It’s been an emotional few days, huh?

In the wake of the Newtown tragedy, I can’t decide if it feels trite to put on a peppy, thankful face (let’s be honest, my “thankful things” are hardly deep thoughts and are usually simple, silly things), or if that’s exactly what I should be doing right now. But as I wrote the other day, it seems like there’s a fine line between right and wrong in this situation, and I’m leaning more toward the “Be Thankful, Feel Better, If Only Temporarily” side of the emotional spectrum.

So if you’re up for joining me, here are a few of the things I’m feeling grateful for today on Thankful Things Thursday.

I’m thankful for the safety and well-being of my friends and family members. That’s obvious. When I heard about what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary School, one of my first thoughts was, “I want to go hug Tyler.”

I’m not a parent, of course, so I don’t feel the same emotions many of you with children must be feeling. But having a nephew gives me perhaps a tiny glimpse of what that may be like and I want to protect him at all times. I hate being a few hours away from my little guy, and I can’t wait to see my whole family in a few days. Be prepared for hugs, Fellers. They’re coming.

I’m thankful that, amidst the sadness of the past week, there have been little moments of laughter and glimmers of happiness. I hope nothing I’m writing is in any way downplaying what happened in Newtown. I’m having a hard time writing about it I think because I’m worried about what to say and I don’t want to offend anyone. But after watching the news nonstop all weekend, Brian and I took a bit of time Sunday night to turn it off, unwind a little and make ourselves laugh.

This worked:

It felt good to do something stupid and just stop crying for a little while.

I’m thankful all the “I Heart Sweat” shirts you ordered are out of the apartment. Brian and I spent hours folding, labeling, printing, stamping and stuffing those things.

This is the project that always tests our relationship nicely. We start out thinking, “This will be fun! Let’s make hot chocolate while we do this!” And then, inevitably, I start getting frustrated trying to make piles that tip over, without fail, every time. And then I get cranky, and Brian stops talking to me, and then we spend the next few hours in silence, breaking the quiet only to complain about the postage scale not working or the printer needing new ink. It’s a really great task to get us in the holiday spirit.

I’m glad the bulk of them are gone — we do still have plenty left, though! — and I can say with conviction that I will never do this project again. Seriously. It’s so much work and it gets to be really stressful. So if you want a shirt, or think you might ever want one in your lifetime, or maybe your future grandchild will be a proponent of sweat, I suggest you get your hands on a shirt now. Because then that’s it.

I’m thankful for Brian’s help with the shirts. Just had to have that out there in public in case he’s reading this and still pondering ending our love life over the Sunday night shirt debacle.

I’m thankful my holiday shopping is done.

I’m thankful my gift wrapping is done. It’s shamefully sloppy, but it’s done. The only things left to wrap are the presents I got for Brian that I hid in our apartment and have since forgotten where I hid them. So that’s a problem.

I’m thankful for cupcake deliveries at work. I’m lucky to do business with some really wonderful, generous people who know the exact way to my heart, hips and thighs.

I’m thankful De La Vega hit up my neighborhood just when I needed him. I love when he gets his chalky hands on the Upper East Side.

I’m thankful for New York City during the holidays. It’s a pretty magical place to be. Almost other-worldly. I love going to The Shops at Columbus Circle and standing there in awe, year after year, watching the snowflakes dance to the music and change color.

Best of all, last night I took in my favorite holiday tradition: a trip to Lincoln Center, my favorite place in the world…

…for an evening showing of New York City Ballet’s production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker. It’s my favorite. I dressed the part with a big bun and lots of sparkles, hoping I’d finally get my shot onstage…

…but Dewdrop, the Sugar Plum Fairy and Marie all made it safely into the spotlight. No need for Ali backup. Such a letdown. The show, as always, was amazing, and I took Brian with me and he liked “the part where it snowed.” So I guess he’s a fan, too.

And then, before we left, Brian waited patiently while I did grande jetes around the fountain.

I’m thankful my office is closed next week. Instead of a holiday party, my company gave us the week off between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Fair trade? Um, yes. The week off has meant that this week has been off-the-charts crazy busy, but the hard work is worth it. Thanks, job!

I’m thankful for my ability to run. Slowly. I ran today and I didn’t enjoy it. That’s because my stomach was all shaken up and I had to make multiple stops. Nothing Crohnsy or worth a worry, just a messy stomach. And I just didn’t feel like being out there. The cold didn’t bother me. It was more the fact that I had so much fun not running last week, and now running seems to have lost a little bit of its luster for me. I’m thinking I might need some more time off from it. We’ll see. I’m chill about it. You know. Chill Ali. She’s the coolest.

But I had a point: I may not be OMG in love with running right now, but I’m glad I can physically get out there if I do want to. That wasn’t the case for so much of this year. I feel lucky my health has been cooperative for these past few months.

I’m thankful for swear words. Yeah, I know. Classy. But I wish swearing wasn’t so…whatever. I think swear words can be very effective. And I know swearing isn’t polite or ladylike, and sometimes I sound downright crass. I’ve heard people say (you are judgers, all of you) that you shouldn’t need to swear. “Use your words,” they’ll say. Well guess what? Sometimes those four-lettered gems are my words. Deal with it. My vocabulary may be limited, but when someone shoves me on the sidewalk or elbows her way onto the subway, squishing me up against Mr. “Haven’t Showered In A Week,” I like to think I have plenty of verbal ways to express how I’m feeling.

And for the record, I was not allowed to swear when I was growing up. Maybe that’s why I like it so much now. My parents wouldn’t even let me say “shut up.” And for my 21st birthday, my parents granted me permission to finally say “fart.” Instead of “toot.” We used to have to say “toot.”

Let me end this on a much nicer, gentler note…

I’m thankful for the good in people. The #26Acts project is so cool and I’ve really been inspired following along on Twitter. I can’t say I’ve hit 26 good deeds yet, but I’m trying.

Yesterday I got an email from a wonderful girl named Erin who told me about The Snowflake Project. Erin grew up near Newtown and is trying to spread the word about a very sweet initiative. So I thought I’d share in case you want to get involved:

A building has been designated (Chalk Hill Middle School) for the children of Sandy Hook Elementary. They are in the process of transporting desks, chairs, supplies and so forth to this location. The Newtown PTA wants to make the children comforted upon their return to school. Please join us in the “Snowflake Project.”

We are asking students to make and decorate a snowflake. They will be hung in the hallways of their new school. Please no words. We want just a cheerful, happy (glitter & sparkles) environment for the students when entering their new building.

When sending your snowflakes, please include a note to tell us where they are from (school, class, town, state) to display along with your snowflakes. Please send to the CT PTSA in Hamden, CT.

Great, right? I love it.

That’s all I’ve got, kids.

I’M SURE YOU HAVE MORE: What are you thankful for today? Friends? Family? Fart words?

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