happiness how'd you get to be happiness

Recently I was passed a Tree Of Happiness by the wicked glam Super Kawaii Mama (if you haven't yet, go over and check out her incredibly stylish blog... you will not regret it, it's fabulous)

Now, the Tree Of Happiness is basically this: I tell you guys 6 things that make me happy, and pass the Tree along to 6 other bloggers so that they may do the same. It's been a hard couple of weeks, and so happiness was harder than usual to consider. But I am glad I did, because these are good silver linings to keep in mind. Ok here are my 6:

#1. Compliments. That's not to say I'm vain! *pokes tongue out* It's because: nowadays, life is so hectic, people get so rushed & disconnected, so defensive & suspicious of one another... it just seems like people are 10 times more ready to voice a complaint than a compliment. Kind words are free, easy, and make people feel good. And compliments are motivating as Hell. So compliments make me happy- both the giving and the receiving. A win-win situation both ways!

#2. This may be rather obvious, but- my pets. I have 3 dogs, 2 cats, a goldfish and 2 dojo loaches. And every one of them brings super-duper-happiness to my life ♥ As they depend on me, I depend on them. I adore them, they each have their own very distinct, crazy personalities. They are always one of my biggest concerns in my imaginary zombie-apocalypse planning... in a hypothetical post-apocalyptic world of the living dead, I'd be running through Walmart, dodging zombies while juggling cans of Alpo and Nine Lives, no doubt.

#3. Tuesday nights. Currently, I go over to my Dad's house on Tuesday nights, as do my brother, sis-in-law, nieces & nephew. My Dad & stepmom cook dinner (mmmm good stuff too, like pot roast with all the trimmings or shish kebab cooked on the grill or homemade pizza), and we all watch the kids run around being crazy and hilarious. I always bring my little chihuahua with me cause the kids love her, sometimes they bring their dog too, and along with my Dad's 2 dogs the pups all go nuts playing together, and the kid's proclaim it a "dog parteeee!" It's good times.

#4. Horror movies make me happy. Maybe that's weird. But I am a horror film fanatic. It especially makes me happy to discover a great new horror flick, the scarier the better. Good horror gives me such an adrenaline rush.

#5. Fashion! Yeah I said it, haha. For instance Polyvore is my online addiction (as you can see from this blog) Also I'm getting my stuff out of storage soon... I have a lot of clothing that I am going to be selling on ebay, and so I've had fashion & clothing on the brain a lot recently... and Polyvore is such a good artistic outlet. I have a lot of fun designing outfits there *grin* But I just love clothing and style in general. Getting dressed up is such fun in a girly way. And I am a girl, after all. But not many people know that I attended a private college for 2+ years working toward a degree in fashion design! I never finished my degree due to the school being closed down before I could finish (and I couldn't transfer my credits anywhere nearby, so I never finished), but I love textiles and clothing design and fashion to this day.

#6. Independence. This is a big one. For a lot of years now I have been forced to live off of someone in one way or another, and have had to suppress myself almost completely from the normal kinds of self-expression I'd freely exhibit if I was alone... stuff like cooking dinner at 3 a.m, or walking through the house in nothing but my underwear, or blasting my music loud as Hell and dancing on my bed. I really miss being able to just, well, be ME. It's a big part of my depression right now, because I am in a situation where I have had to put pretty much all of my self away in order to get along where I am forced to live right now. It's way too dysfunctional to get into the details here *facepalm* But I am still looking for a mobile home, and as soon as we can find one I will be out of here. And tasting real independence for the first time in many years. So I can really say that independence= happiness in my book, I can appreciate that now more than ever before.

And that's it for my Tree... I will be tagging 6 of you to do the same so heads up, doods!