Huzzahs and Back Slaps; My Trifecta of Talents (?!)

HAWMC Day 29 Prompt: Congratulations!

We all know Health Activists are awesome. Share three things you love about yourself, things you’re great at, or just want to share. Don’t undercut or signpost!

I just slipped up and failed to produce a post at all yesterday, because I stayed up working instead. The night before, I had to leave my post unfinished because i was asleep. To be fair, I had just flown to Georgia overnight (hey from GA, btw!) and had brought work with me and worked late.

Then I slipped up again. I determined almost a month ago that I need to give my body a break from chocolate. When it goes in my body, it's only producing compulsive, out-of-control feelings as well as self-destructive urges and physical discomfort. This happens every now and then with chocolate, I know it, and the solution is simple. Don't eat any chocolate for a couple months, dummy! So, what did I do this evening? Ate the small remaining amount of chocolate I'd self-sabotagingly brought with me, having eaten the rest of it previously. Yes I know I was running a cal. deficit, which made me vulnerable to the chocolate siren (what an image that is). But it's hard for me to forgive myself when I do that.

And having failed as a blogger and as a self-disciplined restricter, I'm supposed to toot my own horn? Where are the beans???

Well, nonetheless, I'm always game. Okay, three things I love about myself, am great at, or just want to share. (That last one's a cop-out, isn't it?)

1) Today was my first day interning at the Georgia Review and I loved it like it's what I'm meant to do. I spent the day looking at manuscripts that had been submitting for consideration at this wonderful literary journal. I got to see what kinds of things were getting submitted and also what kind of reader I am in this context. I love it. I'm excited for the next two weeks; I can already imagine I won't want to leave!

2) I am so grateful that I'm such a great traveler. My psychiatrist said it's probably one of the only good effects of being bipolar. I hadn't made the connection but I'm sure she's right (except "only" seems pessimistic). I don't get jetlag. Yes I'm anxious by nature, but usually when something goes wrong on a flight I'm the one turning it to funny or reassuring other passengers. One time a flight from Amsterdam to Athens, Greece, was delayed when we were all on the plane already, and a lot of Greek passengers were panicking and others were going in the toilet to smoke and the poor Dutch air stewards were wringing their hands. I ended up interpreting--the Dutch folks couldn't speak Greek and the Greeks couldn't speak English, but I could speak Greek and the Dutch ladies could speak English...and we worked it out. 

And actually that last anecdote is 3) I am so grateful that I love languages so much; that even at times in my life when I haven't played with language as much, it's been there for me. Nowadays, I'm even more grateful that I'm taking lithium, so that I can know there is a felt world beyond language. Until then, language and words were all there were for me, they held the place of parseable emotion. Now, the world is velvet-richer.

Dear readers, please tell me your three!