The Little Things I Enjoy By Chance or Design

[The 14th Colony]

I love the smell of fresh cut grass. Walking past a lawn that's being mowed or recently had been, the smell in the air is fresh and nostalgic. Nostalgic to what? I'm not sure, I guess childhood when fun took place in backyards and front lawns, rather than busy streets and rooms with four walls.

I love the smell of vanilla. I think it may be my favorite scent of all.

I love history, I love it with a passion. I love the History Channel. If something happened a hundred years ago, I'm sometimes immediately interested in it. I know that as a child, a time period I have little memory of (head injury, loss of memory), I spent enormous amounts of time reading encyclopedias and history books. One set that I had was the presidents of the US. I think each book included 2 or 3 presidents in sequence, telling about their biographies, families, political campaigns, terms, ect. I used to be an expert on nearly all the presidents from Washington up to the 1960s. Now my love of history includes the ancient past. No, ESPECIALLY the ancient past. The Roman Empire from start to finish, the Middle Ages, all of that. I just love history. Don't even know why, but I've always been intrigued by things that happened before, things that led up to, things that resulted in other things so important to later ages. Imagining, and seeing paintings of, places like Manhatten island centuries ago and comparing it to how it looks now. God I love history. One of the most fascinating documentaries on History Channel was the recreation through maps, drawings, visuals, and actors, of the entire journey of Lewis and Clark. Seeing through receation and imagination the exploration of places unspoiled and uncivilized by modern life, imagining seeing for the first time places that today are covered in metropolis or suburbs, as they were centuries ago, is obsessively fascinating. Show me a documentary about an event that happened 700 years ago...I don't care what it's about...I'm into it. WWII is of interest too, but more so WWI because it was farther back in time and is less known in detail to me.

I used to collect Star Wars figures. I remember being 17 and my girlfriend asking me what I wanted for my birthday. She gave me an odd look when I told her I wanted the red Emperor's Royal Guard action figure. When I was a kid, unlike now, the plastic the figures where made of had a pleasant smell. But you could only really smell it at its strongest degree, when you first opened the plastic packaging. I used to open the new packages and immediately put my nose to the action figure and sniff it several times. Yes, my name is 14th, and I am a sniffer.

As a kid I also studied animal and bird informational books. My favorite birds were the cardinal and the bluejay. There is a couple of bluejays which daily congregate on the railing outside my neighbor's apartment, because she feeds them everyday. The balcony doesn't extend to my apartment or maybe I'd throw food out for them too. Whenever I see a bluejay, and usually those bluejays, it takes me back to the childhood I have so little memory of.

I am epileptic but the seizures I'd get without my meds are petite mal, and I do not convulse when I have them. The happen in my mind but other people would have no idea that I was having a seizure even as I continued to talk to them. Point being, as it is all occuring in my mind, I get a strong sense of deja vu, a strange unidentifiable smell in my nose, and sometimes a ligththeadedness; all symptoms that are common with people with epilepsy. I can't say that my seizures are fun because they are not, but sometimes the deja vu is enjoyabel and I want it to last longer. But the sensation comes, affects me, and then slowly slips away, and as I struggle to remember what it was I sensed in the deja vu (it quickly slips from my short term memory), depression comes on a little stronger than before. This was how I knew that my 23 years of depression is from my head injury, because it always increases when I have seizures. But now, since the seizures have lessened over the many years, when I get the deja vu I find myself enjoying the sensation, though it is followed by increased depression and a wish that I could have sensed it longer. But that won't lead to me not taking my neurological meds, because I know they would get much worse if uncontrolled. So I don't want the deja vu to happen, but when it does, I do slightly enjoy it. Maybe...and this is a long shot...but maybe the deja vu is somehow a break in the shroud that hides my memories from childhood, and that is why I find that I enjoy them now?

There are more little things (though history is no little thing at all) that I enjoy that I will list as I think of them. But what about you? What little things do you enjoy in life and the world around you?

[Rowan]

Originally Posted by The 14th Colony

But what about you? What little things do you enjoy in life and the world around you?

Just a few to start...

I love the smell of the woods or fields after a summer rain.

I love the smell of the earth

I love the feel of soft grass

I love the feel of fresh clean bed sheets

I love the taste and texture of cheese cake in my mouth

I love brushing and playing with long hair

I love hot steamy showers

I love the sight and sound of a wood fireplace or campfire.

I love the feel of a hug

I love the feel of a wild birds feet clasping my finger after spending time earning it’s trust and getting it to come to me.

I love the sound of a cat purring

I love warm lazy sunny summer afternoons

[BST]

Simple things, like sitting out in my back yard during the early morning hours, watching the sun's rays cut through the woods and listening to the birds' first of the day warblings. An occasional chipmunk or squirrel will run across the stone wall or up the hillside sometimes completely oblivious to me being there.


I also have an interest in history. It was, next to mathematics, my favorite class in school. A particular desire of mine is to become more familiar with ancient societies such as the Greeks, Babylonians, Romans, Chinese, etc and how their development laid the groundwork for later generations/peoples such as Europe and the Americas. Then, after getting a more complete understanding of my own heritage, to learn more about Africa, Australia, Asia, and the Pacific Rim.

[Dawg]

Ah, the smell of fresh-cut grass (I'm taking a break from mowing my lawn right now, in fact) never fails to bring me the sensation of nasal congestion and drip. I'm allergic, you see - but I still love the smell.

The first few smattering drops of rain after a long hot, dry spell bring a unique dusty wet odor with them that is instantly refreshing and only comes once or twice a year. Friday night it happened.

Hugging my granddaughters. Or my wife.

Finishing writing a story - or even a scene - that I didn't know how was going to turn out.

A love-hate moment - standing beside a custom built chopper, admiring the paint, the soul-stirring rumble of the V-twin engine, wanting one so bad I can taste it - and knowing I'll probably never even sit on one. That was two - no, three - Saturdays ago.

15 minute naps in front of the TV. Love those.

Thanks for the moment, 14th.

I am
Dawg

[julix]

14th....

I love mountain streams, the sound and the feel

I love campfires

I love roasting marshmellows by the campfire(even better)

I love hiking and looking for all different kinds of wildflowers.

I love taking my kids out by water and finding a frog or crawdad for them to squeel in delight.

I love laying in the grass at night and looking up at the stars

I love watching a shakespere play and being tottaly carried away.

I totally love to DANCE

[The 14th Colony]

Originally Posted by Dawg

Thanks for the moment, 14th.

I am
Dawg

Another little thing I enjoy is asking questions that make people think, and make them contemplate or remember good things they wouldn't have thought about otherwise, or at that moment. Glad you enjoyed the moment, Dawg.

[The 14th Colony]

I smell nature lovers in this thread. LOL.

I love the mists that shroud the mountain tops.

Julix, I also love star gazing. To stare at the stars so far away, so mysterious, so distant with a story of their own, is....something...I can't explain it in words.

Something we don't get in Florida often...the smell of cold air. Natural air, not from AC units. In January, February, and early March, we get on occasion chilly air, especially when we get swooped by a Northern cold front. The smell of the air in February is like the air on Long Island in October.

I love being on the beach at night and sitting there listening to the surf, smelling the ocean air. Often there are ships on the horizon, either anchored for the night or waiting for clearance to head into Port Everglades harbor. I love watching those ships, which are visibly nothing but a tiny set of lights. But behind those lights there are people going about their business, with their own stories. I find gazing at airplanes high in the air intriguing for this same reason, but not as much as the ship lights on the horizon, that there are stories going on behind those lighted portals, things going on. I get a similar feeling gazing at a secluded city from miles away, or a crowded bustling metropolis from miles away, knowing that there are people there that I can't see, doing their thing and living their own stories. But the ship lights at night are very intriguing to me due to my awe of the ocean, and fear of the ocean at night. Dark waters terrify me, you have to understand.

[The 14th Colony]

Originally Posted by BST

I also have an interest in history. It was, next to mathematics, my favorite class in school. A particular desire of mine is to become more familiar with ancient societies such as the Greeks, Babylonians, Romans, Chinese, etc and how their development laid the groundwork for later generations/peoples such as Europe and the Americas. Then, after getting a more complete understanding of my own heritage, to learn more about Africa, Australia, Asia, and the Pacific Rim.

See, that's what I'm talking about. The ancient Greeks, Romans, Mongols, Persians, Vikings, all those races and nations and ancient beginnings...it's interesting to think about how those people were, how they lives, how they thought, how they viewed the world around them and life itself.

[Rowan]

A few more…



I love the incredible feeling of holding a new born baby in my arms

The sound of children laughing and giggling.

I love the feeling I get when I open a new sketch pad and look at all those blank pages.

The full moon on a cold winter night just after a new snow when it’s all sparkling and the shadows of the trees are sharp against the white snow.

The vegetable garden after I’ve just turned over all the soil and I’m about to plant.

2 weeks after I’ve planted the vegetable garden and everything is just starting to come up.

I too love to lie out on the grass and stare up at the stars at night I do it a lot.

I too love to dance the incredible feeling that courses through your body and your muscles after doing it for hours. And recently the incredible feeling of complete synchronicity you achieve in partner dancing.

I too love ancient history and am always listening to the history channel, took 2 years of Anthropology and seriously thought of pursuing that as a profession because I have a fascination with cultures. I’ve also looked into joining the Society for Creative Anachronisms which recreates the medieval period. I have a picture on my wall in my living room that is a rubbing I made and framed of an ancient First Nations petroglyph it is believed to be over 8,000 years old it makes me feel connected to those who lived before and so I cherish it.

I love the excitement I feel sitting on my boyfriends motorcycle as we zip through the countryside.

I too love to hike looking for wildflowers it is a passion of mine I used to have a large wild flower garden now I just photograph them but the excitement I feel when I find a new one is intense especially if it’s on my special list, I’ve actually shed tears of joy and wonder over it lol.



Mountain streams I hear ya Julix! They touch a very deep and primeval place inside of me especially if they are far in the bush and there is something magical about the way they look, I feel transported in time I often feel like I am a native and it’s really 3000 years back in time or something and I’ve stopped for a drink on my way to my village or something.

14th the beach at night with the sound of the surf, smell of the ocean watching the sun go down absolutely magical!

I too love to watch from a distance and wonder at all the lives being lived out there all around me.

Getting up early and watching the sun rise over the horizon, watching the world come alive.

I love the arrival of the Salmon Run in my back yard amazing to watch and sit there and realize this same ritual has been happening right here in this very spot for thousands of years blows me away and to stop and think and realize and appreciate how incredibly amazing it is that any of them make it back to begin the cycle all over again.

[julix]

Soetimes I am amazed at how much we all have in common,

I loved past cultures and times....like the Greeks and Romans.

My favorite time period is the time of King Arthur...Knights of the roundtable and all...i love going to the ren faire here every year......glorious

[The 14th Colony]

Rowan:

Getting up early and watching the sun rise over the horizon, watching the world come alive.

I love the arrival of the Salmon Run in my back yard amazing to watch and sit there and realize this same ritual has been happening right here in this very spot for thousands of years blows me away and to stop and think and realize and appreciate how incredibly amazing it is that any of them make it back to begin the cycle all over again.

I love the sunrise, that early hour of quiet and peacefullness, as like you said, the world comes alive. Sadly, I can never wake early enough to enjoy that!

Damn, you have salmon in the stream behind your house? If I lived there I would sit on the riverside with a bagel with cream cheese and try to catch a salmon between the buns when they leap from the water. Yum!

[Rowan]

Originally Posted by The 14th Colony

Rowan:


Damn, you have salmon in the stream behind your house? If I lived there I would sit on the riverside with a bagel with cream cheese and try to catch a salmon between the buns when they leap from the water. Yum!

crazy man! LOL! I've often held them in my hands or touched them as they swim by but I let them lay there eggs or deposit their sperm LOL!
It's a small creek and only a few hundred return every year!

[The 14th Colony]

I'm Jewish you know, you can't deny me my bagels and lox!

[Rowan]

Originally Posted by The 14th Colony

I'm Jewish you know, you can't deny me my bagels and lox!

Well I'm not Jewish but I too LOVE bagels and lox especially Montreal bagels made in the Jewish bakeries!

[kitty]

I too have a love for history. I love to visit historic places, especially castles, and try and imagine what it was like to live in those times. The last castle I visited was only a couple of weeks ago.

I love the feeling of satisfaction of a job well done. When you can stand back and admire your own achievement.

I love the feeling and knowledge of being loved and returning those feelings. And love at first sight is awesome.

I love getting letters from friends and loved ones. To sit down and read and re-read them, especially if you hadnt been expecting one.

I love getting into fresh, clean, pressed sheets after a shower or bath.

I love watching my daughter sleeping (sometimes cuddled up with the dog).

I love giving presents, especially to children, watching their expressions of joy (and not disappointment!).

I love getting to know and meet new people.

[bsg1fan1975]

I love history. Especially the Civil War.

I love children.

I love to cook and bake.

I love the smell of my hubby's aftershave. (old spice)

I love going on a drive in the fall up north when the leaves are changing.

I love to sing.

I love the sight of fresh fallen snow.

[MOVER]basestar[/MOVER]

[shiningstar]

I love watching my kids sleep

I love the smell of lilacs from our lilac bushes

I love watching the Tetris fish in our aquariam

I love simply setting outside in the back and watching the sky
change colors as the sun sets

I love it when I can point out a shooting star to my kids and
we all watch that star as it streaks across the skys

[bsg1fan1975]

I love to go to pet stores and look at the cats and dogs.

[shiningstar]

I loved to do that too only now we no longer have a pet store in Los Alamos

[Rowan]

*Bump*

[The 14th Colony]

Originally Posted by Rowan

*Bump*

Hey, watch where you're bumping that thing, lady!

[julix]

Ron!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I'v missed you

[jewels]

I especially love being around horses. There is something in how quiet and patient they are (well , at least good school/lesson horses are) that drains away my stress. And being around horses is a lifelong dream.

I love baking cookies.

Chinese food.

Star gazing from the backyard, at least until the farm fields near us get developed.

Mountains, especially the Rockies.

My daughter's giggle. Her drawings. Her huge hugs.

Hugs from my spouse. holding hands.

Eating dinner together.

The color of the ocean near Destin, FL. with the white sand.

Leaves turning in the fall.

[Archangel]

Ron!!!

Good to see you!!!

[The 14th Colony]

Hey Julix, Archy. I've been away for awhile, still away so to speak. I'll catch up with you all later on. Peace out.

[gmd3d]

I love to sit in the sun (when its sunny) under my apple tree and watch the day go by...

[martok2112]

I love the smell of Napalm in the morning.

[Alaric]

Things that I enjoy? So many, so little memory...

I love waking up to the sound of a quiet room, a quiet dorm at 10 on a Saturday morning, getting out of bed, streching after a crazy Friday night (In college, aren't Friday nights always the crazy ones?), and looking the window on a pristine morning.

I love hot, steaming showers which wash away all the soreness and exhaustion of the day.

I love turning on the TV to find an old cartoon show from my childhood playing.

I love having my shirts folded perfectly.

I love hearing my mom laugh at every story I have to tell her about college. As close as she is, I still miss her.

I love walking out of my room when everything about me, my hair, my clothes, my shoes, are all set perfectly.

I love reading a book so good I'm up until 2 AM just to finish it.

I love waking up knowing I'm still alive and kicking.

I love when my friends know I'm as crazy as I say I am.

I love opening a fortune cookie up and getting a random, hilarious fortune.

I love going out to party all night, coming home at 1 AM, and staying up with my friends, joking around, until the sun comes up.

I love coming back from class to check what's new in the Fleets.

[Rowan]

Sitting by the creek at the bottom of the garden, listening to the birds and watching the sunlight dancing on the water. *sigh* so lovely...