Happy List for May

I love a happy list, and recently have rediscovered this Pablo Neruda quote I really love too.

I've always been a grateful and appreciative person, and would say I've had so many moments of joy and euphoria and satisfaction over the last few years. But I've also grappled with a lot of the lows that come with the pursuit of a (rather intense) life dream too so I think a lot about the relationship between happiness and restlessness, and how different I do feel now that I'm finally...settled. At peace.

Is that because of outcome or because I did the work to reach equilibrium, or maybe a bit of both? Even with whatever conflict might be ahead, I do feel lighter overall in a way that feels pretty permanent.

“Take it all back. Life is boring, except for flowers, sunshine, your perfect legs. A glass of cold water when you are really thirsty. The way bodies fit together. Fresh and young and sweet. Coffee in the morning. These are just moments. I struggle with the in-betweens. I just want to never stop loving like there is nothing else to do, because what else is there to do? — Pablo Neruda”

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May 2025

1. English breakfast tea and the whistle of my kettle.
2. Listening to an audiobook when you're in an audiobook mood.
3. Making it through a task you're nervous about.
4. Bare minimum easing into the week.
5. Conquering a new recipe.
6. Deep cleaning in the zone.
7. XXXL t-shirt.
8. Drying flowers.
9. When you finish the last "urgent" task of your week and feel like it's basically over.
10. A fresh stack of Post-Its.
11. Niece and nephew pics.
12. The Recovery Smoothie from Down to Earth.
13. So many rainbows lately.
14. Getting family photos printed.
15. When you go to a coffeeshop to do work with a friend and actually get a ton done.
16. Honey soy lime salmon marinade.
17. Seeing a friend landing their dream job.
18. Doing laps in an outdoor pool while it's raining and you feel the drops on your back.
19. New favorite song by an old favorite band.
20. Planning Canada.
21. Wandering through BookEnds with nowhere to be.
22. When you have a craving for something and it's actually very healthy.
23. Starting / finishing a sketchbook.
24. Watercolor stains on your fingers.
25. Hearing thunder for the first time in months.
26. Discovering you have a mutual favorite book with someone.
27. Candlelit shower.
28. Having a screen door and being able to leave the big door open.
29. Open laundry when you need it.
30. Budapest having been my alarm song for a solid decade at this point and still not being sick of it.
31. Violin and strings added to absolutely any song ever.
32. The alley being clear.
33. Mail day when you're excited for something.

May 22

1. Singing along to a country song you have memorized from childhood.
2. The freshness of wandering through a healthy grocery store.
3. A stretched-out sweater or sweatshirt that slips off of one shoulder.
4. Showering anywhere that isn't home (like the gym.)
5. Ring stack.
6. Catching up the journal.
7. Got the best ID photo of my goddamn life.
8. A show or movie or book you were looking forward to living up to your expectations.

May 23

1. Finally sitting down with a book that's been on your list forever.
2. Hearing the prickles of wind that make you realize it's raining before you look up to check.

May 24

1. Picking up choreography more quickly than you expect.
2. Line-dancing and swing-dancing (related.)
3. Being very, very tall in cowboy boots.
4. People-watching in funky venues (always.)
5. A fresh, blank notebook.
6. Getting drenched in a summer shower.
7. Accidentally eavesdropping on something very funny.
8. Pamplemousse! LaCroix, of course.
9. Timing your laundry perfectly.
10. When you're so into a book that you're itchy to blow off everything else.
11. The type of satisfied exhaustion you only get after swimming.
12. Angling the phone perfectly so the aux cord doesn't cut out.
13. Mesh dancer layers and rehearsal style.
14. Subtitles.
15. Hanging up a coat (not sure why.)
16. A date turning into a friend!
17. The way a bottle of olive oil looks on a kitchen counter.
18. A weekend night fully committed to being in bed early.

May 27

1. Parachute/balloon pants.
2. Raspy voices.
3. Having done an excellent job on something.
4. A good long stretch.
5. A rented item fitting how you wanted it to.
6. Drinks in mason jars at home.
7. Paper warm from the printer.
8. The first full sleep after a really bad one.

May 30

1. Being a little delirious with friends after a long day.
2. Rare moment! Caught up on every household chore.
3. Having a hair band when you thought you'd forgotten it.
4. Listening to an "all-time favorites" playlist & remembering ones you'd forgotten about.
5. The smell of shampoo/body wash lingering after a shower.
6. Cutting off a cold in time.
7. Photobooth strips.
8. When the caffeine kicks in.
9. Colorful decor.
10. A fresh lime.