that happy

tonight i'm happy. the kind of happy that makes me squeal, but only on the inside cause it's for no particular reason. i'm mad about some things, dreading others, confused to the limits of confusion on others, but i still feel happy. there are no major events in my life, no updates to fill people in on when they ask what's new. this year i learned that christmas is engagement season. and it seems like everyone is either graduating, getting married, having babies, or doing something exceptional. i'm just doing my thing. thinking and writing. the most exciting thing i've got is that i picked a title for my future autobiography. "the girl with the yellow plate." however, after explaining why to one person i realized it's not a title that will make sense without reading the book. hopefully the suspense this will build in my three (four, tops) blog readers, will help "the girl with the yellow plate" to sell out in stores on the day it is finally published.

i'm happy that i know and love myself, cause i am "fearfully and wonderfully made." that i am original. that strangers at the gym ask what kind of music i'm listening to. that i live at home and don't have to cook. that a coworker gave me fake flowers. i'm happy that i had a peppermint mocha while snowflakes were falling tonight. that "up in the air" was the best movie i've seen all year (ha-ha-ha, but it really was awesome!). i'm happy that i didn't have to scrape snow off my car when i came out of the movie theater. that my car is running. that there is a full moon. and that sometimes i like being alone.

and all this happiness reminded me that i've been meaning to write down a list of my "favorite feelings" ever since last summer. being at the beach with my best friends prompted us to start that list, based on a)our obsession with random lists and b)the fact that few things feel better than being at the beach with your friends. here's the start of the list, in no particular order, and it's definitely going to be continued ...

1. finishing a workout where you really pushed yourself
2. getting honked at (this might just be me, most girls seem to hate this)
3. just-shaved legs
4. laughing uncontrollably, tears in your eyes, unable to finish sentences
5. getting recognized for something you thought nobody noticed
6. compliments, compliments, compliments
7. handwritten cards/letters/notes
8. riding in the back of pick-up trucks
9. riding on my dad's shoulders (when i was a kiddo of course)
10. confirmation that what you heard from God was right-on
11. skipping a rock just right