The Happiness Tag

Thanks to Google for the pictures and all that.

I have been informed that I make people “happy”!  Anyone who knows my teaching style will be aware that happiness is an emotion I try to avoid conveying during my lessons.  I prefer “bitter teacher, resentful of the youth of today” but if happiness is something I’m providing through blogging, then so be it!  Vahrkalla of V V Games recently posted a blog also entitled The Happiness Tag and pointed out that I am a blogger providing happiness to the masses.

Look at how happy I’m making you all! LOOK! YOU ARE THIS HAPPY!

I’ll actually say thank you to him for the tag.  I’ve had a few of these “award” tags recently and I haven’t got around to posting my responses to them which I think looks fairly bad so I’m going to use this one to catch up.

Rules and such:

• List 5 things that make you happy
• List 5 songs that make you happy
• List 5 bloggers that make you happy

Things

1. Video Games

So this one seems pretty obvious considering the theme of my blog, but gaming keeps me centred most of the time.  Good day or bad, I like to play something in the evening (or at any opportunity really).  I tend to stick to one or two games at a time so I don’t lose track of story/controls/other things but regardless of what I’m currently playing, coming back to having a game or two of it makes me happy.

2. Family

This seems like a bit of a cop-out, of course family makes me happy.  I love my wife and my daughter is amazing (she’s 4 and likes playing Street Fighter…) so, you know, happy stuff.  I’m also fond of my in-laws and my sister (don’t tell her) and her family and have just come back from a big group holiday that consisted of a week of beaches, BBQs and board games.  Happy times!

3. Whisky

Look, don’t judge me alright!  I know the idea of booze making me happy would be somewhat frowned upon, but I like whisky.  I don’t drink it to excess, but I tend to have a a glass or two over the course of a week.  Unlike my experience with most spirits, I find whisky interesting because almost every brand is different.  I love trying a single malt that I haven’t had before and comparing it to previous bottles in the never ending effort to find a new favourite (Talisker is the long time reigning champion of my mouth.  Yes, you read that right).

4.  Walking

I’m in the enviable position of living about 3 miles from work meaning I can walk to and from work every day.  It’s a great way to start and end my day, and whilst I have to leave the house very early in the morning, it allows me to reduce stress at the end of the day and get home in a better mindset that if I’d been stuck in traffic for the past 20 minutes.  Plus I can listen to podcasts and audiobooks.

5. Books

Right, I like to read books from time to time but I never really have time to do so.  I’m also a pretty slow reader for no particular reason.  This ties in with my previous reason, because I’m really glad to have Audible and the chance to spend around an hour and a half walking every day.  Rather than reading I can listen to the books on my travels.  I’ve been listening to the Dark Tower series recently as well as Yahtzee Crowshaw’s books.  I especially enjoyed Under the Dome as an audiobook.  It was like having a drama series in my ears with a new episode every day.

Songs

If you do one thing with your day, make it listening to these.

1. Superman by Goldfinger

2. Blitzkrieg by Reuben

3. Buck Rogers by Feeder

4. Second Solution by The Living End

5. (Don’t Fear) The Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult

Bloggers

This is easily the most difficult one.  Choosing only five bloggers of the large number I read is tricky, but here are five for your delectation.  I’ve gone for ones I’ve followed more recently.  Do read their words!

Neko Jonez

The Dragon’s Tea Party

Musings of a Mario Minion

SquareBlind

The Video Game Virtuoso

Good evening to you all!