A little hedonism

[sasha_feather]

Having a lot of pain right now in my mouth; I'm maybe in a migraine cycle. It helps to contemplate things that are physically enjoyable:

For my feet, I wear fuzzy socks and some wool slippers that jesse_th_k gave me. The dog has very soft ears. My black leather jacket is one of my favorite things to touch, it's buttery soft. I have a very comfy henley shirt that I've been wearing for sleep.

I find it easy to feast my eyes. Tumblr is good for looking at beautiful pictures of landscapes, or art of my favorite characters. I have art and interesting objects in my apartment. Taking photos helps me think about what looks cool and interesting. Some of TV shows I watch are very pretty to look at.

I have free accounts at Spotify and Pandora. I like this playlist (which I named Chill yet inspiring) a lot:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7oXtXJuLv8bgdo4MTrV1uP

I also sometimes listen to rain and storm sounds on YouTube.

The Fat Nutritionist says: food you like is food that makes you feel good. So, it's not just about taste, but about how it feels when you chew it, and how you feel afterward, etc. Having pain in my mouth means that cold drinks and frozen food are helpful. Soft foods like yogurt are soothing. Chewing gum is a good distraction sometimes.

I'm not so into smells, but I can think about the smell of cut grass, or of brownies cooking in the oven.

It's also helpful to think about things that are emotionally pleasing, of course:

Reading romantic fanfic, or just thinking about ships I like.

Remembering good times. One time jesse_the_k and bibliofile and I went to Think Galacticon in Chicago, and stayed at the most fancy hotel. It was like something out of James Bond. We were on the top floor and the windows looked out at Lake Michigan.

Thinking about horses and dogs that i have known and loved.

What are some things that come to mind for you?

Comments

[owlectomy]

I am thinking a lot about going roller-skating this past Saturday, the pleasure of movement and the total effortful-but-fun engagement of trying to figure out how to do it. I want that more for myself... but there is no roller rink in town, all the ones around are pretty far away.

The smell of aromatics cooking makes me happy -- I often cook something that starts with onions and garlic, or onions and garlic and ginger, and I love when the apartment is full of those smells. I love the thoughtful precision of baking.

Clean sheets.

Reading tarot cards - my decks are decks I chose because I loved the artwork.

Woodsy, herbal smells.

Sitting outside in nature. Sitting outside in nature, reading.

Taking care of my plant.

I enjoyed this post! It is honestly hard for me to get enough pleasure in my life, I've been living so much in my own head for the last while.

Thanks for nudging me to think about pleasure.

[jesse_the_k]

and I'm so glad to be appreciated.

I love playing with turkey jerky flavor. Right now I think I've found the perfect mix of shallots, ginger, garam masala and maple syrup. So that's a smell-taste twofer. But that won't prevent me from experimenting more :,)

Today I had 1/4 of a Naked Baker brand chocolate chunk GF brownie, and it was a chocorgasm. I was flying high for 45 minutes!

I'm grooving on your playlist right now. White Flag by Joseph is particularly sticky -- has anyone made a vid with it? No Neko Case?

I've been post-noodling (thinking/planning/drafting) about my favorite sort of music, which I think of as "chamber folk" or "folk jazz." Putting together a Spotify playlist would be gratifying.

Yes! That Chicago hotel room was ... not something I even thought was possible. The TV that was inset in the bathroom mirror!

Nuzzling Bella's soft soft fur. Snuggling with MyGuy on a cold morning.

One of the benefits of age is more opportunity for Good Things to remember.

Before I got sick, I was a freelance sign language interpreter. I vividly remember one meeting where at least one-third of the attendees were non-native English speakers. It felt like I could distill many meanings into my hands, and even the hearing attendees were hanging on my signs.

Back in 1989, I had the chance to advocate for alternate formats (large print, braille, audio) in front of people who since made the web happen. I have a glow of pride that I may have sown useful seeds there.

The cold turn this week means I can dress in wool long underwear and socks. Thanks, sheep!

Re: Thanks for nudging me to think about pleasure.

[sasha_feather]

This is such a lovely list!!

Did I put White Flag on the playlist? It would sure fit, that's a cool song. There probably is a vid to it. I started using spotify because that's what the group uses at books to prisoners, and it's been fun playing around with it. I possibly listened to too much neko case, and am therefore looking for a break, but she is on some of my other playlists.

Wool is so great! I'm enjoying my long black wool coat.

[sasha_feather]

I hear that about living in one's head. Roller skating sounds so fun! :D

[toft]

When I was really physically miserable with pregnancy nausea & couldn't enjoy food or think about food at all, I found lavender a good smell. I also found romantic or sexy fanfic very helpful. I liked looking at trees.

[sasha_feather]

I'm so glad that we have fanfic! What a comfort. Trees are so calming to contemplate.