What are your little pleasures?

[turpin]

How true.

For most of us our lives are half over before we figure out it's a DIY project.

[Dreadbelly]

The morning stretch, where I twist and contort trying to drive the RA from my joints. The grinding, the popping, the sounds like bunches of celery being snapped... I used to really hate this time, because it hurts, and there are many mornings where I puke doing it. Now, I enjoy it. I contemplate why I am still alive, and all of the things that are worth going through all of this.

Coffee. At any time.

The fish and chips from the Blue Ridge Brewing Company.

Really cold jasmine green tea brewed with peppermint. Especially on those days when it feels like 125 degrees outside with the real feel temp.

A really good cider. All jokes aside, something about a mouthful of cider going down. Such a simple earthy pleasure.

That point of meditation where I can actually feel my body detatch from my mind and there is no pain. None at all. These moments don't last long, but I have incredible clarity of mind for a brief time with no pain to distract me. Even when I get jolted back in to my body, I am still filled with that incredible feeling left over from almost drifting away.

The feeling of my dreadlocks in the wind. Completely different than having hair. The weight, the way they pull and message my scalp by moving... A delicious shuddery feeling all over. Fantastic, you can't beat it.

[davedove]

Losing myself in a good book.

Sitting anywhere in a natural setting with nobody else around and just experiencing the beauty.

Watching a program on television about some far away place and realizing I've been there.

Planning trips to places I haven't been.

Tasting a new recipe and realizing just how well it turned out.

Watching a beautiful, graceful woman dance.

Knowing that I have done something nice for someone without being asked and without any expectations.

[Yaish]

A Saturday afternoon barbecue with my fiancee and her family.

Working a lure and being rewarded with a fighting bass on the end of the line.

Camping in the desert, looking out from a hillside and seeing miles and miles of land, with no sign of human habitation.

The sound of silence (it makes a shusshing noise).

Listening to Celtic Woman, but especially "Over the Rainbow".

Holding my love in front of me as we snuggle and watch TV.

Sleeping at night, with a dog pressed tight against either leg.

Tossing the caber, and seeing it go straight and true as it turns over.

I feel pretty lucky, as I get to do most of those pretty often, some even everyday.

[furrycelt]

- when my wife gives me that look that lets me know i still have sex appeal
- seeing my boys faces light up when i come home
- really strong vanilla ice cream
- expensive single origin dark chocolate
- Bailey's irish cream
- Belhaven Scottish Ale
- fresh medium rare salmon
- a good steak
- waking up in the morning on a camping trip in the mountains and knowing that my cell phone is out of range and that all the sounds around me are not human made
- a long hot shower without interruptions and without the water changing temperature.
- nailing down a tune on my tin whistle
- getting those "ah HA!" moments when i'm programming
- an iced mocha from this place
- hearing bagpipes live
- running a light board or sound board for a show (and doing it right)

(geez, i love food way too much)

[Big Mikey]

- my wife massaging my hands after a hard day
- my daughter baffling me with some new college math she has learned
- thin crust pizza with sausage and onion
- any bevvy with friends
- Tattoo, my cat, greeting me at the door
- watching the original Planet of the Apes series in one sitting
- the comradery of the rabble

[beloitpiper]

I've revised my list. It's longer, and I borrowed some from you guys (yours were all really amazing!). Here it is:

Greg's Pleasures in Life
-long, hot showers
-watching Irish step dance
-warm summer nights watching the sunset
-walking through the forest after a fresh snow
-impromptu sessions with the family during holidays
-lightning bugs
-afternoon drizzel in the Spring
-the smell of fresh bread, new books, and girls
-mail
-sleeping with the window open
-a fireplace and hot cocoa after cross-country skiing
-the shiver that goes down my spine while marching with my pipe band
-reading a book with the sun warming me in the grass
-ice cream on the Union Terrace
-speaking in Gaelic
-fireworks
-getting bundled up
-old Nickelodeon shows
-singing with friends
-driving with the windows down and the heat on
-stars
-going to the farm
-seeing somebody again after being gone for a long time
-walking barefeet in the grass
-finishing a book
-wearing a kilt in a gentle breeze
-campfires
-crying the turns into laughing
-first kisses
-outdoor concerts on a blanket
-WBCR, Beloit College Radio
-that one song that perfectly describes how you are feeling at the moment
-listening to people speak in foreign languages
-seeing my photography on the wall
-hammocks
-the feel of sand under my feet
-warm, homemade apple cider

Yes, it is kinda long, but I'm pretty sure that's a complete list.

[sjrapid]

Pleasures?

Standing on top of Scolty Hill, Kincardineshire, kilted, on a coldish day looking at the magnificent view up the Dee valley, and thinking 'one day, I will have a custom tartan woven with all these colours in it...'

Best regards

[Wompet]

Little pleasures -

• taking a hike with the dog in the woods
• a family sit-down meal
• any other occasion when the family gets together
• settled down in my favorite chair with the cat curled up on/next to me
• sitting in front of my favorite chair with the dog draped across me
• mastering a new tune on the chanter
• finishing a new kilt and not finding any glaring mistakes (little imperfections I can fix or live with)
• watching the eight-year old arthritic dog bounce around like a puppy
• waking up in the morning and thinking "I don't have to go to work today" and falling back asleep
• watching the squirrels on the bird feeder
• taking the time occasionally to just sit and watch the world go by (even better if done with dog and/or cat sitting with me)

[Weasel Mender]

My wife
My child and grandchildren
The other children (4 feet and fur)
Not being able to go back to sleep because the elk are screaming 50 feet from the tent
The 3rd day of a hunt when you discover the city has been washed away and you are in sync with the woods
Hearing a roar outside and finding 14 hot air balloons over your house
Sunsets over the desert or mountains.
Watching an arrow fly straight and true.
The first sip of coffe on a clod morning
A tight line and screaming reel
The double BAch played by Perlman and Stern
The first snowflake the first leaf