llong

...somewhat similar to the first, so no great improvement in technique, but this one did come out better.

1. Chatting with people online at odd hours: Despite living far away, friends can reach out to each other.
2. The internet: I’ll never fail to appreciate it.
3. Swimming in the ocean on a hot summer day
4. Bob Ross’ TV show “the joy of painting”
5. Training in martial arts on Saturday
6. Reading outdoors in a place I can concentrate
7. Studying the weather and astronomy
8. Creating cogent and informative blogs
9. A relaxed and focused workout
10. Being told, throughout my life by people who know me well, that I have guts.
11. Noodling on my guitar when I’m anxious or sad
12. Seeing my daughter’s phone number and picture pop up on my cell phone when she calls
13. Learning the guitar part of a song I’ve loved for many years
14. Seeing the same wonderful people start their day early on my morning commute
15. Doing good work well
16. Having a diner 3 blocks from me where I know the staff and can sit wherever I want
17. Being able to hear, at an instant, any song I’d like
18. Bursts of insight that put myself into context
19. Helping a child more than they expect I would
20. Being asked, “How are you?” by someone who wants me to answer the question truthfully
21. 43things.com
22. Seeing the consequences of other people’s bad decisions and saying, “Well, I’m never going to do that!”
23. Cold weather
24. Finishing a great book
25. Having more books in my home than anyone I know.
26. Being able to differentiate the laughter of wit and the laughter of embarrassment
27. Warm and soft blankets
28. A nap after a very productive morning
29. Not having the intense need to be socially connected as I did when I was in my 20s.
30. Cleaning part of my apartment
31. Computers and software and internet connections that work properly
32. Being literate
33. Finding the reasons why every day of the week, every month of the year, every season, and every hour of the day is unique and wonderful
34. Relaxing every (non-cardiac) muscle
35. Being courageous enough to dabble in things I’ll never get good at.
36. Cold and abundant drinking water.
37. Never lacking great books to read
38. Seeing my good habits pay great dividends over the years
39. Learning the history of words
40. Sweating after meaningful hard work
41. Having Black Sabbath next to Bach on my playlists
42. Painting landscapes
43. Seeing people on Facebook that I’ve known since I was 10 (or earlier)
44. Seeing that my 15 cent, 11 year old goldfish (once Eddie, now Edward) is still alive and happy
45. Being able to see the underlying themes and motivations of other people’s actions and words
46. Accomplishing something, small or large
47. Living in Manhattan
48. Seeing a giant full moon (usually in February and October)
49. Having 4 hamsters that are energetic, healthy, and nocturnal.
50. Clouds
51. Giving something to a friend who only wished to borrow it
52. Being in the mind space to stop and look up and enjoy the sky
53. Having the wisdom both to grok younger folk and to know that I can’t grok the older folk.
54. Being totally convinced that in the long run thoughtfully applied effort can change the world.
55. Not needing cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, meat, fast food, soda, alarm clocks, or TV to be happy
56. Having enough insight to start conversations easily
57. Seeing clean clothes on Monday mornings
58. Seeing ostensibly human traits in animals
59. Most of the tenants of Buddhism
60. An irresistible fascination with seeing the inconsistencies in how I live and then righting them
61. An honest and non-defensive conversation among friends
62. Finding the precise noun and verb, which renders adjectives and adverbs unnecessary
63. Long and deep meditation sessions
64. Enjoying a book so much I take my time
65. Taking quick trips to the Met, the Natural History Museum, and the park 500 feet away
66. Having 5 or 6 people who I can call anytime and anywhere if I were in need.
67. Receiving a compliment and taking it well, and in context.
68. Having an insightful conversation with someone who I initially never thought could do so.
69. Being asked sincerely, “How can I help you?”
70. Those moments of complete and almost childlike focus on the task at hand.
71. Having someone steal my attention and then do something positive while they have it.
72. Rereading my to do lists from years ago
73. Old movies
74. Meeting upstanding men who know their beliefs and will defend them
75. Differentiating short term material happiness with more gritty yet pure Joy
76. Meeting classy and proper women
77. Lacking physical pain, discomfort, or disease
78. Surpassing one’s enemies and retaining compassion for them
79. Spending focused time learning on Wikipedia
80. Meeting an important deadline for a large project
81. Transcending the distinction between personal and professional
82. Being asked, “Can I make you something to eat?”
83. Having a close relationship with my daughter
84. Powerful summer storms
85. Meeting online friends and acquaintances
86. Spending several hours at the library, interspersed with healthy food breaks.
87. Getting lessons on a variety of subjects (drawing, painting, Japanese) from my daughter.
88. Taking a risk in ordering at a restaurant and being happily surprised
89. Being too busy doing things to stress about doing things
90. Being a man
91. Watching documentaries, biographies, or interviews on Youtube.
92. Seeing people happily work the same job for many years
93. Warm bread and rolls with butter
94. Early mornings. My window of sanity.
95. Those occasions where I feel abundant Joy and then can pass it on to others easily
96. Having fewer possessions that I did last year
97. Non-violent, non-scummy movies
98. Being in the present moment rather than lost in some past memory or future anxiety
99. Giving a smile to a stranger and knowing they wish to smile back.
100. Knowing myself

1) A Short History of Nearly Everything
2) Outliers
3) Anger
4) The Story of your Life
5) Night
6) The Tipping Point
7) Dream it. List it. Do it!
8) Ethan Frome
9) Wired for Survival
10) The Tao of Pooh
11) What’s Stopping YOU?
12) V for Vendetta
13) The Power of Now
14) The Creative Habit: Learn it and use it for life
15) A New Earth
16) The Elements of Style
17) The Poetics
18) The Introvert Advantage
19) How the Mighty Fall
20) Budo Secrets
21) The Art of the Straight Razor Shave
22) The Miracle of Mindfulness
23) A General Theory of Love
24) Metamorphosis
25) Anthem
26) Our Story Begins
27) An Introduction to Classical Education
28) The Prophet
29) Understanding Comics
30) The Giver
31) The “I Give Up” Guide to Relationships
32) Shop Management
33) The Picture of Dorian Gray
34) Common Sense
35) Hunger
36) The Devil’s Dictionary
37) It Works
38) The Future of Educational Entrepreneurship
39) The Power of Creative Intelligence
40) The Anti-Christ