Dreamer's Ready Room #1 - Security Blanket

My website project continues. I am learning as I go, but I am not trying to do everything at once because I don’t want to get frustrated and quit in anger. I have all the time in the world to learn and do this right. I have wanted to start this for what seems like forever, and now that time is here.
Since this is post #1, I tried to think of a good topic. I wanted to indicate that this was my first blog post under the Dreamer’s Ready Room title, and I took a picture using one of the blocks from my Peanuts perpetual calendar.

My inspiration was staring me in the face. I am going to write about my Security Blanket, the thing or things that comfort me. Serendipity is a beautiful thing.

Hal is the first, and by far the most important, Security Blanket in my life. We fell in love more than twenty-three years ago, and today we are more vital than ever. Hal saved my life by being with me. When we first met, I could throw back seven or eight top-shelf Long Island Iced Teas or Hennessy double shots in less than one hour without feeling slightly drunk. Hal never nagged me about my drinking; he never said a word. Within six months, without any effort on my part, I completely stopped drinking. Hal filled that empty spot in my life that I foolishly tried to fill with alcohol. When I was hospitalized, Hal made the medical decisions I could not; again, he saved my life. Ever since he has been my provider and protector as I rehabilitate.

Next are The Stooges, our beautiful BlackCats

We have always shared our home and love with cats. It just so happens that the last several cats that chose us have been beautiful Black Bombay cats. They are all friendly but with different and distinct personalities. Jax is the oldest, and he suffers from anxiety. No matter how much we love him, he remains insecure about many things. He has to be sedated to go to the vet. Otherwise, he will hyperventilate, and that is dangerous for a cat.
Willow is our baby girl, the middle child. She is reserved most of the time, but when she decides that she wants attention, no one stops her from getting it. She likes to go under the bed covers at night and sleep there undisturbed.
Henry is the baby of the three. Henry always talks and always finds ways to get into my favorite chair, with or without me bothering him. He is affectionate towards the other two and always initiates playtime with them.

Of course, writing has to be on my list.

I write every day. Most of my writing never gets published because it is therapeutic for me. I write about serious issues, especially in my old-fashioned paper journal. In 25 years, very few people can read cursive anymore, so my secret will probably be safe from prying eyes after I’m gone. When I write here in my blog, I keep striving for a specific limit on either time or word count because I want things to be exciting but not dull, and I don’t want to make my writing a more extended version of Twitter.

I became accustomed to taking several days to complete a good story rather than cranking out mediocre ones to show quantity. Through years of writing, I don’t have to crank out an epic tale every time I write. I can write my thoughts down in bullet form and then come back and flesh them out later. Often that extra time is what I need to stay focused on any story I write. Combining that practice with working towards a word count or reading time goal, I think I will become a better writer in the long term.  

There isn’t a day that goes by without me listening to at least one hour of music. When Hal wants to watch tv, I always put my AirPods in and relax to a wide variety of music from my library. Occasionally I just let things go completely random, which is often the most enjoyable session. My taste in music ranges from New Age to Led Zeppelin. I only have two genres of music. I can honestly say I don’t care for either country and western. I find that music gives me so much more enjoyment than TV ever could.

Meditation and music get me through tough times, significantly benefiting me. I practice Meditation daily. I think I am improving, but there is always more to learn. I find small things to focus on and slowly lose myself in thought. Meditation seems complicated initially, but it just takes practice to make it effective. Patience is a virtue, and it is vital to learning Meditation and letting it help you in your everyday life. I wish I could give some elementary secrets to Meditation helping in your life, but I can only advise constant practice.

It might be unusual, but I love to spend at least part of the day just enjoying the silence around me. Quiet times let me think and be grateful for what I have, which is a lot. I cannot describe how lucky I feel every day.