Oh no! It appears that someone's bovines have found their way onto The Compound. They are not mine, but I hear their owners are looking for names for them. Any suggestions? While you're pondering that, if you'd like to give the cows a page number between 1 and 611, and another number between 1 and 25, they'll find something in this book for you to be happy about. And maybe when they have real names, they'll find their way to their real home.

Do you know how much I love this story?

Stanley Dudek Returns Library Book 99 Years Overdue - Sphere News

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I was sitting on the front porch Tuesday afternoon after I dropped all the rose petals into the flower bed. I was thinking about John Lennon and Riley and their eternal connection in my heart while I sang to the dogs. The dogs LOVE it when I do this; in their excitement, they run to distant corners of The Compound, probably hoping I'll sing even more loudly so the world can share in the thrill of it all.

I wasn't singing a John Lennon or even a Beatles song, but one of my favorite Neil Young songs, "Birds." I was sad, and it occurred to me how one of Riley's gifts was that no matter how crazy awful our lives were (and 1980 delivered a ton of crazy awful), he could always make me laugh. As I sang, I remembered Riley telling me a story about a day he was sitting on his front porch, singing and playing his guitar. He was working on a song of his called "I Saw the Light" about the rotten luck of his alter ego, the Mysterious Vagabond Poet. Each time the MVP thought his life was taking a turn for the better, another awful thing would happen. And as Riley sang, he suddenly realized that across the street, his neighbors were sitting on their front porch and laughing their butts off. That's when he knew he'd accomplished what he wanted to with the lyrics: He'd taken all the crazy awful and made it funny. He came to my house a couple of days later to make sure the song would get the same reaction from me. Remembering how I laughed back then gave me a much welcomed lift.

( And then came magic. )

Got this button when I went shopping on Black Friday. It's part of
Macy's partnership with the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
If you're interested in helping donors and more than 25,000 volunteers make a wish come true (one almost every forty minutes!) for a child with a life-threatening medical condition, check out the above link.

You know what makes me happy? Jingling bells. What you see on top of the happy book is a ring with tiny jingle bells attached ($4, Pier One). You know what makes everyone at The Compound happy? When I don't wear the jingle bell ring. Bunch of grinches.

If you want something to make you happy, please comment with a page number between 1 and 611, and another number between 1 and 25, and I'll jingle my way through the pages of this book for you.

For the first time in twelve years or more, I have gone into a retail establishment on Black Friday. It's clear that aliens have taken over my body. With this new information in mind, I believe I'll frost a birthday cake and write an entire novel before dinner.

I'm trotting out (get it? trotting? turkey trot?) last year's photo because I'm getting such a late start today on Hump Day Happy. Blame Rex and an unplanned visit to the vet. (He'll be fine.)

I'm changing things up a little for today. If you will please comment and tell me something you're thankful for, I'll find a random selection in the happy book to give you in return.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, and I'll be spending it with people and dogs I love--can't ask for better than that. I hope all of you who celebrate the holiday, as well as my friends across the globe, have the kind of love and friendship in your lives that I'm fortunate enough to enjoy.

Regarding my own happiness, this dress and wrap dazzle me. It's a fantastic look for her.

AP Photo

You know it.

I've featured this cup before, but classics--like the Beatles themselves--are always worth another appearance. Today I'll be checking in between sewing sessions, so if you want something from one of these books to be happy about, please comment with a page number between 1 and 611, and another number between 1 and 25, and I'll make sure you get answers during my coffee breaks.

Just a silly bonus cell phone photo because it makes me laugh and may do the same for you.