Life is not without its small pleasures. That's for sure. Even the most mundane, annoying task may include a small perk or pleasure that detracts from its soul-sucking. A day full of paying bills can be improved by finding a dollar in your pocket. Being stuck in traffic for hours is almost worth it when your odometer rolls over to a perfect even number. No matter how your day is going, it always gets a little better, even for a second, when you get a double-peanut in your bag of peanuts, or you make a two-pointer throwing something into the trash. Small pleasures are the threads that hold your ever-frazzled life together, and here are a few of mine.
Driving can be a headache, especially in Ohio. Some happy accidents (probably not the best terminology) that happen while driving:
When your windshield wipers go in time with the music on the radio.
Similarly, when the blinking yellow or red traffic goes in time with the music. If it also goes in time with the wipers, then the rare triple-traffic sync will make your car into a time machine for that moment only.
When you pull into your driveway right when the song that's playing ends.
When you get a parking space right next to the entrance of where you're going (I achieved this on the night before Thanksgiving, when downtown Youngstown was crowded with of cars and people.
When you find long-lost stuff under the seats (money, sunglasses, tapes).
Sometimes random things appeal to the senses. Here are some sights, sounds and tastes that are especially satisfying:
The first chew of a new piece of gum.
Popping your knuckles, neck, or whatever bones give that satisfying crunch - even though it's probably bad for you.
Bubble wrap - everything about it.
The smell of new clothes.
The sound and texture of cracking an egg - if you can do it with one hand, bonus.
Gasoline - your parents said not to smell it, but you try to catch a whiff anyway.
The smell of indoor swimming pools (which I know I've written about before).
Biting into an apple, the taste, sound and feel are all unbeatable.
The sounds in old video games - all the bleeps and bloops.
Tearing into a neatly wrapped package or present.
The sound of a tree getting chopped down, especially after the "Timber!" part.
Squeezing a new tube of toothpaste.
The feeling of getting your hair cut.
Some other cool coincidences:
When you pump gas and are able to stop right at .00.
When you get to the microwave and open it with one second to spare.
When you have exact change.
When you are fast-forwarding through DVR or a video and are able to stop right as the commercial ends. This skill is a source of contention for me and my friends as they claim there is a delay on my remote that makes it unfair for outsiders trying to show off their fast-forwarding skills.
When you're meeting someone and you both arrive at the same time.
When you go out to eat and come back from the bathroom and your food is waiting for you (stolen from "Pulp Fiction").
When you catch a leaf as it falls from a tree.
Getting two bags of chips for one in the vending machine (conversely, having your chips dangling there stuck is one of the worst things in the world).
So whether you get to see a rainbow, or get to scratch that itchy spot between your shoulders, or find that missing sock, I hope that a small pleasure helps make your day a little brighter. Now to peek under my couch cushion in hope of hidden treasure.
What's one of your small pleasures? Let me know at ssepanek@tribtoday.com, or comment on this story at www.tribtoday.com.