Things That Make Me Feel Good

Yesterday I borrowed an idea from Serina Hope and took the opportunity to vent a little curmudgeonly spleen about things that get on my nerves. I've found that as I get older, there are more and more things that irritate me, and each year I suffer fools less gladly. But on the other hand, I tend to be a generally positive and upbeat sort of person and so, in the interest of balancing things out, here is the list of things that never fail to make me feel good:

1. A smile on the face of a baby.

2. Being mobbed by my grandchildren.

3. Beautiful sunrises and sunsets.

4. The smell of baking bread.

5. Eating a dinner I cooked myself, using herbs grown in my own garden.

6. The adoration of our granddog (see the photo in my profile).

7. Mountain vistas (you can find some glorious photos at Jill's blog Up in Alaska, which documents her cycling adventures across our northern frontier. Ansel Adams is one of my heroes, too.).

8. Walking in the woods, or along a shore, especially at dawn or dusk.

9. Reading (out on the deck in the spring and fall, in the shade in the summer, and in my easy chair in front of the fire in winter. Or in bed before drifting off to sleep. Or on the Metro on the way to and from work. Or at the table. Or while in the bathroom. Or...well, you get the idea.).

10. Listening to music.

11. Gardening (yanking out those weeds is a great way to get rid of excess aggression and energy!).

12. Waking up in the morning next to Agnes (she's warm, she smells good, and I love her. How much more could I want?).

13. Dancing a waltz with a beautiful lady.

14. Blogging, and reading the comments my random thoughts bring out from others (trading electrons is no substitute for good old face-to-face human interaction...but then, I'd probably never have met anyone from Palembang, Indonesia otherwise - right, Amanda?).

15. Cruise vacations (we've done the inside passage of Alaska and the Eastern Caribbean so far. As soon as I win the lottery, we'll do all the rest!).

Well, this didn't quite turn out to be a top-ten list...which, I guess, goes to show that there are more things that make me feel good than things that grind my gears. On the whole, I suppose that's a good thing.

And it's always a good thing, at a time when we're surrounded by news of disaster, war, hatred, intolerance, and bigotry, to think about the things which make life worth living. Think of it as a way to recharge your battery of life.

Have a good day. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo