December 26th is National Whiners Day, and it's not an excuse to moan about what we didn't get for Christmas or complain about a relative that got on our nerves over the weekend.  Instead, there's one simple thing we can do to observe this important day.

Be thankful!  It's been around since 1986, and the creator of National Whiners Day intended for it to be a way to appreciate what we have.

National Day Calendar says we're all allowed to vent today about going back to work, fighting more mall crowds, or catching a roaring case of the flu from a germ-carrying relative at a Christmas celebration.  It's allowed, and it's all in the name of National Whiners Day.  #NationalWhinersDay on social media.

But this is also an opportunity to realize that other people have their own sets of problems--probably worse than ours--and we should all be grateful for the things we do have.  National Whiners Day is supposed to make us realize that whining can be trivial and silly, and overall life is pretty good.  (Especially if you got the new iPhone X or a monster 4K flat screen TV for Christmas.  Nothing to whine about there.)

So, after whining a little bit and getting it all out, what are you grateful for in East Texas this year?  I would say the way we all chipped in to help neighbors after Hurricane Harvey, the Lufkin All-Stars big win in the Little League World Series, and the Lufkin Panthers playoff run.  Those are all proud moments.  And then there's the ever-present smokey barbecue smell from all of our great restaurants, and the good craft breweries. We really don't have that much to whine about.

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