Top 10 Things of All Time

 

 

For the last blog of the year, I thought I would spice things up a bit and go from a top 5 list to a top 10. What better subject to make a list about than all of life itself. My explanations may not do all of these things justice, but I hope you understand what I am getting at when I list these things. Below are my top 10 favorite feelings/things ever.

 

10. Early Morning Drives to the Airport

 

The start of every vacation. Waking up at 4 am when it is still dark, frantically brushing your teeth, grabbing the bags that you packed the night before, and finally grabbing some food and getting in the car. The entire experience just has a special place in my heart because of the association with vacations and adventure. There are never any cars on the road so we fly down the highways and end up getting to the airport way too early every time. Even though I’m always half asleep, vacations wouldn’t be the same without these drives. 

 

9. Late Night Convos

I think I mentioned it in a previous blog post but I love late night conversations with my friends. Whether over FaceTime, Xbox, or in person, when I talk to people past 1 am I know I am in for a memorable conversation. Depending on who I’m talking to, I either end up laughing until my sides hurt, sitting in shock and awe at some deep topic, or scheming up some elaborate plan that is doomed to fail but fun to plan out. I don’t know why late night convos are so special, maybe I’m just tired and slap-happy or maybe knowing that the day is over lets me put my guard down and relax. Either way, late night convos definitely hit different.

 

8. Driving with the Windows Down

Those of you who have gotten in a car with me or those unfortunate enough to have parked nearby me early in the morning Junior year know that there is only one way that I like to drive: windows down with the music up. Unless it’s raining, below 20 degrees, or my parents are in the car, I drive with the sunroof and all the windows open, blasting my music. I started doing this originally because my dad would do it when I was a kid, I would be so excited to “ride the wind” as he called it that I would press the button that rolls down the window before he would even start the car. Now, I do it partly because the noise of the wind and the music combine to muffle my singing so I don’t have to hear how bad I am and partly for reasons I don’t even know. Something about the wind in your face on a sunny day produces a serotonin rush like no other.

 

7. Food After Swimming

It is especially difficult for me to explain this entry in the list, but I think most people know what I’m talking about. For some reason that is beyond me, food tastes 10x better after getting out of the pool. At first I was gonna chalk it up to being tired after exercise, but I hate eating after I work out normally, so I really have no clue why this is the case. My personal favorite post-swim food is a hotdog–something I normally try to avoid eating but can’t stay away from after swimming. Be sure to let me know your favorite pool foods in the comments.

 

6. Scoring a Game Winner

From an intense volleyball tournament to a casual game of driveway basketball, one of my favorite feelings is scoring the final point to seal a game. I will be the first to admit, I am not amazing at basketball so it doesn’t happen often, but when I score a game winner, it feels amazing. I’m also willing to extend this beyond sports. The feeling of hitting a straight or a flush off of the flop in poker is the exact same feeling except with the added excitement of winning some cash.

 

5. Finding a Song Based on a Few Lyrics

There’s no worse feeling than hearing a song on the radio or when someone is on aux, going to add it, and then realizing you don’t remember enough lyrics to find it. Conversely, when you type in the few words you remember or hum the melody and are able to find exactly what you’re looking for, you can’t help but feel triumphant. Normally, this doesn’t work out and those songs are lost to me forever. When I do find a song this way, it makes listening to it even better than hearing it for the first time. 

 

4. Closing out of Tabs After Finishing a Project

I’m a major procrastinator which moved this into the top half of my list. When I put things off, I don’t just ignore them, I leave a tab open to the assignment and all the related materials because I tell myself that I’ll work on it later. Because of this, I normally have a lot of tabs open (I have 13 right now!) and they end up stressing me out by reminding me of how busy I am. When I do end up finally finishing a big project or, even better, all the work I have been assigned, closing out of each tab is an act of catharsis as I let go of my stress at the click of a button. 

 

3. Unexpected Snaps/Texts

 

While unexpected snaps and texts can be a bad thing occasionally, generally they are one of my favorite things. When a person who you haven’t talked to in forever reaches out and asks how you’re doing or asks to make plans with you, it’s hard not to smile. Knowing that someone else was thinking about me, especially when I wasn’t thinking about them, makes me feel special. Recently, this happened to me when my 8th grade PI teacher emailed me and asked about how senior year was going and what my plans for college were. After 4 years, I had assumed most of my junior high teachers had forgotten about me so knowing that they hadn’t made me proud that I had left some impact on that teacher.

 

2. Dogs

 

I am a huge dog person. Whether it’s Harry, my bulldog pictured to the left, or a random dog on the street, I can’t help but devolve to a baby voice and call whatever four-legged friend I come across what a good boy/girl they are. It’s hard to pick between all the great things about dogs so I decided to just include them in general. From Harry’s excited tail wags to the way he waits for me to get home when I am out, everything about what dogs do is amazing. When I’m at work, the best part of any shift is when a customer brings a dog in. No matter how bad my day is going, any interaction with a dog instantly ameliorates my mood.

 

1. Making People Laugh

 

Not to brag, but I consider myself a funny person and usually don’t have trouble getting a chuckle out of my friends. However, when I say making people laugh, I don’t mean just reply “lmao” or giggle at a joke. I’m referring to making someone laugh so hard that their sides hurt, one of those jokes that gets a whole group of people laughing and adding on bits in between laughs. Most often, this stems from some sort of inside joke that other people wouldn’t understand. Personally, I think that knowing a joke stems from some shared experience or personal connection makes it even better. Even when a joke requires no context, the feeling of knowing that your joke landed perfectly is probably my favorite in the world. I know I left a lot off this list, there are so many honorable mentions. Be sure to let me know what you think I forgot in the comments.