Happiness is the simple things

Happiness is...getting under the duvet before 12am, freshly showered, with nothing on my mind except thoughts of a good breakfast the next morning.

Happiness is...waking up naturally without the aid of a shrill alarm, with a contented smile on my face, and a sense of well-being radiating from every pore, matched by an upbeat soundtrack in my head (unlikely as it sounds, it happened before - more than once, in fact).

Happiness is...coming home to my favourite homecooked dishes by my favourite person in the whole wide world...
mommmmmmmmmy!!!

Happiness is...those anticipation-charged moments before the sounds from a new CD come through from the player.

Happiness is...accepting that it is fine to fall flat on my face once in a while. In fact, it is fine too if I wanna lie there and whine for a while - because I will always jump right back on my feet once I have had enough.

Happiness is...when Marian Keyes, Adele Parks, Louise Bagshawe, Plum Sykes, Sophie Kinsella and Candace Bushnell come up with new novels.

Happiness is...looking out of the window in my room in the early evening, when the sun casts its orange glow on the trees, and birds chirp cheerily as they return to their nests.

Happiness is...every latest issue of my fave mags.

Happiness is...receiving a "idle-chatter" kinda call or SMS from a good friend on a boring afternoon.

Happiness is...being really really really silly with my really really really silly but-oh-so-lovely puggies.

Happiness is...seeing how pissed off Ron the Pug can get when we stoically refuse to acknowledge his endless whines for snacks, snacks and more snacks.

Happiness is...finally learning that it is ok to not conform to all the norms out there.

Happiness is...hearing my mommmmmmy's glass-shattering singing drifting in from the kitchen (her unofficial office) into my room (my unofficial office).

Happiness is...munching on Calbee's Hot & Spicy Potato Chips.

Happiness is...the occasional realisation that I have the power to change my life, even if I sometimes feel powerless.

Happiness is...International buffets, Churrascaria restaurants and Chinese eating houses with dumplings and beer on their menus.

Happiness is...having homemade breakfast with my mum at West Coast Park.

Happiness is...downing a mug of beer on a warm afternoon.

Happiness is...dressing down and hanging out with dear friends over a little alcohol and loads of nonsensical chatter.

Happiness is...having made stupid mistakes earlier in my life, so I wouldn't make the same ones in future - hopefully.

Happiness is...the look, the feel and the scent of my freshly-cleaned boudoir.

Happiness is...Bak Chou Mee (with loads of lard and vinegar), Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee (with loads of lard and chilli), Chicken Rice (with breast meats and loads of chilli) and Fried Oysters (with loads of oysters and chilli).

Happiness is...loads of fresh salmon slices with loads of wasabi and loads of soy sauce.

Happiness is...large servings of kimchi, kimchi hot pot rice, kimchi pancakes, Korean BBQ beef, and a large pot of Korean specially mixed "50-year-old wine"...complemented by cigarettes.

Happiness is...Choco & Coffee biscuits by Bourbon.

Happiness is...going all out to do a great job when it seems humanly impossible and getting it right in the end.

Happiness is...waking up at 7.30am, jogging at 8.00am, and having a sinfully indulgent breakfast at 9.00am.

Happiness is...toasts with garlic spread or toasts with
butter and jam

Happiness is...the joy of knowing that there are always family and friends who love me - people I can count on.

Happiness is...having worthy people in my life - people worth caring for, people worth worrying about.

Happiness is...a tub of Ben & Jerry Strawberry Cheesecake
Ice Cream.


Happiness is knowing that it really isn't that tough to be happy.