What's your greatest enjoyment in life?

I will be tad shameless & mundane: I don't enjoy working after 9-6. No great intellectual side hobbies to burn the midnight oil. For me, two things give a lot of bliss:

1. Watching a new interesting show or a re-run on Netflix, sipping a cup of coffee (or having a few drags of vape occasionally).

2. Going on a long aimless drive with country music, and stopping somewhere along the coastline to enjoy the view of sea or ships sailing at a distance.

I don't have kids or pets. Living in Japan. The horrors of everyday dealing with GCP/AWS & Japanese office regimen needs occasional quenching by solitude.

Being in the zone, whatever form it might take.

To me, the zone is any situation that makes the baseline pain of being alive go away (there's too much to unpack here, so I won't).

Things that can bring me in the zone:

* Riding my Honda CB750F, especially without a destination, just moving through the world in this raw, old-fashioned way liberates my mind and puts me at such ease.

* Coding something I like.. Again it's not entirely the destination that matters, it's the journey, the work itself that changes my focus from the mundane to the creative.

* Listening to great music while doing almost anything, including not doing anything.

* Watching a movie or tv show with my wife or a friend.

* Creating something, art or invention or utilitarian object, changing my environment to suit me.

* Unstructured time to myself with no immediate tasks that has to be done, so that I can entirely let go of any thought and just drift, having no plans whatsoever.. This is probably my favourite thing in the world, but also most difficult for me to achieve..

Anything where I can be a beginner again and experience the thrill of discovery. Doing something for the first time and together with someone that’s good at it and is happy to share their knowledge is so awesome.

As I get older I realize I have to keep switching it up. So one year it’s suddenly road cycling and I did 1000 miles in a year after doing probably 10 miles combined during the 10 years before. Also learned about bike maintenance as a part of that. Then 2-3 years after it happened to be mountain biking, lots of new skills to acquire there. Similar story with competitive video games, after not touching them for a decade or more I immersed myself in Valorant for a year and learned as much as I could about tactical FPS. Then 2 years after I switched from reading only 1-4 non-fiction books per year to reading several novels in a month. It’s odd, if you asked me 10 years ago I had a clear favorite video game, movie, hobby etc like “I’m a soccer guy” or “I love LOTR” - nowadays it’s weird, the excitement for things I’ve done often in the past is getting less and unless I make sure I find new pursuits it gets boring.

To crush your enemies, to see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women.

When someone I care about has a problem and I’m able to fix it. Nothing else feels quite as awesome or meaningful.

Conversely, nothing else feels quite as terrible as when someone I care about has an unfixable problem.

Cliche, but good family time. Nothing beats a weekend where all my cousins, nieces and nephews are together. Its particularly fun now when all my cousins and siblings have kids and they’re all under four. It gets chaotic but also so much fun

Easy one for me. Dancing to reggae music in front of a very good sound system. It's a fantastic sensation. Your entire body vibrating, compelling you to move in harmony with everyone else in the dance. It's the closest to a religious experience I ever get.

This video pretty much sums it up: https://youtu.be/AvKTMv4E09Y?t=99 Yes you need ear plugs.

Having a meeting I don't like get cancelled.

Driving. I have a simple 140 hp car now and I love just getting in and going for a drive.

I'm lucky to be living in S. California where yes we have traffic but gosh if you love nature and just enjoying scenery its amazing. Even if I'm stuck in traffic I've got views of mountains and all sorts of people watching. SO many cool spots to stop and explore.

I drive all around LA, and if I'm bored some weekend I'll get an airbnb in SF and drive up there along the coast. Put on some good music or podcast and just explore by stopping at different restaurants and pit stops.

I love driving. I can't wait for the day that people have space ships. I want to fly around canyons and then zip straight into space, warp jump to some other planet and explore it, before going home.

When I feel low, I grab my keys and wallet and head out.

Those are so very clichéd but that’s how it is.

1. Travelling - just going somewhere, taking a train ride, just being on the move, a trek, or a place even 80-100km from the city or sometimes closer; for 1-2 days, or few months at a stretch. I really feel I’m breathing more, feel like I am “alive” (I don’t know how else to say this), I feel genuinely and effortlessly happy when I’m travelling. I sleep better (!!), I write when I travel.

2. Playing sports - my daily badminton or cricket used to be by daily battery charges which came crashing down at the start of the pandemic. Or running (I count that as sport - I really like running)

3. Literature and world cinema

For most content, helping people by writing code. Not that cringe enterprise code, nor the framework-based “nice” code. The one that does the thing just like a short, perhaps blunt, phrase makes a point.

Getting blackout drunk etc once a year with my less responsible friends and wreak a little havoc at the place. Sinking couch in a pool, terrace broken by falling/wrestling, next day investigations, you get the idea. Going off the rails helps with stress much better than vacation (unless it’s included into the setting).

Getting a little stoned and either turning on my audio synth stack or getting into unity 3D or bridging the two and fiddling with no goal until I find a groove and flow state and dig into turning different knobs and buttons and making sounds and images fold on themselves for hours until I'm in kind of a fugue state all the while bouncing audio and/or binary builds because even if I save the project well (which I do) I'll likely never be able to get the same output from the machines again because I don't know how I got to where I get to.

This hobby has it's seeds in creative habits I've had for most of my adult life but in the last six years or so I started to realize that it was the thing I enjoyed the most and it was really beneficial to my mental health and well being so I started making the efforts more deliberate and investing in gear and infrastructure to get closer to the dreams that have been in my head forever.

In a few weeks I have some long time collaborators flying in for a week long thing where the fruits of that effort are going to be explored hooking the 3D space to the musical stuff with some depth scanners, projectors, and fancy HD cameras and also two giant FANUC industrial robots controlled by the software stack and synths in tandem.

Follow your dreams kids! You too can make art that likely no one will care about but you and it will be awesome the whole time! It will be expensive and you'll never recoup the money spent... but if people don't look at you like you're a raving psycho when you tell them about your dreams, you probably have some room to have your dreams be more ridiculous. Also, it beats the heck out of remembering that people want me to build them web applications and my chosen profession is mostly a joke.

When you go outside for a minute to get the mail and your dog is SO excited to see you return as though you’ve been gone for ages. Impossible not to be happy in that moment.

If we’re talking strictly about material goods, and excluding relationships, I’d have to say coffee.

It’s almost a meditative practice. I only drink one cup a day but there’s nothing else that really comes to that moment. Preparing it. Taking in the pleasant aromas. The warm feeling.

Falling in love and spending the rest of your life with that person. I came close but after 6 years, I realized it wasn’t my person. However, I did realize that’d be the most joyful activity.

Before 40: Discovery, revelation, the raw power of knowledge and provess.

After 40: A calm place, peace of mind, simple joys.

I'm about to be a dad this year. Every day as the date approaches, I am getting more excited and scared at the same time. Never felt anything like this. I recall the pure happiness without an ounce of worry when I was a kid, and I also get happy that I might have a chance to give this to my kid. At the same time, I feel a lot of pressure that I will fall short of being a good dad. I am yet to experience being a real dad yet, but I think this really might be the greatest enjoyment in my life.

Writing science fiction and fantasy novels in the German language that I self-publish [1] - not that I have many readers, but the process of writing them is what I enjoy most. Programming is a close second place.

[1] https://talumriel.de

Right now:

- BBQing. My partner is vegetarian so I drastically reduced the amount of meat I'm eating. A few weeks ago, I finally made the jump and bought an electric BBQ. Eating a good piece of meat from the butcher on my balcony is amazing

- Tinkering with a Raspberry Pi after years of not doing anything technical

In general:

- Dancing at a concert/music festival

- Listening to music and find new favorites that I'll end up listening on repeat

- Being on a beach in front of the sea, ocean, taking a breath and feeling more alive than ever

- Riding a motorcycle in the spring/summer. I'd love to try an electric one.

Being healthy - don't know what you got til it's gone

Rock climbing, especially here in BC. I’ve dedicated much of my life to it. I was walking out of Skaha Bluffs around a week ago and realized I hadn’t been that happy in months.

Writing songs - it's like the ultimate game, math puzzle, writing problem with a single rule: make it interesting! And it's as hard or easy as you want to make it.

Whilst not my "greatest enjoyment in life", reading this thread has been very enjoyable.

After waking up and showering, making coffee with V60 drip filter and sitting on the couch and drinking it in silence.

At times, any of the following. In no particular order:

~10-15: climbing trees, running, bikes

~13-18: writing software, studying physics, hacking, wardriving, gaming

~16-25: nightlife, relationships, running, driving, exploring all sides of the world

~26-28: nothing, most of the time; playing squash before the pandemic

~29: climbing boulders (esp. sending a route after many unsuccessful attempts), driving electric scooters, exploring different places while working remotely

Horses.

They're cute, smart, interesting, kind, bring you back to the present like nothing else, and there's so much you can live with them, from quiet to high energy moments.

Working with them (the right way) forces you to learn patience, communication, emotion management and to curb your ego.

I would say, of all the strong defining events in my life, horses brought me the most and the best.

Love, love and love. Not only did it give me great enjoyment but also great motivation -- actually the only, real motivation.

Getting high on opioids and frequenting the most crowded area of my city, conversing with strangers with a complete lack of anxiety and boundaries, learning about their lifes and struggles, it's very novel to me.

I hired a boat recently and took it around the Greek Islands. Beautiful weather, calm water, nice food and music. Happiest I'd been in a long while

Seeing my investment portfolio go up by more than what I spend in a given year. Suffice to say 2022 hasn't given me that enjoyment (*yet*, haha).

Home in the summer. For me, that's a particular chunk of New York State that's full of lush greenery, strong winds and particularly severe rain and thunderstorms. There's nothing quite like standing barefoot in the grass while it's raining so hard you can barely see 10 feet in front of you.

* waking up on a sunny spring morning at the weekend, with no particular plans, and successfully putting all worries and concerns about both my own life and the wider world out of my mind. I make a coffee, I watch the birds in the trees outside the kitchen window. I quietly play the acoustic guitar for a bit. Most mornings are not like this, for one reason or another.

* noticing that after much practice I've gotten a tiny bit better at something (guitar, windsurfing, bouldering, anything really), and successfully putting all concerns about comparing myself to other people out of my mind.

* spending much of the day running/cycling/hiking/mountain climbing/windsurfing, getting back exhausted, and opening a cold beer

* sitting in a bar on holiday some place, with a small group of friends

Things that on balance do not bring me contentment or bliss, despite being popular answers here:

* conversations with intelligent, thoughtful, moderately attractive women. A brief period of contentment is followed later in the day by the slightly crushing knowledge that they are inevitably at least one of a) taken b) out of my league, and usually both.

* software development. I try to find enjoyment in the problem solving aspect, but all the scrum meetings, JIRA tickets, code review pettiness, and corporate hierarchy make me want to go and live in a cabin in the woods. Outside of work I no longer wish to have anything to do with computers.

It's so simple but: having a drink with some friends.

Roaming around the city and visiting places with my friends.

Being cared and loved by the person you like.

The feeling of contentment before sleep when I was productive on that day.

Going back to sleep when I ought to be waking up.

When a bug finally yields to me after putting up a good fight.

When a live performance I have a hand in is sticking the landing on its most technically complex and artistically powerful moments.

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, hanging out with family, learning how to build and machine with metal. Computers and learning about them used to bring me a lot of joy. Programming, then reversing and app sec, but I don’t have the same passion for that I once had. I still enjoy computers, but they are lower in the list. Basically, problem solving, but with new angles :)

My health and physical ability, while I have it.

Everything else is secondary.

Among those secondary things are - good coffee, getting into a flow and coding, new technology, and getting into bed at the end of a productive day.

Getting 50 pages into a new book, realizing it's really good and I still have 450 pages to go. Bonus points if it's a new (to me) author with many other works available.

Your greatest enjoyment in life... So the most upvoted post chose the flow state in order to momentarily forget the existence of suffering that is life and the second most upvoted post chose Netflix and aimlessly driving around in the car. I wonder if this indicates something about the state of modern society.

* My cats coming up to me to "check in" with a happy cat sound before going back to watching the birds on their balcony.

* Back scratches

* Publishing a new story after weeks or months of work

To crush my enemies, see them driven before me, and hear the lamentation of their women.

And watching Encanto with my daughter.

* Health

* Spending time with family

* Coffee

* Biking to work with my ebike on a protected bike lane along a river at 30mi/h

* Sunday volleyball on the beach

* Bouldering

* Technical reading (eg ML books)

* Playing pubg with friends every Friday

* Seeing passive income arrive in my account

Spending time with my family and extended family, getting them all together, watching my kids and their cousins play.

Working on hard problems and achieving flow state.

Mountain biking.

This one evening, my two friends and I were debating if we should go paddle boarding. When we eventually made our way to the lake, it was 7:30PM and the last two folks were leaving. We decided that we should do it anyway since we came this far. We paddled our way to the middle of the lake, and watched the sunset. We tied our boards together, I was laying down and looking at the stars while my two friends had some drinks and talked. We saw lightning bugs, heard frogs croaking, and birds chirping. We realized that in the entire city of 3million it was just us three in this lake.

I get most bliss from kayaking and paddle boarding at nights with my friends.

Watching either of my daughters achieve some new milestone. Today was cartwheels.

Holding my child as she sleeps

I know it's a cliche but having a child has made a lot of activities very enjoyable - having him help clean, teaching him how things work, and answering questions "Daddy what the biggest number there is?"

But those cliches aside I enjoy digging up food I've grown, and eating it. I enjoy baking bread - sometimes it looks awesome, sometimes it looks terrible, but it almost always tastes good enough to make the effort worthwhile.

And alongside those activities drinking a cold beer inside a hot sauna, with a naked body or two for company is something that is hard to beat.

For me quite mundane: 1) Enjoy a cup a good green tea in rest time and with a good view: the flavorful aroma, the light sweet aftertaste is a bliss! 2) Code something I enjoy: sometimes is it a problem came up from somewhere, sometimes is it a challenge, other times something beautiful to watch and enjoy. 3) Watch the children playing and laughing.

When I have good access to nature, I'd like a walk or a stroll, too but where I'm from, it's quite faraway and unfortunately not in a pristine shape.

1. Spending time with wife & son 2. Inventing new idea and seeing/making it coming to life. 3. Learning and really getting some new fundamental idea about the world

(1) Family at Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter.

(2) Making it through the worst bottleneck in civilization, bad documentation of computer hard/software, and then getting my software that uses that hard/software to work.

(3) A new, really good performance of some of the best music of the top few classical music composers, Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Wagner, Puccini, Verdi, Tchaikovsky.

I would list proving a new theorem or making a successful application of some theorems, but that pleasure was ruined for me: I had a good background in math (career, independent study, college) and computing (career) both a good career and a good marriage going, and my wife, brilliant, PBK, etc., and I decided to go to a famous research university and each get a Ph.D. When we left I had been in a multi-year, highly threatening, bitter, no holds barred bar fight with lots of jealous professors. That I (a) by far led the class in the department Chair's flunk-out, filter course, (b) did the best in the class on 4 of the 5 qualifying exams (c) in two weeks independently did surprising, publishable research (later published), and (d) had good progress on my dissertation research when I arrived and easily, quickly completed the research independently all just made the fighting more bitter. It appears that the fighting caused 5 of the professors, including the department Chair, to be fired. And there were at least 3 more profs fighting me. One of the profs, famous, I happened to meet some years later, and he still wanted to fight with me. My wife was treated poorly, for the first time in her life of a brilliant, spotless academic record, and the stress put her into a depression and a clinical depression that proved fatal. When we got our Ph.D. degrees and left, my career was junk, my marriage was junk, my finances were ruined, and my wife was fatally injured. Three profs tried to be nice to me, and two of them taught me some good things, but nearly all the rest of the profs I knew just tried to destroy me. And one of my wife's profs tried to destroy her. So, tough for me to get much pleasure out of research or applications of math. Weekly the university sends me requests to send them money -- HA!!!!

Solution: Take advantage of the current fantastic, historic opportunities of computing and the Internet to pick a niche problem, find a best solution for the niche, write some code, do a startup, solve the problem. So, sole, solo founder, 100% owner, with no teachers, profs, managers, BoD, or investors over me. Users interact with my Web site and nearly never with me. Revenue? Run ads I get from ad networks, etc. One more instance of revenge of the nerds!

Growing closer to God.

Getting a full 8 hours of sleep. In school day I have to sleep from 10PM to 5:30AM. Only 7 and a half hour of sleep.

In those days, I feel like I'm being hunted by a tiger.

Gardening, followed closely by woodworking

Working day and night on some light bit of code, while blasting k-pop or old school punk rock. Doesn't necessarily have to be coding; it's often just tweaking themes or playing with animations or particles.

It doesn't necessarily make for a great career though, because much of the job is unrelated and you don't really get to work all night. It was fun to do something, fall asleep, then wake up and continue.

Seeking out, visiting and documenting tiny museums. The smaller the better. It's a hobby I picked up a few years ago and it's endlessly rewarding, because it turns out there are tiny museums absolutely everywhere once you start looking for them.

I have over a hundred that I've visited on my website https://www.niche-museums.com

Take a bike ride around Tokyo to find a not-so-well-known park, set up my hammock and read while drinking a few craft beers.

Being outside, in nature. Especially mountains or the sea.

Music comes second, especially live.

Both are usually improved if I’m with people I’m close to.

Learning how my sales taxes go to supporting or preventing things.

Listening to a good album - start to finish - on good HiFi.

Sleeping and eating.

Two basic biological needs. Every time I eat or sleep it's like the first time.

It's all I really want to do.

Recently… meeting women on Tinder. Found my last two fiancés and current girlfriend that way XD

Watching my son grow/develop/flourish. When my cat climbs on me and purrs. The moments when you're playing music and you enter a state of flow. Pushing through difficult phases of learning new skills and coming out on the other side.

A good DOMS stitch from bodybuilding. A smooch from my cats. A good italian flag cookie or vietnamese egg custard. A good k-hole. Discovering new maths and new inventions. Building products which help people live better. Watching the world burn.

Music - I'm a pianist. There's a state of mind that I get into - maybe it's a so-called flow state - where I can become like a 3rd party observer and watch the improvement - even just the problem-solving process - as I practice.

My daughter.

Nothing comes close.

I - I feel like nothing, really.

Enjoying the effortless clarity and immersion that comes from not drinking coffee.

Coding, especially small side projects.

I’m in my early forties and it still gives me the same joy as it used to in my twenties, if not more.

It’s ok and healthy for a developer to stop coding after hours. But I don’t want to, at least not yet!

Using machine tools to turn metal into chips is way more fun that it should be for me. I hope to get a small machine shop up and going.

I liked editing my yard when I could. It's another summer of frustration as the Virginia Creeper and Weed Trees take over while I'm incapacitated, again! (Eye surgery this time) I'm hoping to get back out there by August, kill off a few hundred trees, and recommence the great edit.

In general, creating and curating things are the bees knees. Taking an idea, and bringing that into the world is fun as heck.

It feels so good to see publications that focus on people before their shirts and ties.

For me, there are several things that make me very happy:

- Getting calls from my parents

- Having a cocoon of friends that is like a second family

- Feeding on life's imperfect or dysfunctional experiences to build oneself (family or couple can be dysfunctional and it is these experiences that bring a form of joy when we overcome them together).

- Seeing that our actions have a positive impact on people's future (I make educational videos for embedded developers).

- Oh and chocolate too, a simple pleasure, but so effective

Having a great conversation about interesting subjects with a smart knowledgeable person. Ideally while walking and drinking coffee in glorious beautiful weather. Happiness isn’t expensive.

Skateboarding and roller skating with my 8 year old daughter. Adding a bunch of other kids, hockey sticks, RC vehicles and whatever else adds to the chaos only makes it better.

going down an alpine pass on a bicycle, being in complete control of my road bike, taking a bend perfectly while looking at the scenery by the side of my eye...

Spending time with my family. I used to enjoy programming (the alone on a greenfield project hacking kind) the most but things change as you get older.

Ecstasy. There are heights of happiness unreachable without drugs. The funny thing is, I only ever take it when I am happy, because it can‘t turn an existing frown upside down. It sucks feeling the chemical rush of it but without happiness, because your base state is bad.

The last time I took it was so long ago, I can‘t remember. I see no upcomming situation where‘d I‘d be happy enough to take it.

Playing a gig where the crowd is having a great time. Cuddling post coitus. Sitting on top of a mountain we've just climbed.

Reading. I follow many research topics and social topics. There's also lots of educational content in video format.

When I have enough mental energy, my favorite hobby is working on personal projects; mostly software but sometimes hardware. I love the process of slowly iterating and watching a project grow and improve over time. I also really enjoy reading about and testing out hardware. I find hardware to be so complex and interesting, yet also somewhat understandable when using the right abstractions in your head. These activities give me a sense of joy unlike anything else. However, when I get mentally drained, I resort to other activities.

When I need to relax, there are a few activities I really enjoy:

* Sit in nature and watch birds (yesterday two birds started making a nest in my birdhouse and I always find joy watching them)

* Hanging out with my two cats and dog; they are a great source of joy

* Learning from art. This comes in many forms, but I really like art that makes me reflect on my own life or life in general. Recently, I've been watching Studio Ghibli films and they are a great example. But I also enjoy comedy shows that simply give me a good laugh.

* Trying to create art (usually just sketching), which I don't do often, but enjoy it every time.

Completing my daily spiritual practice everyday has always been a source of happiness and bliss for me.

Outside of the obvious answer, for relaxation: having my (small) dogs lie in top of me and cuddle them.

Reading a book that engages a question or paradox I’ve been dwelling on for a long time.

Spending time with children.

Making/repairing something, or being fully engaged with a story (listening or reading or watching & listening, but the most engaging is when there's no screen and I can close my eyes and imagine), or the feeling of being present in a dream.

Sitting by a small campfire watching the sunset in the Rocky Mountains while sipping lemonade.

And making out.

For me it's spending time with friends. Interestingly, I'm a bit of an introvert.

consider the baseline state of the world, what pleasures are Not mindless escapism or illusion of plenty? I don't want to deceive myself that if i'd have some mundane pleasure it somehow compensates the entire weight of the world.

Spending time with my kid. Driving in the LA canyons. Those two above at the same time.

Making simple games (board or pc) for my kids and playing games with them. Knowing that your parents think of you as a good person. Being helpful to others above and beyond. Those are mine that gives me an immense sense of content.

Meandering on a motorcycle through some empty mountains. Visual context: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cbr2fw8ralG/

Having the house to myself, cracking open a beer and putting some tunes on

- MTB biking / Ultra-Endurance Road cycling - Running / Hiking in the mountains (actually climbing for the views) - Being creative (programming, sculpting, carving, painting, drawing)

Legography. Composing scenes with LEGO minifigs and photographing them

1. Watching my toddler get to enjoy new things for the first time.

2. Watching one of my older kids geek out over something that they've been waiting patiently for.

3. Being alone with my thoughts and a nice cigar.

Music, sex, drugs.

Music, hikes, painting.

Truthful conversation Snow, beach, forest Watching my kids play

Good food and anime.

Orgasm. Some drugs.

Riding a motorcycle in nature with perfect weather, new sights, and smells. Preferably while exploring a 'new to me' country.

Cuddling my kids

Flying aerobatics

Skiing and rock climbing at the edge of my ability

Drinking with the boys is pretty high up there.

When a contract or peer is so surprised at how satisfied they are with my work that they feel compelled to tell me.

Kayaking on a frigid, placid, alpine lake.

I have a fine career, been married for 10 years, etc. But most of my favorite memories are sex related, so that.

When my kid says something profound.

Since noone has said it... driving!

Hunger is the best condiment.

I volunteer at a farm animal Sanctuary, and promote veganism. Best work ever.

Fixing up houses. Carpentry, drywall etc. It's immensely satisfying.

There are several. Not according to order.

1. Chopin prelude plays on a bluetooth speaker. The room is dark. My mechanical keyboard emanates light. I solve problems with code. Code that is efficient, ingenious, redable, and scalable.

2. Learning new things in general. Or when it fits already accumulated knowledge. Like a new node in an already existing tree. This is somewhat abstract, sorry.

3. Spending time with SO. Any kind of time. Even mundane tasks like grocery shopping. I love her, and everything about her!

4. Cuddling with the dog. He reciprocates with licks and funny sounds and tail-wagging. Especially if it happens in our mango grove when there is strong breeze and there is no sun.

5. Swimming alone in a pond or lake when there is strong breeze and no sun (overcast). Especially butterfly and swimming face-up with no movement at all, with my ears submerged.

6. Being surrounded by mom and dad and eating special preparation cooked by her with dad reminiscing from his childhood.

7. Sitting in dark on rooftop while there is strong breeze. And reading calm, serene books like The Little Schemer.

8. Learning new Math. Gaining new perspectives, solving new problems.

9. Reading poetry that might not be mainstream but really touches me and are literary masterpieces. Like Vaishnava Padavalis and poems by Michael MS Dutt, and Jibanananda.

10. Being with like minded friends and dipping my feet in a river stream.

11. Understanding a hard, involved topic, and then explaining it plainly to people and when they get it. Especially if there is a strong stigma around the subject/topic being hard.

12. Thinking with writing and gaining new perspectives that I would not have gained without writing. pg talks about thinking with writing often. Also, randomly gaining epiphanies while doing something else.

13. Reciting poetry, especially when somewhat drunk.

14. Climbing highs with elongated period of hard work. Especially highs that I want to climb.

15. Consuming very high quality media of any kind. Like The Wire, Don Quixote, John Coltrane's Jazz, Chopin's Nocturnes, etc.

16. Reading big fat novels that are decades old, in paperback format, idly lying in bed in natural daylight and spending 5-6 hours doing it. Especially if the weather is somewhat hot.

17. After having exercised in the day, and having done deep focused work for some hours, the sleep I go into at night.

18. When I can help people that matters and there is a minor cost to myself. Or I have to work hard to help.

19. When beautiful, mature women pay attention to me/stare at me.

music, planting, hacking electronic stuff, research on renewable energy

Drunk in osdm moshpits gets me to whole new levels of dopamine

Watching my dog thrive

Spend countless hours configuring my OS to look my way.

Running, especially in the bush. Just me and nature.

A good day of surfing. Or sleeping with my partner

Being unemployed.

Coming home to a full mousetrap.

shallow to say, but making money

procastrinating.

Aviation

procrastinating.

Playing/singing my own music. Dream-flying with my two cats, who are no longer with me :/. Gardening. A good game of footy. Skiing like it's what I was born to do. Coding something remarkable way under schedule. Teaching my wife how to enjoy herself. GMing an amazing game session. Turning 62 this summer while camping out on my land in VT.

Boring, simple, male pleasures-

Making love and romancing a good woman.

Me and my buds drinking the good stuff and eating pizza.

Taking the kids out for ice cream

Drinking a good cappuccino with a croissant after a hard workout in the early morning

Swimming alone in the pool/ocean and just enjoying being alive

Going on a hike in the forest on magic mushrooms

Making music with my friends

Sex.