Mobile Thoughts on the Holiday

Interesting note: I'm writing this while working out on an elliptical trainer.

I hope everyone's Thanksgiving went well. Thanksgiving is, by far, my favorite holiday of the year. Here's a few reasons why:

1. It's probably one of the least commercialized holidays. Now, let me make clear that I am not a very stringent opponent of commercialization. I, for one, enjoy hearing classical guitar covers of traditional Christmas songs playing in the mall. (I'm actually listening to Burl Ive's Holly Jolly Christmas right now.) But there's just something nice about a holiday that, really, it's difficult to buy things for. Yes, you could make arguments about the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, or the football, but it still seems to be pretty much about the original idea.

2. Family. I always hear stories about families that hate getting together, and do nothing but fight. I am lucky enough to be in a family that I love to death. It has to be one of the most fun families ever. We have 40+ people gathering together in one house, and there's essentially no conflict. Everyone gets along, everyone jokes with (and about) each other, and times are good.

3. Thanksgiving times three! Thanksgiving is the only time of year my enitre extended family gets together, so we make it worthwhile. To do that, we have three days, three difference houses, three dinners. So tonight is Thanksgiving the Second.

4. Giving thanks. Yes, this sounds cheesy, but really, it's good to think about what you're grateful for. I'll admit, I take things for granted most of the time, so let me list a few of the things I'm thankful for.
-I am alive.
-I am part of a very, very small percentage of the world population who can live comfortably and in relative safety, with a roof over my head, clean food and water, and in no immediate danger of death or decay.
-I am in a financial position that I can afford many things that provide material comfort and entertainment.
-I am part of a loving, supportive family who has always been good to me, even though I am a fairly distant son, not particularly good about communication.
-I have blessing of a strong mind, and have the ability to go to one of the best schools in the world, when one in four U.S. students drop out of high school.
-I have been accepted at one of the most exclusive business schools in the world, and I am doing fairly good in it. (I just found out I was currently ranked 10th in my marketing class of nearly 200.)
-I have friends who are truly good people, and who I can talk with easily and be at peace with myself when I'm around.
-As a caveat of that, there are social networking sites (maligned though they are) that have allowed me to keep in touch with friends that I would have no ways of communicating with otherwise.
-There are people who laugh at my jokes. This is actually a big one. I am at my happiest when people respond positively to what I say. This is why Carlos was one of my best friends in college; he always laughed at my jokes. So, I'm very thankful for people like that.
-Being able to connect with the world through the Internet, allowing me a form of entertainment, as well as a way of reaching out (i.e. through The Lobotomist's Dream) to others.
-While I am not the most fit, healthy person in the world, I am conscious enough not to be in a horrible predicament.
-I have become more lax about my worries. Whereas before I would become freaked out about not getting the top score on a test, now I just see it as part of the natural cycle of things. As one of my coworkers puts it: "Nothing ever phases you." While that may not be entirely true, I have been able to laugh about things more.
-I have music, which just makes me so very happy.
-I've just run 6.5 miles on this elliptical.

That's it for now. Oh, there's much more than that, but sometimes you just can't think of things until they make themselves really clear to you.

So, again, I hope you had a great Thanksgiving! Be sure to sound off in the comments about some of the things you're thankful for. It's a really good way to reflect on yourself. As for me, I'm looking forward to Round 2 tonight! ^_^