The Anxious Dragon has issued a real challenge: for the #happydiaries blog linky about something happy. Not bittersweet, not poignant or wistful but unashamedly happy.
Even the most casual of readers will know this is not a blog brimming with uncomplicated joy.
Even this lengthy preamble risks dragging things away from the light and into the…uh…not light.
Enough! Let’s get to the joy!
Happy things: An unasked for but deeply appreciated career pep talk during the Christmas do.
The shared amusement of finding really, really odd choices of songs on the karaoke machine (Closer by Nine Inch Nails! Odd album tracks from Slipknot and Rammstein!). That and more Metallica then you can imagine including the really long mainly instrumental tracks. MASTER! MASTER!
Finally having the courage to grab the mic at said work do and absolutely nail Your Love Alone (Is Not Enough).
All the parts including the Nicky Wire bit *drops mic*. La la la la la la la la
Shared laughter over the really weird unofficial videos that accompanied some of the karaoke tracks. The video for Cecilia was a borderline soft porn sequence of a very 80s woman writhing in simulated seduction for the camera interspersed with random shots of a stately home where you can clearly see a baffled tourist in shorts, socks and sandles quizically peering at the camera.
Later on we will see him talking to a member of staff and pointing before both walk towards the camera as it hurriedly cuts away.
Further amusement was provided with the swinging cheese fest Wake Me Up (Before You Go Go) sound tracking long sequences of some very grumpy looking elderly tourists sitting on a wet bench in a damp seaside town.
The sheer joy of this track and associated unashamed air guitar.
The simple joy of ironing a work shirt whilst listening to this delightful ear worm:
My joy doubled beyond measure in finding that some kind soul has taken the time to work out the chords and post a video of how to play it.
Being left to my own devices and rather than going to a screen to watch or play something, picking up my long neglected guitar, plugging in and just playing as much as I could remember for two solid hours.
Decorating the Christmas tree together with my wife using a box of old family ornaments.
Finding this delightful little beast:
I can’t really top that. No, wait!
Perfect.
Hearing my children repeat ‘Perfect’ even when they are dismantling all the good work. Having my eldest trot off to the playroom to fetch her play dough scissors so she could help cut the Christmas tree netting.
When entering a competition asking ‘what type of food would you be’ being reminded of and finding this old gem:
Also the answer to ‘what is the circumference of a moose?’.
That’s a pretty solid list of joy.
Thanks Anxious Dragon!
Shoebox of Memories 
That is an impressive list of things to be joyful about. Kareoke should be prescribed on the NHS as a treatment for sadness, its prefect for making people (me) smile. Thank you for sharing, and I hope to read more happiness post from you next year, Tracey xx #happydiaries
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Thanks for reading, it’s all thanks to you! It helps to have something to break up the relentless grinding gloom of my usual material.
As for karaoke, I blame River for that! He’s a troubled detective and there’s a lovely bit in one of the episodes where you think he’s going to a seedy strip joint but then it cuts to him in a karaoke booth belting out hits on his own. It’s a beautiful moment!
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