50 Good Things About Life

1. A peaceful sleep. No worries keeping you awake, no nightmares, no alarm clocks.
2. Waking up early. Not because you have to --just for the sake of the lingering sunshine on your face.
3. The smell of fresh coffee.
4. A smoke to accompany the fully caff'ed.
5. Breakfast. Full-fledged, deserving its name. Tomatoes, olives, and all.
6. Money. The dirt on your hand. Without it, you're worthless. Not that this is my design, it's just the way it goes. Not that I'd put so much emphasis on it, if it were up to me.
7. Health. One thing your money can't buy. You can buy to look younger, but you can't buy off a flu.
8. Cold beer. No tin can, the bottle himself.
9. The sea. Is there anything more soothing than the sound of waves? The sea, the horizon, the mild breeze.
10. The rain, H2O again. I truly feel sorry for people who are too elite to get soaked by the rain.
11. Whistling, it's so cliche, but so heart warming.
12. Fire. Not as in "the roof is on fire" -- but a campfire, or even a candle. Isn't it hypnotic?
13. Poetry. In ancient times, people gathered around a fire, and listened to the shaman (who was also a poet). Under the spreading chestnut tree, I sold you and you sold me.
14. Music. Or better yet, songs that pierce your very soul. An actual song with lyrics. I'm listening to Lemon from U2, at the moment (yeah, hence the name of the blog, clever you). Midnight is where the day begins. A man dreams of leaving, but he always stays behind.
15. Drunkness. "Get drunk -- with wine, or poetry, or with love". Can't really recall, but I think it was Verlaine.
16. A pet. Ever considered what a kitten or puppy might bring your home?
17. Lies. That's how you tell friend from foe.
18. Love. I really had to restrain meself up to this point, but I guess it would pop in sooner or later. And my scale for love is the size of your grin when you hug your beloved. Nothing more, nothing less.
19. Randomness. And complexity. Even if you do the exact same things at the exact same times, today won't be anything like yesterday.
20. Getting married. Once and for all, you find who you belong to. Home is sweet.
21. Getting divorced. The freedom of being on your own.
22. Getting shot. If you don't know what it's like being close to the end, how can you appreciate life?
23. Hellos. The basics of human interaction. Full of surprises.
24. Games. Toys. Who wouldn't play?
25. Photographs, framed on the wall. What other proof have you got of your lives?
26. The Impressionists. Monet, Renoir. Degas. Sisley. This is art.
27. 1984. A tale so full of truth. Thank you, Orwell.
28. Also Sprach Zarathustra. Ein buch fur Alle und Keinen.
29. Hitch-hiking. You can't compare it with luxury cruise lines.
30. A good movie. Fight Club, for example. Or A Bout de Souffle. Or Memento.
31. Time, when you're not racing against it. Time, when you're sun-bathing, or making love.
32. Friends. The kind you can call up after years of silence.
33. Parents. Even if you don't even speak with them. For once, you owe them this very life of yours. For seconds, all the attention you'll ever get might be theirs.
34. Children. Of your own. From your beloved. Never mind the numbers in the list, this is the best you'll ever get, guaranteed.
35. Sailing. No diesel, no plexiglas, no buttons or switches. Just sailing, like they did in ancient China, racing through the fog and what not.
36. Open source. Information wants to be free.
37. The wind. In your hair, on your bare skin.
38. The more I listen to it, the least I can resist: The Raconteurs -- My Baby Shot Me Down from the Lollapalooza, followed by Nancy Sinatra.
    
39. Kurt Cobain minus Courtney Love.
40. Traveling. Go go go!
41. Crying. Yeah yeah, boys don't cry. In public.
42. Marketing. For showing us what we can be fooled into.
43. George W. Bush. For showing us what failure is.
44. The night. When it's quiet, dark, and lonely. When strangest things happen.
45. Dreams. The goals, not the sleepy images. The imaginary projections of ourselves. Aren't they perfect?
46. Imagination. What separates us from other animals.
47. Luck. Fate. Probability. Whatever you call it, you can't deny its impression on your life.
48. Sorrow. And regret. The ultimate teachers.
49. Snow. Now, isn't that a miracle?
50. Life itself. Believe it or not, this is the only one you'll get.