Ants

So i'm really into ants now, and reading about them makes me happy.
How it happened:
I bought a National Geographic in Ireland, to try and get rid of the few euros i had left. It had a picture of the great barrier reef-- and at the time, reading about ocean organisms made me happy. I never read the magazine on the plane, nor did i read it on the plane to or from Mexico.
A while later i brought it to my family's cabin, and finally flipped it open to this article on leafcutter ants. It was Amaazzing. They had such complex ways of communication and their way of life was so unlike any ants i had read about (pr observed) before. Soon i was telling everyone all about leafcutter ants.
Then i got a job at a bookstore, checked out the ant books, got out the ant book from the library and started to read it. It was the same guy from the article! Mark Moffett-- and this is his book:


It's a really good read. Not dry at all like many insect books, but full of stories of his adventures among ants. Which really, i should have expected from the title. But wow. Ants make me so damn happy.
Here's a photo of Mark Moffetts from his book. It's a major "marauder" ant giving minor marauder ants a lift.


Hope the post made you happy too, and that the giant ant didn't creep you out :)

Weekend Vacations

I had my great escape this weekend with my favorite people, off to B.C. Spending time laying by the beach, driving through mountains, and relaxing in our cabin hastens away any stress or unhappiness. Now I'm feeling great, and ready to face the rest of the week :)



Escaping to a favorite place with people i love is definitely on my happy list.

Miyazaki Films

Some of my favourite times are spent watching movies with my boyfriend.
It's especially fun watching Hayao Miyazaki films with him because he both thinks they're so weird and so great! Makes me happy. A feel-good film of Miyazaki's is "My Neighbor Totoro". You can just get comfy and be lost in someone else's imagination-- in the unique story, bizzare characters, and breathtaking art.

Music - Simon and Garfunkel meets Jonatha Brooke

This is one of my favourite songs, Bleecker Street. The song was written by Simon and Garfunkel, but here it is sung by Jonatha Brooke. She does a beautiful job of the song, and Simon and Garfunkel's poetry is at its finest.
I listen to this to get in a good, relaxed mood. The imagery is so vivid, and so "not here".
The downside to this video is the font of the lyrics, which looks tacky and juvenile. (I'll try and get a new video up, soon as I can.) But just listen to the words and arrangement. A stunning song.

Happy Food

My mum bought these little apple strudle-y things today. She is a nice lady!

Yes i took a picture of my mini apple strudely things. They look larger than dinos here, but really they are the length of my pinky. Perhaps you also noticed my oranges and bagels? Those makes me happy, too.

The Happiness Google

Googled "happiness". Of all the images that came up, only two made me feel some happiness. They were of Harvest Moon and Yoshi.


It is probably safe to say that gaming makes me happy.

And do you know, about a week or so ago I bought Super Mario Galaxy 2. I destroyed an angry mushroom. I watched the mushroom's scowling face vanish, and I felt happy!
Video games are therapeutic. Yes, yes. I am convinced. Lettuce all go play video games!
Having a chance to defeat something which represents anger and malice is highly uplifting.

Super Mario Galaxy2 also has the benefit of bunnies. Although thoroughly annoying in the game, the presence of bunnies makes me happy!


Happy Gaming! (Or, Happy Possibly-Considering-Gaming).

The First Post

Well, I was searching around for some happy things on the internet, having felt a great depression coming on (-- the emotional sort, not financial). But you know, it's hard to find happy things on the internet. A lot of people's fun stories and jokes actually just made me feel terrible. Jokes about people having too many babies make me feel depressed about child birthing and those poor women who pushed out a dozen. But anyway. This went on for a bit, and I decided that it was hard to find my own sort of happy. So I am going to post happy things that come to mind (or that I have to strain my mind to find).
It would be great if anyone who happens upon my blog would post a little happy something back.
Here goes.