) reacts to positive direction.
- Sunday afternoons.
- Snow that melts hours after it falls.
- Progress.
- Grilled chicken salad.
21 Saturday
- Extra sleep.
- The chance to gather with smart people. If only online.
- What the body says.
- Chocolate just cuz.
- The way your dog can still snare a bounding ball.
- Windless walks.
20 Friday
- Making deadline.
- Feeling good about your submission.
- Getting so much done.
- Having a chance.
- When you have to hustle.
- Libraries.
- Guacamole for the win.
Thursday
- Public/governmental officials who make hard decisions that aren’t popular.
- Your gym. You will miss it.
- New opportunities.
- Chicken at the ready.
17 Tuesday
- Steak and sprouts.
- Working when no one else is.
- Your dog’s breath.
- Laughing about a disappointment.
- Onions.
16 Monday
- Knowing your business.
- Explosive push-ups.
- Breaded baked cod.
- Reading in the middle of the night.
- Playing ball with your little buddy in the basement.
- Ginger.
15 Sunday
- Windy walks.
- Power naps.
- Books.
- Good ideas.
- The chance to teach.
- Journals.
- Newspapers.
- Dogs.
- Free time.
- Constraints.
- Steak and sweet potato dinner.
14 Saturday
- The chance to write.
- Responsibility.
- The moment the cone comes off.
- Three-walk days.
- Moving on.
- Green apples and frozen blueberries.
13 Friday
- Mistakes.
- Moments in which you realize how much you have grown.
- The chance to go on walks with your dog.
- Shared purpose.
- Leftover salmon.
- Opportunities to lead.
- Thanksgiving dinner.
- When you don’t have much time — you have to hustle.
- Hot butter.
12 Thursday
- Half days.
- Hustle.
- Clean sheets.
- Cleared sidewalks.
- Fresh snow.
- Salmon.
11 Wednesday
- Your brother’s birth.
- Just staying in.
- The opportunity to fumble with words.
- The DavidPal36.
- A tidy workspace.
- HSAs.
- Confidence.
- Oregano.
10 Tuesday
- Being as ready for winter as you can be.
- When help is scheduled.
- When heat is summoned.
- The feel of your dog’s soft chin on your exposed shin.
- Oatmeal.
9 Monday
- Damp, warm mornings.
- Searching for Bobby Fischer.
- Thoughtful friends.
- Your instincts.
- Oat milk.
8 Sunday
- New boundaries.
- Closed doors.
- Restrictions.
- Broasted chicken dinner with coleslaw and mash potatoes/gravy.
- Chocolate cake.
- Kamala!
7 Saturday
- Heavy sleep.
- The last hour of the waking day.
- Feeling supported.
- Playing snout soccer under the lights on a November night.
- Drawers that open and close.
- Dirty hands.
- Clean gutters.
- A functioning toilet.
- Joe!
6 Friday
- Time to think and be and learn. Time to ask questions of yourself.
- The first sips of morning coffee.
- Listening to your dog slurp water from his bowl.
- When you have occasion to take the packed away patio chairs out of the garage again.
- Clean teeth.
5 Thursday
- The way George H. W. Bush conceded after losing to Bill Clinton.
- Nonpartisan people who count ballots.
- Journalists who care more about being right than being first.
- T-shirts and shorts.
- When you are done raking leaves. Finally.
- Watching your little buddy relaxing in a sunspot in the backyard.
- Scrambled eggs for dinner.
4 Wednesday
- Booker T. Washington.
- The chance to serve as an election judge.
- The best laugh you have ever heard.
- Inducing that laugh.
- Masks.
- Unmasking in other ways.
- A drink when you really need one.
- Warm bread.
3 Tuesday
- Thomas Paine.
- Steve Schmidt.
- Rosa Parks.
- Abraham Lincoln.
- Nancy Pelosi.
- Harriet Tubman.
- Barack Obama.
- Thomas Jefferson.
- Reed Galen.
- George Washington.
- Every man and woman who has spent time and energy this year trying to keep the republic.
- Every man and woman who gave you the chance to vote.
2 Monday
- Pablo Cruise’s “Love Will Find the Way.”
- Farmer carries.
- A break from all other energy save for your own.
- A full grocery cart.
- Sunshine through the kitchen window.
1 Sunday
- The month of November.
- An extra hour.
- Windy walks.
- The cheering of the trees, those that still have leaves.
- The morning stretch.
- The kind kid at the bakery who slips extra doughnuts into your bag, gratis, because he knows it’s your birthday.
- Browsing in a library. You miss it so much.
- Chocolate croissants.
- That you get a shot at this life.