Simple Pleasures

I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.
— Laura Ingalls

After watching why small pleasures are a big deal, I started a list of my own. With a bit of passing around to family and friends, here’s what we ended up with.

The original list consisted of just a few. As more come to mind, I add them here.

1. A haircut
2. When the hairdresser massages your head while washing it
3. Back rubs
4. A head scratch
5. Folding a t-shirt to have no wrinkles
6. The pump after lifting
7. No unread emails
8. Thin chips and spicy salsa
9. A hot shower
10. A clean house
11. Waking up early
12. Curling up on couch to watch a movie
13. Waking up before alarm and realizing you have more time to sleep
14. An empty movie theatre
15. Tea
16. Lemon water
17. A walk in the woods
18. Jamming out on a road trip
19. Board games and cards
20. Having the family together for dinner
21. When a shirt and pants fit just right
22. When a tucked in shirt doesn’t come untucked
23. McDonald’s ice cream cone
24. Cold bed sheets
25. When you walk outside and hot sun hits you
26. Naps
27. Playing with your dog
28. That feeling of accomplishment after a project
29. When you have nothing immediate to do and can relax
30. A good book
31. Hot coffee
32. Iced coffee
33. The burn after drinking Coke
34. Sunrises on the water
35. Fast boat rides
36. Watching a fishing cork go down
37. Sunsets on the water
38. When your dog gets happy when you first drive up
39. Drinking water after a run
40. Full tank of gas
41. Fountain Coke or Diet Coke from McDonald’s
42. Cup of coffee at day break
43. Putting the last puzzle piece in place
44. All my kids sitting in church on Sundays
45. Tomato gravy and biscuits
46. Traditional breakfast of bacon, eggs, grits
47. Getting into bed after shaving legs
48. Massages
49. Getting into bed after a long day
50. Completing all your work
51. Acing a test
52. Someone brushing your hair
53. When you’re on a road trip and the gas station has clean bathrooms
54. Going to sleep when entire body is sore from working out
55. Bite of steak with perfect fat to meat ratio
56. Walking to car from the office and breaking a sweat
57. Waking up to a clean kitchen
58. Getting in a clean car
59. When everything is prepared for the next day so there is no stress in the morning
60. Sunday naps while it’s pouring rain outside
61. Smell of fresh cut grass
62. Googling a question and answer is first link
63. When Pandora plays the song you want
64. Popeyes
65. Waking up and remembering you don’t have any homework
66. Chick-fil-A sauce
67. Yoga pants
68. Kyle Franklin’s chicken n’ dumplings
69. JB’s fried fish, boiled shrimp & crabs
70. Beignets
71. Sonic ice
72. Smell of spent brass
73. Finding a checkout register with no line
74. Being the first one on the beach
75. Dancing when no one is watching
76. Spicy crawfish, corn, and potatoes
77. Finding a good spot in a packed parking lot
78. Catching every green light
79. No traffic, empty roads
80. Walking in the door and removing bra
81. When charcoal gets white
82. Mangos
83. Peeing in the woods
84. Finding a solution to a problem you’ve been thinking about for weeks
85. When you hit traffic and use that time to finish your podcast
86. Cozy campfire on a cold night
87. Tightly made bed
88. Cruising around town at night
89. Sitting outside, staring at the stars and just thinking about life
90. A clean shave
91. The smell of friends and loved ones as they walk by
92. Cracking your knuckles
93. Long showers
94. Soaking in a hot bathtub
95. When the sun shines through trees while you drive down the road
96. Making progress on something hard
97. The smell of fresh sawdust
98. Peanut butter banana sandwich with glass of milk
99. Listening to sad music
100. Chocolate milk
101. Having all your friends together
102. When something is cancelled that you didn’t wanna go to
103. Looking at old pictures
104. The feeling of exceeding expectations
105. When a bottle-fed baby burps
106. Crossing off a todo list item
107. Watching birds
108. Enjoying a candy bar
109. Walking a pond
110. Crunchy, juicy apple
111. Building a fire
112. Licking the brownie batter bowl
113. Ice cream after boiled seafood
114. Milk and brownies
115. That calming, peaceful feeling from being around grandparents
116. Drinking coffee from a styrofoam cup
117. When it’s storming, the power goes out, and you light candles
118. The smell of washed hair by your favorite shampoo/conditioner
119. Warm towels out the dryer
120. Fast internet and far reaching WiFi
121. Listening to someone tell a good story
122. A baby’s laughter
123. Silence
124. Corner nook in a library
125. The right song for the right mood
126. Trees creaking in the wind
127. When a smell brings back a memory
128. An ice chest with ice-cold drinks
129. “People watching”
130. When a document is formatted nicely
131. Buying and using quality things
132. Going to the bathroom after you’ve been holding it for a while
133. Seeing a loved one’s reaction for the first time to something you love (like an experience or seeing a nature sight)
134. Pad Thai, medium spicy
135. Changing of the seasons, especially Summer to Fall
136. Puppy breath
137. Sleeping in your own bed after being away from home
138. Sitting outside on a pretty day
139. When your kid falls asleep on you
140. Watching squirrels eat
141. Sitting on the porch, listening to wind chimes
142. Fuzzy socks
143. Chocolate milk in an ice-cold frosted mug
144. Scratching your shins after taking off your socks
145. Freshly picked strawberries
146. Frozen blueberries
147. Delaying gratification
148. Connecting with someone
149. Frozen mango chunks
150. Clear, concise, up-to-date documentation
151. Looking forward to dinner and savoring it
152. When you fold your socks and there’s a match for each one
153. Fetching with your dogs on a beautiful day
154. When all of your unit tests pass
155. Playing with your kids
156. Being wet all day then putting on dry clothes