identify 100 things that make me happy (besides money)

65. My ex-husband’s beer belly – I know this sounds a little on the petty and childish side, but he was always so proud of his fast metabolism and so critical of my weight. I guess it all finally caught up with him!

66. Real Mexican food – Taco Bell may have its good points, but there is nothing like real authentic Mexican food, especially chilaquiles. Yummy!

67. Improv comedy – The people that do this are so clever and funny. Love Whose Line is it Anyway, both the US and UK version. Tony Slattery is da bomb!

68. Poetry – Reading poetry is one of my great passions. I’ve dabbled in writing it myself for years. It’s hard for me to name a favorite poet, there are so many good ones. But here is my favorite poem ever.

When You are Old by William Butler Yeats

WHEN you are old and gray and full of sleep
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true;
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face.

And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead,
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

69. Thunderstorms – Lightning flashes and thunder echoes across the sky. Mother Nature sure has a spectacular way of showing us who’s in charge. Sometimes it’s nice to feel small and insignificant.

54. Online friends – it’s always nice logging in and finding a comment from one of my online friends, or seeing a familiar name in chat and being greeted with virtual hugs and kisses. Sometimes its hard with the varied schedules and family obligations to keep in contact as much as I’d like with my offline friends, and even harder to find the opportunity to make new friends offline. But being part of this online world has certainly broadened my horizons, and I can say that I care for my online friends just as much as I do my offline ones.

55. Yahoo voice trivia – I love playing trivia games. I do play Trivial Pursuit and those sorts of games with my family and friends, but sometimes our schedules just don’t mesh. Besides, they don’t like it when I win. LOL

56. Weddings – To be more specific, I like to plan weddings. Maybe it’s a control-freak thing, but I like being in charge of everything, and I like to find creative ways to pull the whole thing off without breaking the budget too much. Which I guess makes it a good thing that I’m the one the family always turns to for help in planning the next wedding/birthday party/family reunion.

57. Auctions – I grew up going to auctions with my parents and grandmother on a weekly basis. Here in Illinois we’re about to enter Community Sale season, which for those of you not familiar with the idea, is basically a townwide auction. Everybody will bring their unwanted stuff downtown and line the streets, and then it is auctioned off to whomever wants it. It’s definitely a unique experience, that’s for sure. Definitely a place for bargain hunters.

58. Learning a new skill – Even being out of school as long as I have, I enjoy learning to do something new, it makes me feel self-reliant (or maybe it’s that control freak thing again…)

59. Splashing in puddles after a rainstorm – Although I must say, it does make the neighbors look at me like I’m crazy.

60. Yahoo answers – Finally, a practical use for all the useless junk filling my head!

61. Fox News Channel – I like their balanced approach to the issues, and I’m a huge O’Reilly fan.

62. The Chicken Dance – Ok, the thing about the chicken dance is that no matter what level of dancing ability you have, you accept the fact right away that if you are over ten years old and doing the chicken dance, you will look like a dork. Which keeps us from taking ourselves too seriously. So c’mon and dance with me!

63. Watching snow fall – It’s just sooo pretty.

64. Winnie the Pooh – silly old bear. Very comforting image, no matter how old you are.

It’s been so long since I’ve worked on this list. I do want to try to finish this, because I think it’s a worthwhile task. I’m going to take some time first to review what I’ve already come up with, and then push on toward the finish!

It’s been a while since I’ve updated this one, but life has sort of went haywire in the last few months. I’ve very recently separated from my husband, and it’s been quite an adjustment. I certainly have some issues that I’m going to have to work through, and this list will certainly provide some inspiration in getting my life back on track.

43. Hearing a song I haven’t heard in ages on the radio.

44. Men who wear aftershave or cologne. I especially love Polo and Drakkar Noir.

45. The way the air smells outside after it rains.

46. Cooking. I’m an awesome cook. I don’t really specialize in grilling or baking or any ethnic cooking; my specialty is holiday cooking, especially from Thanksgiving through New Year’s.

47. Looking for shapes in the clouds. Unfortunately, everything I find looks like an alligator or a dog.

48. Friendly motorists. Especially when I’m broke down along side the road with a dead cell phone.

49. My doctors. I’ve been blessed to find a very talented family doctor and OB-GYN, both of whom are more concerned with the health of their patients than the state of your bill. They have both been incredibly patient in dealing with my concerns and are never patronizing.

50. My intellect. I’m a fountain of useless information and trivia. School was always a piece of cake for me. Maybe someday I’ll actually get to continue it.

51. My creativity. I’ve discovered I’m good at many creative endeavors, from writing to crafts to interior decorating. It’s provided an outlet for me, given me a way to brighten other people’s days, and saved me money.

52. Being a smart ass. I enjoy being quick-witted, and I love to make people laugh. I do make an effort to try not to be mean about it though.

53. Hearing my 4 year old use a word I didn’t know was in her vocabulary. The most recent ones I’ve notice have been “obviously”, “prefer”, “actually”, and “possibility”; and she’s even used them correctly. I guess that’s the good thing about reading to her daily!

34. Dependable cars. I’ve had more than my share of clunkers (including my current Intrepid piece of !#$@). There’s great satisfaction in driving somewhere and not having to worry about getting stuck beside the road.

35. Scrunchies. They have to be the absolute best hair invention next to the hairbrush. I can just pull my hair back, pop in a scrunchie, and I’m good to go. I could not imagine going back to those torturous rubber bands.

36. Family reunion in West Virginia. Every year my grandfather’s side of the family has a big reunion in West Virginia that I love going to when I’m able. It’s in a park in this little town with mountains on every side, just an absolutely gorgeous place. And even though I don’t see these people on a very regular basis, I’m welcomed with open arms as soon as I arrive. We have a potluck dinner, door prizes, then my great-aunt and great-uncle’s bluegrass gospel quartet gets up to perform. They are only two of my grandfather’s siblings left, and they both are in their seventies. I’m not sure how well the reunion will continue after they’re gone, but I sure hope it does.

37. Talk radio. I have learned so much listening to talk radio. I know it gets a bad rap these days, but it really has influenced my political views. My current station of choice is WLS in Chicago.

38. Cruising on Route 66. I was lucky enough to live in a Route 66 town for 6 years, and I drove on 66 almost every day. I’ve been able to follow the Mother Road from Joliet to St. Louis a few times and would love to actually make the whole trip out to California. The best parts about being that close to the road is seeing all the antique cars that are making the trek.

39. Goodnight kisses. These are the sweetest kisses in the whole world!

40. Dr. Suess. As the mother of a young child, I have renewed my long-forgotten relationship with the good Doctor. “Green Eggs and Ham” is almost committed to memory at this point, but it still makes me smile.

41. Lake Shelbyville. Lake Shelbyville is a lake created by the Army Corps of Engineers in central Illinois. It is one of my favorite places to go camping. Last summer we went to Wolf Creek State Park, where the scenery was beautiful and the amount of wildlife was amazing. I have never been so close to so many deer in my life. We even had one that tried to charge at my husband’s motorcycle, and there were several that came right through camp. There’s lots to do – boating, swimming, and the fishing is amazing! I would recommend a trip to Lake Shelbyville to anyone who loves the outdoors.

42. Martha Stewart. All her legal troubles aside, Martha remains an inspiration and one of my personal heroes. She’s a successful business woman, and she can make a perfect soufflé. Is there anything Martha can’t do? I personally can’t wait for her version of the Apprentice and for her new daily talk show.

26. Ice cold Coca-Cola on a hot summer afternoon. Or first thing in the morning. Or while driving. Heck, anytime works for me. If there is a more perfect beverage in the world, I haven’t found it.

27. Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes. Watching the chase for the Triple Crown is something of a tradition in my family. My mother has watched these three horse races every year for as long as I can remember, and now I watch with my little girl. I don’t particularly follow horse racing the rest of the year, but these three races always catch my interest. Someday I’ll have to go see them in person!

28. Tycoon computer games. I love playing these simulation games. I find some of them rather challenging (like Monopoly Tycoon) and all of them rather enjoyable (especially Roller Coaster Tycoon).

29. Nick at Nite. I remember when it first started and they were playing shows my parents grew up watching, and now it’s all shows that ran when I was in high school. Sometimes it makes me feel a bit old, but the shows are still entertaining (and much better than most of the crap that passes for sitcoms these days!)

30. The “hot” light at Krispy Kreme Donuts. Man, there’s always something good in store when that light comes on. I love getting original glazed still warm from the assembly line. If only I didn’t have to drive 40 miles to the nearest store!

31. Clean bedding dried on a clothesline. The smell and feel of sheets that have been waving in the breeze all afternoon is something you just can’t duplicate in a dryer.

32. Pick-your-own strawberry patches. Fresh strawberries just can’t be beat. And the best part is they can’t charge you for the ones you eat while you’re picking!

33. Family photo albums. It’s nice to remember good times spent with loved ones, and sometimes it’s downright funny to see how much we’ve all changed.

I guess that’s been a common problem lately, huh? I sure am glad I saved a file with these on my computer. OK, here are number 1-19.

1. My daughter. She’s a bright, quirky 4 year old who is quite literally the sunshine of my life. She reminds me that every day is an adventure just waiting to be lived.

2. My family. Yeah, sometimes they take me for granted, hurt my feelings, and make me want to tear my hair out. But when the really big catastrophes of life strike, they are my first-responders, cheering me on in their own dysfunctional way.

3. My hair. I was blessed with great hair. It’s thick, healthy, and supermodel sexy. I wouldn’t cut if off if ya paid me to!

4. Homegrown tomatoes sliced thick and piled high on multi-grain bread with lots of mayo. Yum! (Man, I’m making myself hungry.)

5. Car karaoke. There’s nothing better than cranking the radio and singing at the top of my lungs when I’m alone in the car. I can belt out a mean “Redneck Woman” when the urge strikes me.

6. Harry Potter. Is it bizarre for a 33 year old woman to like a series of children’s books so much? They are so well-written, I just can’t get enough.

7. My cats, Boo, Puffy, and Frosty. They are always good for a snuggle whenever I need them.

8. Museums. I’m just like a big sponge soaking up everything when I visit one. Some of my favorites are the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, the St. Louis Art Museum (I actually cried when I saw the Monet), and the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History. Next on the agenda – the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

9. Eighties music. I’m a child of the eighties, so I guess this one was a given. But the music back then was so fun. It’s hard not to smile when you’re listening to Oingo Boingo, Falco, and Til Tuesday, not to mention Wham, Duran Duran, and Madonna before she started taking herself so seriously.

10. Movies that make me cry. Not like it’s so hard to make me cry at a movie. I even cried at the end of the Spongebob movie when he finally made manager. LOL. My favorite crying movie is Steel Magnolias. I’ve seen Shelby kick the bucket dozens of times, and yet I still have to keep a box of tissues handy. I always feel better afterward though, so it’s worth it.

11. Walking barefoot in the grass. I love wiggling my toes in the breeze. Just nobody tell my podiatrist.

12. Writing. I got away from it for a very long time, but now I hear it calling me again. I’ve always done most of my writing when I’ve been unhappy, so most of what I’ve written has been depressing as hell. I’m trying to change that by using this happy list as a part of my writing practice. We’ll see if it works.

13. The smell of fresh-cut grass. Ah, the surefire sign that spring has returned. It makes me feel like a kid again.

14. Christmas. I love everything about it, putting up the tree, decorating the house, shopping, wrapping presents, the music, the food, the time spent with loved ones, even the snow. I tend to get a little overboard with it, but that’s most of the fun. In all seriousness, I really want to create great holiday traditions for my daughter that one day she’ll share with her own children.

15. Swimming. I’ve always had a weight problem and hated exercise, but the water seems to be to eliminate that factor. There’s a certain delirious joy in smoothly cutting through the water doing laps.

16. My couch. It’s overstuffed black vinyl. Sure, it’s far from brand-new—our old neighbor gave it to us when he moved. But when you sit on it, it embraces you like a hug from your grandma. I’ve never been so comfortable in all my life.

17. Cartoons. Yes, I am an overgrown child. I like Spongebob, Scooby Doo, Simpsons, and Jimmy Neutron, just to name a few.

18. Old Victorian houses. I like the formal feeling of these old houses, the sense of history, and the gorgeous color schemes on the outside. Man, I gotta get me one of them again.

19. Breakfast. Eggs, sausage, pancakes, bacon, French toast, muffins…man, it’s all good. Breakfast for supper is even better. Breakfast at Denny’s or IHOP at 2AM makes me do a little happy dance.

20. Cool spring nights. Absolutely perfect sleeping weather, and clear skies means great stargazing weather. An added bonus is no mosquitoes!

21. 43 Things. Having a place to organize goals is such a blessing. The sense of community and the encouragement we get from each other is so helpful. I like knowing I’m not all alone in my imperfection.

22. Hearing my daughter say “Please” and “Thank you” without any prompting. I know any parent can sympathize with the hard task of teaching manners to a small child. There is something so precious about hearing those “magic words” without having to ask for them!

23. Flirting. I may be married for almost eight years, but it’s still harmless fun to flirt when I get the chance. What a great self-esteem booster!

24. Duct tape. When I’ve got a roll of duct tape in the house, I feel like Ms. Fix-it. No more having to bug the husband to fix little things around the house. Duct tape can repair anything! And if in doubt, use more duct tape!

25. Garage sales. I love bargains, and there’s just no better place to find them. It’s a great way to meet people in the neighborhood too.

It’s great to belong. Everyone’s entries have been so great so far. I hope I can keep up to the high standards!