Happiness is easy...

There are some things in my life that make me happy, indeed some are a source of such joy as I never imagined possible. Equally, there are some aspects of my life that depress me beyond words, taking me to dark places that leave me clinging desperately to the good things as motivation for... well, everything.

I don't propose to list the things that fall into these categories, the causes of my joy and misery - this is just a blog, after all, not therapy (although some might argue it's both). And of course, like most introspective fools I'm prone to mulling over the latter rather than celebrating the former. After all, who doesn't like to scratch a bothersome itch or, more fittingly, pick at a scab?

Also like most introspective fools, at least those that do their introspection properly, by which I mean "like me", I'm quite cynical when it comes to self-help books, CBT and all the rest. If I get to the point of needing help, I'll talk to my mates, thanks. But even so, when I saw a copy of Alex Quick's 102 Free Things To Do - inspiring ideas for a better life in my local library I was intrigued enough to get it out on loan and have a read. Thankfully, it doesn't set out to be a self-help book, or to rid the reader of misery and depression. It simply lists some things the reader can do for free (mostly) that might improve his or her quality of life.

In summary, these are the 102 things:

1. Go out and look at the stars
2. Keep a diary - but only one sentence a day
3. Meter your energy use with a smart meter
4. Give up your car
5. Get up earlier
6. Sketch your relatives - it's better than photos
7. Treasure your precious human body
8. Go on an archeological dig
9. Write a letter to your future self
10. Don't confuse affluence with well-being
11. Memorise a poem
12. Ask a child for advice
13. Take part in a police line-up
14. Give up craving for recognition (and be admired for it)
15. Notice when things have improved
16. Go on holiday without leaving your bedroom
17. Practice random acts of kindness (and, if time permits, senseless acts of beauty)
18. Climb a mountain
19. Turn your house into a restaurant
20. Start a film society
21. Remember that making mistakes is part of being human
22. See the sun rise and set on a single summer's day
23. Get fit without joining a gym
24. Sit still until you see wildlife emerge
25. Contact a friend you haven't spoken to for years
26. Go cloud-spotting
27. Learn to meditate
28. Volunteer for something
29. Spend a day and night in a forest
30. Cherish older people
31. Reconsider your career
32. Enlarge your comfort zone
33. Achieve your ideal weight
34. Learn how to talk to strangers in public
35. Visit Project Gutenberg
36. Gather a meal from the wild
37. Learn another language
38. Invent a language
39. Pretend you are a valet for humanity
40. Go busking
41. Start a book in which to record things that have really, really made you laugh
42. Go somewhere outdoors that is very silent
43. Make Christmas presents for your whole family one year
44. Give something up
45. Cheer up lonely men in public places
46. Swap your CDs
47. Adopt or invent a personal motto
48. Support your local eccentric
49. Become a freegan
50. Swim in the sea
51. Get to know your neighbours
52. Act without expecting anything back
53. Deliver meals on wheels
54. Look for glue
55. Send a message in a bottle
56. Have an eco-friendly bonfire
57. Attempt a world record
58. Walk in the rain
59. Give away free trees
60. Do a sponsored parachute/bungee jump
61. Perform
62. Cycle 100 miles in a day
63. Serenade someone
64. Reflect on something you're grateful for
65. Cook and eat a nine-course meal
66. Write a love letter
67. Create a lair
68. Notice beauty
69. Let go of emotional pain
70. Write down your parents' or grandparents' stories
71. Look at your day-to-day concerns from the point of view of five years from now
72. Fan the flames of desire
73. Contemplate imperfection and impermanence as forms of beauty
74. Join a gardening scheme where only your labour is required
75. Laugh in the face of death
76. Train your memory
77. Accept the full catastrophe
78. Write the first sentence of a novel
79. Cherish solitude (Sister Wendy does)
80. Get your friends to sponsor you to go to Spain and celebrate La Tomatina
81. Embarrass your children/teenagers
82. Work a room
83. Confront people politely
84. Learn a trick
85. Be a representative of your country, in your country
86. Try lucid dreaming
87. Come to terms with ageing
88. Be a bookcrosser
89. Teach a child something fun
90. Make your gratitude less perfunctory
91. Give away your superfluous possessions
92. Grow huge sunflowers
93. Smile
94. Go bell-ringing
95. Form a debating club
96. Take your shoes off and walk in the dew on a sunny morning
97. Dress up
98. Give up your TV
99. Be 'Lord' for a day
100. Write fewer emails and more letters
101. Don't expect that things will be different in Tenerife
102. Find out what's happening near you and join in

Yes, I know. In places this is a bullshit list. It's just the chapter headings, after all. Some things, like "smile" - well clearly you need to read the book to understand what Quick is getting at. But, in general, these are things that sound... fun. Life-enhancing and, who knows, maybe even life-affirming, don't you think?

Some of the 102 I've already done (they're green). Others, I can't imagine I'll ever do - they're red. But the rest are up for grabs. Don't worry, I'm not going to turn this into a blog theme where I religiously post about every task as I tick them off, to the eventual boredom of everyone concerned, no no no. But I might blog about the odd one or two, if any turn out to be stupendous. Bottom line, though, is this - I haven't been that cheerful lately, sorry, but I wanted you to know I'm trying to do something about that.

Now, Constant Reader, if you could add a 103rd task to the list of inspiring ideas for a better life, what would it be?

P.S. +1 kudos points to any readers ID'ing the song from which this blog post takes it title (only 1 for this, as it's easy...)