Over the past couple of weeks, I have seen a number of people win blog awards from their fellow bloggers. In the comment section of one of these blogs, I asked how one would go about getting their blog entered into the running for one of these awards.
Little did I know that anyone would take me seriously...
Long story short, Jenn over at Pirates dig Chicks who Blog saw fit to grace me with the Creative Writer Award (Thanks Jenn, you made me giddy! Or at least you made me what passes for giddy in my world.) which, as I understand it, means that I get to tell you all about ten things that make me happy then pass the award on to the next person so that they can do the same.
I think that this is a neat little graphic for this whole business. Kudos to whoever put it together and started this out!So anyway, on to listing things that make me happy. I am going to list these in no particular order so number one may very well be number five and so on. (Hey, I have to keep up some of the mystery or I may lose my indefinable* mystique.)
(*For those of you who are scoffing at the word indefinable you can all bite me. :p We can talk later to discuss where and how hard.)
1. RPGs or (for the uninitiated**) Role Playing Games. In this category I am grouping things like World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy, Shadowrun, Vampire the Masquerade and of course, the classic, Dungeons and Dragons. The genre is virtually endless and stretches from tabletop to computer; console to Live-Action. It is a wonderful escape from reality and a great time to be had with friends or by yourself. I mean let's face it; sometimes you just want to pretend the world doesn't exist. This beats trying to replace reality with a small trout.
(**You poor bastards)
2. Music! Just about any genre stemming from just about any era, I love it. Admittedly, I have more like for some than others but there is something to appreciate in just about all of it. Seriously. You ought to check some of them out. Hell, you may even want to sing along!
3. Friends. I don't have very many and the ones I do have are spread out and, mostly, far away but they are the stuff that makes getting through the days possible. I figure that there isn't much more for me to say on this particular topic.
4. Theater. Now, what I am referring to here is not exactly going to see shows but, rather, being involved in them. I have done musicals, plays, improv, tech, design and once (after a very long and vaguely terrifying night) writing. I have been absent from the theater world for a number of years now but it really is only a matter of time before the bug comes calling again and I am forced to dive back in with little to no regard for the consequences.
5. Believe it or not, cooking is going to make this list as well. I am not the best cook by any means and I will never be considered a chef but the things I make, I like to think I make pretty damned well. I enjoy puttering around with spices and believe recipes are meant to be loose guidelines. With that in mind, if you ever find yourself faced with the opportunity to taste something I have made, I recommend that you jump at it. If it sucks it will suck a LOT but if it is good, it just might be something you will try to duplicate.
6. Oh gods, books. I love books. Books books books books books. I can't sleep in a bedroom without at least some books nearby. My home is filled with books... Every room has it's own selection there to be perused or devoured. (Yes, every room.) Did I mention that books make me happy? And, oh yeah, books!
7. Projects. I like taking things on and conquering them. I try to learn new things all the time and explore what they are about and, eventually, become competent with them. I find that as a rule I do pretty well and reach competency fairly quickly. The two notable exceptions to this have been gardening and painting. Do not, under any circumstances, ask me to help with your plants or your painting. It will go horribly wrong. There are no exceptions to this rule.
8. Philosophy. I like to think and I like to talk with other people who think. Can't help it. It is the very definition of good times to me. Many are the times when conversations that were meant to be casual have carried on well into the next day. I love (and miss) those times.
9. Religion. Very similar to philosophy but on much less broad of a scope. I am what you might consider a theological philosopher. I like to learn about beliefs, rituals and histories and how the three are (or oftentimes are not) related. I have my own belief system, thank you very much, so I have no need or desire to be converted to yours. If, however, you find yourself open to a lengthy discussion on the merits of rituals or truthfulness of history, give me a call and we will find time to sit down when I don't have to be at work for a couple days.
10. For the final thing that I like and makes me happy I am going to be somewhat vague but I will site specific examples. I like community. I take joy in the sense of community I get when I am socializing with my friends. I enjoy the community I am privileged to take part in when I am around my apartment complex. I love (and occasionally long for) the sense of community that comes when a group of performers works together over any measurable length of time.
::Deep breath::
Phew! There it is! Ten things that make me happy without regard to order or preference. Gosh, listing things off like that is harder than it has any right to be.
What's next?... Oh yeah! I have to pass this little award on to someone else... Oh boy! there are so many deserving folks to choose from! I think I am going to tag Jerry, who has just started posting on his own blog over at Does This Look Normal. Have fun Jerry and for fuck's sake, allow comments already, would ya? Just go to settings, click on comments, click "show" and then figure out the rest. You are a big boy. I am sure you can do it.
Anyway, I will chat some more at you all sometime soon. I just found out I got another of of these to go through so that will be coming soon and I have another old movie review in the works that I think you will all enjoy.
Be good!
We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.
-Frederick Keonig-
(*For those of you who are scoffing at the word indefinable you can all bite me. :p We can talk later to discuss where and how hard.)
1. RPGs or (for the uninitiated**) Role Playing Games. In this category I am grouping things like World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy, Shadowrun, Vampire the Masquerade and of course, the classic, Dungeons and Dragons. The genre is virtually endless and stretches from tabletop to computer; console to Live-Action. It is a wonderful escape from reality and a great time to be had with friends or by yourself. I mean let's face it; sometimes you just want to pretend the world doesn't exist. This beats trying to replace reality with a small trout.
(**You poor bastards)
2. Music! Just about any genre stemming from just about any era, I love it. Admittedly, I have more like for some than others but there is something to appreciate in just about all of it. Seriously. You ought to check some of them out. Hell, you may even want to sing along!
3. Friends. I don't have very many and the ones I do have are spread out and, mostly, far away but they are the stuff that makes getting through the days possible. I figure that there isn't much more for me to say on this particular topic.
4. Theater. Now, what I am referring to here is not exactly going to see shows but, rather, being involved in them. I have done musicals, plays, improv, tech, design and once (after a very long and vaguely terrifying night) writing. I have been absent from the theater world for a number of years now but it really is only a matter of time before the bug comes calling again and I am forced to dive back in with little to no regard for the consequences.
5. Believe it or not, cooking is going to make this list as well. I am not the best cook by any means and I will never be considered a chef but the things I make, I like to think I make pretty damned well. I enjoy puttering around with spices and believe recipes are meant to be loose guidelines. With that in mind, if you ever find yourself faced with the opportunity to taste something I have made, I recommend that you jump at it. If it sucks it will suck a LOT but if it is good, it just might be something you will try to duplicate.
6. Oh gods, books. I love books. Books books books books books. I can't sleep in a bedroom without at least some books nearby. My home is filled with books... Every room has it's own selection there to be perused or devoured. (Yes, every room.) Did I mention that books make me happy? And, oh yeah, books!
7. Projects. I like taking things on and conquering them. I try to learn new things all the time and explore what they are about and, eventually, become competent with them. I find that as a rule I do pretty well and reach competency fairly quickly. The two notable exceptions to this have been gardening and painting. Do not, under any circumstances, ask me to help with your plants or your painting. It will go horribly wrong. There are no exceptions to this rule.
8. Philosophy. I like to think and I like to talk with other people who think. Can't help it. It is the very definition of good times to me. Many are the times when conversations that were meant to be casual have carried on well into the next day. I love (and miss) those times.
9. Religion. Very similar to philosophy but on much less broad of a scope. I am what you might consider a theological philosopher. I like to learn about beliefs, rituals and histories and how the three are (or oftentimes are not) related. I have my own belief system, thank you very much, so I have no need or desire to be converted to yours. If, however, you find yourself open to a lengthy discussion on the merits of rituals or truthfulness of history, give me a call and we will find time to sit down when I don't have to be at work for a couple days.
10. For the final thing that I like and makes me happy I am going to be somewhat vague but I will site specific examples. I like community. I take joy in the sense of community I get when I am socializing with my friends. I enjoy the community I am privileged to take part in when I am around my apartment complex. I love (and occasionally long for) the sense of community that comes when a group of performers works together over any measurable length of time.
::Deep breath::
Phew! There it is! Ten things that make me happy without regard to order or preference. Gosh, listing things off like that is harder than it has any right to be.
What's next?... Oh yeah! I have to pass this little award on to someone else... Oh boy! there are so many deserving folks to choose from! I think I am going to tag Jerry, who has just started posting on his own blog over at Does This Look Normal. Have fun Jerry and for fuck's sake, allow comments already, would ya? Just go to settings, click on comments, click "show" and then figure out the rest. You are a big boy. I am sure you can do it.
Anyway, I will chat some more at you all sometime soon. I just found out I got another of of these to go through so that will be coming soon and I have another old movie review in the works that I think you will all enjoy.
Be good!
We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.
-Frederick Keonig-
What a great post on a beautiful day. I agree with 99.9% of what makes you happy;we would make great buds.
ReplyDeleteBooks books books books books.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe that I left this off my own list! I also love books. All books. Reading is the perfect way to take a few hours off, when this world seems to have become a bit much, and enter another place entirely.
Great post! Happy, happy, happy!
I think I have comment thing fixed. I was actually thinking I should get more familiar with the blogger settings before I read you post.
ReplyDeleteWith that and the Adams thing I guess you're my blogger muse for the week.
@Nik - You know, I have to admit, I kind of suspected that this would be the case.
ReplyDelete@Jenn - Books are one of those loves and happinesses that I think become so ingrained in our being that we forget, on occasion, to think of them as a thing beyond our selves. It makes me happy when I remember that there was a time when I didn't have them.
@TheNormal1 - I will check out the comment thing in a while. Glad to have you around and I hope you get to take some joy out of writing in this medium!
Oh yeah and yay muses!