Exercise #3 Part 1

Love Exercise 3 Part 1

75 Simple Pleasures

1.       Chocolate chip cookies

2.       Baking cookies

3.       Pumpkin Iced Coffee

4.       Patting my dog

5.       Going on a walk with my dog

6.       Stepping on the crunchy leaves

7.       Skipping

8.       Laughing

9.       Eating a crisp grape

10.   Blowing bubbles

11.   Running through sprinklers

12.   Shopping

13.   Eating ice cream

14.   Strawberry picking

15.   Apple picking

16.   Blueberry picking

17.   Making a smoothie

18.   Saying hello to people in the hallway

19.   Giving hugs

20.   Receiving hugs

21.   Making lemonade

22.   Brushing my hair

23.   Getting a hair cut

24.   Painting my nails

25.   Smell of clean clothes

26.   Taking a bubble bath

27.   Walking on the beach

28.   Playing in the sand

29.   Building a sand castle

30.   Reading a nice book

31.   Talking to an old friend

32.   Doodling

33.   Calling my grandma

34.   Skyping with my cousins

35.   Jumping through waves

36.   Doing cartwheels

37.   Playing in the snow

38.   Going on a run

39.   Playing field hockey

40.   Walking bare foot on grass

41.   Hula hooping

42.   Watching The Other Guys

43.   Dancing

44.   Doing yoga

45.   Going jazz squares

46.   Chugging an entire water bottle as fast as a can

47.   Peeling an orange in one peel

48.   Unwrapping a Hershey Kiss

49.   Listening to Move Your Feet

50.   Dancing when no one’s watching

51.   Smell of freshly brewed coffee

52.   Walking into Whole Foods

53.   Watching the sunset

54.   Watching the sunrise

55.   Laughing so hard you cry

56.   Writing on the first page of a new notebook

57.   The smell of a new book

58.   Doing well on an exam

59.   Playing Just Dance on Wii

60.   Sleeping in late

61.   Brunch

62.   Hanging out with friends

63.   Taking the train

64.   Going on a boat

65.   Kayaking

66.   Driving down a wide street

67.   Painting

68.   Sewing

69.   Singing in the shower

70.   Tie-dying a t-shirt

71.   Drawing a smiley face onto a steamy window

72.   Playing with my dog

73.   Walking on the ridge of the sidewalk

74.   Making snow angels

75.   Having family dinners

This past Saturday, I tried to incorporate as many simple pleasures as I could in order to make my day brighter and more enjoyable. I played Just Dance on Wii with some of my cast members of The Cripple of Inishmaan, I went on a nice walk with my dog in the morning, I laughed as much as possible (which, I know, is very hard to believe;)), I gave and received many hugs after we lost in semi finals, and when I came home that night, I sang extremely loudly in the shower to Maroon 5. Although the day should have been a sad one, because we didn’t move on in the theatre competition, it actually was one of the best I have had in a while. I made sure that I was going to make the most out of that day, by not only doing some of the things listed on my “simple pleasures” but also by keeping up a positive attitude. At first it was hard to be optimistic and happy, but as the day continued, and my stress decreased, genuine happiness set in.

One thing that really helped make my day happier, was laughing. I usually laugh a lot, but on Saturday I made sure to laugh even more. It was like during the laugh yoga class: at first the laughing may be forced and awkward, but after I while it becomes genuine and contagious. Laughing really did make my day a brighter one, bringing true happiness to not only me, but the people around me who caught my case of the giggles. People at the host school knew me as the “giggle girl”, for I was always smiling and laughing. That made me happy to know that I was being associated and known for a good quality, making my day brighter.

I also made sure that I would try to interact with more people and say hello more often. Although the simple act of greeting somebody may sound trivial, it actually had a huge impact on my day. Because I was friendlier than usual, I had a chance to meet and get to know people that I normally did not talk to. New friendships rapidly blossomed out of my greetings, which led to some great experiences and happy moments. I’m really glad that I stuck with my extroverted pact on Saturday, for it made my day, and future days to come, more enjoyable out of the new friendships that I formed.

Along with new friendships that were created from being more social on Saturday, I also had a great day due to the experiences that I got involved in. Normally, I would not be the one to dance with strangers, but on Saturday I did. Set up in the main room was a Wii game with Just Dance. Because I was making an effort to complete as many simple pleasures as possible, I grabbed two of my friends from the cast, and ran over to the dancing area. There, we had a ball dancing goofily and laughing hysterically at the dance moves that we were required to do. I’m really glad that I did that, and broke out of my shell, because I ended up having a great time, sharing lots of laughs, and making new dance friends in the process.

All in all, my day was very enjoyable. I had a set plan to try my hardest to keep up a happy attitude, while also completing some of my listed simple pleasures. By successfully taking part in many of my pleasures, my day was completely transformed from a sad, over packed say of stressful competitions, to an upbeat, fun day full of laughing, friendships, and good experiences. From now on, I am going to make a solid attempt at completing my simple pleasures more often, for they truly made my day, and me, extremely happy.