Seven worth savoring.

Over at Ohioan Kimmyk's joint, she posted a list of 7 things she's thankful for and tagged me to do the same. We're leaving out all the obvious ones - home, family, cat and opposable thumbs - and turning to the things that we choose to bring into our lives and make those mundane days go by a little easier. Life's laxative, so to speak.

Enough of that. Here's the list:

(1) Talk radio. It's kind of quiet around here most days - OK, every day - so at times a little background noise is necessary. I've been hooked on talk radio since the late 70s and have wandered around from current events to all-sports. There aren't nearly as many of them as there are hip-hop music stations, so I've learned to appreciate the medium. I think I'd go nuts if I had to listen to music when I turned on the radio. Besides, most commercial music radio is crap.

(2) Wawa. Some of my readers don't know what I'm talking about, so I'll explain. Wawa is a local chain of convenience stores that acts as a supermarket for single people. Picture a store with a free MAC machine, all the regular convenience store fare plus - the best coffee in the area, freshly made sandwiches, a full delicatessen, the cheapest gasoline in the area and their own brand of mixed nuts that is da bomb! My local readers just started nodding their heads when they saw that Wawa was number 2.

(3) The bicycle. When I dislocated my elbow in 1989, my softball career was just about over and I needed something besides the gym to occupy my athletic time and have some sort of competitive angle as well. I already had a bike that I was semi-serious about and the injury made me more serious. Alone, it's an effective fitness tool and gives me some time to block a lot of junk out of my mind. In a group, it's all of those things and a minor social event, too. Without it, I think I'd weigh about 250 and be headed for Heartattack Village. I've made some good friends, too, which is immeasurable.

On a side note: As for Sunday, I really didn't mind beating myself up so much on the trails. I was more angry with myself for falling a few times, but I don't have the skill to do anything else but fall. I really don't mind a little muscle soreness or stiffness. As long as nothing broke, I'm better for it.

(4) The newspaper. When I was a kid, the newspaper was always waiting for me when I got home from school. It was an evening paper world, then. After dinner was a time to relax and read the paper. Now, evenings are filled with kids' soccer games, the Internet and TV. The newspaper comes in the morning now, and if I don't have it on my doorstep before I leave for work, I have to stop and buy one. Damned influential childhood.

(5) Cereal. Snack time, anytime. One of the world's perfect foods. It comes in so many flavors I never get tired of eating it. You can get it with fruit in it, sugar on it or so plain that you'd think it was actual road gravel. If I'm ever washed up on an island and I get a FedEx package with a soccer ball inside, I'm hoping a case of Oat Cluster Cheerios Crunch and some soy milk come up, too. Me and Voit can share a bowl. His name was Voit, right?

(6) NyQuil. If I'm feeling a little sniffly and I think there's a head cold in my future, I'll spend my last five dollars for this junk. I take it about 2 hours before I want to be unconscious and I'm out until the next morning. I think it's Gatorade and lighter fluid in a blue and red flavor.

(7) My readers. Seriously, what's the point of doing this if nobody is reading it? You might not know it, but you're riding along on my Internet-based psychotherapy clinic. I don't think I'd bother if I went to the Statcounter and saw a bunch of zeroes or a lot of stupid Google searches.