Sore QL, and purring ZZ

I woke in a tizzy. A sprouting pimple above my top lip was throbbing like a techno dance track. I felt like I woke in a strange place. My back hurts- still. 3 weeks of dull to sharp pain. (Not that I have stretched my bod enough...) & I'm rocking a wicked case of the blues. Or the blue-violets.
But my cat- Zenobia- affectionately nicknamed ZZ is by my side offering supportive cat love. Purring next to me.

Wait just a moment. My cat has something she wants to tell us.

Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
Relax.
Sit in a sunny spot and lounge.
Have a luxurious bath in the middle of the day- on the kitchen floor, if applicable.

Zenobia wants us to live in the moment.
She wants us to give love.
She wants us to enjoy what we have.

Which leads me to a related topic a'la last night- a list. A less snarky list.

A grateful list.
It's one way I rely on (sporadically- haha) to snap me out of the soul-stifling ego-ruling human condition I find myself wallowing in so often.

What I'm grateful for now:
Fletcher & Zenobia. These 2 sweet kitties are over 17 years in age, and have given me nothing but joy since I adopted them eons ago. They are the embodiment of selfless loving.
My employment. I work part-time at an art school in town where I teach clay arts and also am a studio potter. Sooo fun & the perfect creative outlet for me now. I also work part-time at a vegetarian restaurant where I meet lots of fun people and get to eat yummy food. Art and food- my two favorite things to make and enjoy and share!!!
Loved ones. People I have known for weeks. People I have known forever and a lifetime. People I love, and who love me. I can feel their presence when they lovingly think @ me- even if they are far far away. Now that's the good stuff! We are all here to give love and support one another. So many lessons to learn and teach each other.
My loved ones are my marrow, and my passions are my bones. 
My health. Touchy subject for this mega-Virgo! Let me state as a pre-ramble to the complaints- I am of sound body and mind. I walk all over town. Have all my digits. Use all 6 senses regularly, and am well equipped with intellectual faculties which I enjoy on a regular basis... That being said- As per mention of my sore QL (Quadratus Lumborum-) I could be feeling body-better. I want to be eating better on a regular basis. (Was raw-vegan for a jaunt. Amazing. I will do it again when I can.) Let's face it- I'd be healthier if I lost a few pounds. Yet the most focus goes to: my mental state. My mind plays tricks on me. I have been trying to remember to discern it's tomfoolery. Runaway thoughts lead to unruly emotions. Leading to the dreaded No-No Land. So I breathe through it; I breathe through the sore back thing. I breathe through the grocery/diet frustration. I breathe through the spinning wheels in my over-filled brain.
And come back to center.
List the moment's realities.
What am I doing? What are the physical sensations I am experiencing?
I am lying on my stomach in bed while I type this blog. I hear the passing cars outside, the quiet gurgling of my computer, an airplane overhead, zz bathing herself at the foot of my bed. I am hungry and thinking @ food. I breathe in. I breath out.
Do I want coffee or tea? Breathe in. Breathe out. I need to feed the kitties. Breathe in. Breathe out. Should I take a bath before I go out? Breathe in. Breathe out.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Breathe
In.
Breathe
Out.

Breathe.

I am grateful that I quit smoking for my birthday.
And I will
continue to
Breathe