Things To Be Happy About

A stream-of-consciousness list

• pajamas at breakfast
• seeing the moonrise
• the feel of rug under bare feet
• the "snuggle right in" feeling
• a lake catching the last flecks of sunlight coming in over the trees
• the position of your head as you bite into a taco
• shadows cast by shutters against shiny white walls
• starting to make things happen
• headphones
• brand-new notebooks
• a rich spiced chocolate drink
• red-carpet treatment
• toddler's vocabulary
• the cinema
• eight hours of sleep
• doing your own thing
• dinner with laughter
• knowing there will be many surprises in the future
• wall storage system
• cloudy days and sunny thoughts
• working better in dull weather
• food gifts
• ghost stories and marshmallow
• working on a project
• watching others play
• eating all your popcorn before the movie starts
• getting carried away
• feeling heady with optimism and warmth
• secrets love notes and candy hearts hidden all over
• cheering influence
• spending the morning in bed, watching old movies, collaborating on the crossword puzzle, making popcorn, napping, exchanging long stories of childhood, ordering in pizza, and just being lazy
• wide pants
• seeing happy parents
• the best information
• rememebering when life move at a more leisurely pace
• "Never mind!"
• whispering
• taking a short stroll before deciding on a new shoes
• crisp cotton dresses
• chilled orange juice
• taking a walk when the world is too much
• bold, exciting looks
• numerology
• simple, satisfying tasks like sharpening pencils or straitening the clutter on your desk
• sending your spirit soaring
• running down a beach
• sunrise at 5am
• men's ties
• dentists who expect you to carry on a conversation with a mouthful of water and their fingers in your mouth
• looking back on the past with as much pleasure as you get from looking forward to the future
• people knowing where they stand with you
• exploring, taking chances, being adventurous and spontaneous
• ballroom dancing
• a silly bubble of anticipation
• carrying cups of chocolate out to the porch to enjoy the morning sunshine
• easeful days, dreamless night
• washing the car
• feeling witty, confident, devastatingly feminine
• antique or childhood books
• butter of the peanut
• love light
• the reverberation of a school bell
• a wish box
• sexy music
• boxed cake
• paying attention to how different kinds of music affect you
• any refund
• long phone calls
• Jollibee's hot chocolate sundaes
• near-perfect weather
• S.W.A.K.B.A.L.W.S. = sealed with a kiss because a lick won't stick
• reaching for the sky
• stationary embossers
• teatime meringue, sweet and lightweight
• an all-night vigil of pleasure
• apartments
• beachfronts vacations
• challenging yourself to a jigsaw puzzle or electronic game
• crazy kids
• a bookcase end table
• being as cute as a bug
• Elmer's Glue All
• the kind of chocolate that automatically suggests a glass of milk
• origins of the words
• street musicians
• the rhythms of speech, the blend of deep and shrill voices, the medley of laughs
• when friends drop in
• feeling like a child who thinks she's mastered the art of shoe-tying
• sleeping with a jacket over you
• the soft feel of cotton sheets
• having your luck suddenly change for the better
• raiding the refrigerator
• the corner of the bed that's impossible to reach when putting on new sheets
• writing your memoirs
• brilliance
• things that fortify the spirit
• bringing the sense of adventure to a children's party
• friendship
• going where there's still room
• the greatest truths being the simplest
• Goldilocks
• nasturtium = splendor
• wallpaper decorated with roses
• celebrating the imperfections of your relationship
• mammoth dictionaries
• rumpusing around on rainy days
• juicy hamburgers
• tangy scents of wax and varnish
• wanting to gain some perspective on your life, finding answers to unsolved dilemnas, and contemplating future directions
• the panic button
• looking irresistible
• chocolate pound cake
• the coolest/hottest/wildest colors
• floats and fireworks
• food that means love
• Worcestershire sauce
• workworkworkwork
• not getting lost in a new town
• sitting down and reading all your old love letters
• watching people eat corn chips
• a Technicolor sunset
• afternoons
• cathedrals
• extra rest
• getting the guts to go jogging
• laughing at yourself
• someone laughing
• a wish for adventure
• having lots of candles burning
• saying yes
• stargazing
• the indentation on the side of a dictionary
• sheer sleeves in the glow of the candlelight
• the contemplating claims of nature
• dramatic shadows of the stooping sun
• the glow of the potbellied stove
• stealing a few minutes to watch the clouds drift by your window and the leaves wafting in the breeze
• the marvelous lighting effect created by skies, sun, clouds and moon
• evergreens
• used bikes
• heartwarming when friends meet
• everything
• chocolate aromas
• small dinner parties
• church bells chiming as a millstream gurgles
• different card games
• rainstorms
• whirlpools
• making your house look welcoming on the outside
• writing a letter to the editor
• doing everything with flair and sense of fantasy
• going to sleep with a line through every item on the things-to-do list
• secret passages
• learning to play a musical instrument
• volunteers
• soft music
• time to open the windows and let the street sounds mingle with our own
• sand, soft underfoot
• sunscreen
• singing to your favorite music
• finally getting your hair cut
• "No problem!"
• avoiding people who make you feel guilty
• frolicking
• puppy love
• supper dances
• stretching out on the floor with games and puzzles
• experience
• Gothic lettering
• getting silly on two glasses of wine
• carousels with music
• horoscopes
• seeing red
• a three-year old's imagination
• counting your change
• giving thank to what we have
• having a picnic on the living room floor
• eating Oreo cookies and then looking at your teeth
• strawberry champagne
• learning a new dance
• learning to say no
• "I can't give you anything but love, baby"
• tucking something special, like a little note, into a lunch box, briefcase, pocket, or purse
• the hand movement of the hula
• keeping busy at your highest natural level
• being cool
• childhoods
• the smell of the sea
• doing something that will put a smile on your face
• collapsing in bed and cuddling
• cold hands
• birthday banners
• remembering when kids used to want to be President
• kindliness
• large scrapbooks
• chocolate milkshakes
• conversing in many language and accents
• dining by the window
• wearing real jewelry
• finding each other being only the beginning
• springing along a sidewalk
• an overnight at a night hotel in the city
• crocheting
• the crowing of a rooster
• goodnights
• the rip-p-p of a zipper
• Morse code
• being told you're dazzling
• curling up
• visiting the playground that hold special meaning
• hot-air balloons
• living each day for itself
• breathing deeply
• when anyone can look at the two of you and tell you are head-over-heels in love
• the real importances: the fundamentals with which you have to live
• Kodak photo supplies
• the little things in life that clearly make your day go right
• life after 60
• the essence of humor
• the promise of small package
• the times when you feel you're the only two people in the world
• electric typewriter
• life moving in mysterious ways
• buffet table setting
• thinking happy summer thoughts
• tying shirts up high
• white sand
• genealogy charts
• making your won quotation book
• hanging in there
• attending a concert after work
• sale racks
• lemon to keep vegetables fro turning brown
• something to keep you out of unproductive doldrums
• summertime
• being camera-shy
• showing a child how much fun life can be
• congratulatory notes
• isosceles trapezoid
• mood lighting
• moonlit dances
• acting goofy
• tip sheets
• perpetuation
• copperware
• experiencing the thrill and sweat of locker room
• turquoise = success, prosperity
• nurturing creativity
• good broth
• corned beef spiced with ginger
• cloud-high trees
• throat-parching days
• curling up in a ball
• the feeling of satin
• first buds
• poster-bright colors
• designing a calendar
• a summer screen house
• discovering your own quiet joy
• attempted feedings of children
• interludes
• little wool cap-hats
• the peal of an organ
• situation comedies
• pot roast/mashed potato meals
• a towel warmer in the bathroom
• cat basking in windowsill
• getting along well with others
• journalism
• plump floor cushions
• stuttering when nervous
• a whisper impossible to resist
• never dramatizing a difficulty
• roving photographers
• get-away-from-it-all-and-and-relax times
• having someone to come home to
• a wonderfully desolate beach in July
• at water's edge, empty shells that whisper when summer waves turn them
• trying a new sleeping schedule
• buying something outrageous and then something practical to feel vindicated
• cozy rooms with pretty details
• repositioning the Christmas tree lights so no two of the same color are together
• 40-hanger coatracks
• go-getters
• a January night that engraves itself on the senses
• "Open" signs
• learning a new sport
• plain old bad habits
• platters of good things to eat
• soaking up some extra memories
• dozing
• travelling by bicycle
• wearing white cotton
• chasing evil spirits
• one-person kayak for rent
• teaching one another
• graduation
• learning to like yourself better
• naming your baby
• liberating your husband from a traditional male task now and then and watching the benefits that come your way
• baby shoes
• kick lines
• children racing headlong into the water, joy splashing up around them
• receptions
• sack races
• kid gloves
• medics' scrub pants or dresses
• the trumpet of train passing
• riding a bicycle long distances
• TV dinners
• solving problems
• never forgetting the creation of special moment
• the best things said coming last
• sweatbands
• when the worst does not happen
• cheeks all aglow with the outdoors
• breaking out of an old routine
• cheap thrills and satisfying extravagances
• free books
• hieroglyphics
• soft, cushy leather
• dogs leaning against your legs
• usherettes
• iridescence
• quill pens
• trimming your own hair
• spine-tingling view
• using a pumice stone
• white lies
• flimflam = nonsense
• the ability of parents to guide their small children around by the tops of their heads
• homographs
• waling around a swimming pool
• getting warm in his arms with something to eat or drink after you've been in the rain
• yellow and red roses for Valentine's Day
• "hunky dory"
• balloonmen
• collections from everyday life
• making colored chalk drawing on the sidewalk
• columnists
• half-baked people
• lemon chicken, buttered peas, and stuffed tomatoes
• long socks
• hot chocolate sauce of deep, cocoa-like strength
• penicillin
• candlelight and wine
• dining out
• containers
• those who are up and outdoors while the day is young and damp with dew
• being apologetic
• book clubs
• cooking a quick company dinner
• suppertime
• beating the heat
• our lives being what our thoughts make them
• listening to a child
• very colorful and cleverly lit oil paintings and watercolors
• working too hard and getting paid for it
• aerobatics
• proudly wearing a wedding band
• garage sale antiques
• inspiring yourself by self-encouragement
• dishwasher detergent
• kite flying contests
• letters from close friends in far places
• mattresses
• not resisting truth and beauty
• sitting in a rocker, listening to the silence and reflecting
• untangling something
• touching toes in bed
• vaudeville
• investing your money
• the smell of bathroom soap
• saying "Nice Doggie"
• antique irons, cameras, radios
• leather hiking boots
• buying a bunch of anything that is useful and nuce
• reading a lot of strange books
• snacks after a movie
• plaid cotton flannel
• an adventure such as a hike, ice skating, or a football game
• Aladdin and his Wonderful Lamp
• children singing