The now-rare times when I have nothing scheduled, no work, and my husband is away so that I know I’ll have 48 hours all alone. When that all lines up, and I watch my husband’s car heading off down the road, that moment when I turn back into the quiet house knowing that I can just … be … Is there such a thing as ecstatic peace?
(I love my guy, but we’ve been together for over 40 yrs, I work retail, and I’m a hermit by nature. I NEED my alone time, and it’s a scarce thing these days)
Taking that first big morning sip of freshly-brewed, strong black tea mixed with whole milk and raw sugar. Followed by all of the subsequent sips and gulps until the mug is empty.
Watching TN - Belmont NCAA women’s game the other night - 15 sec left, underdog up by a basket, official review, so the TV is panning thru the crowd to fill the time. Now Belmont is a Christian college in the bible belt but a staggering number of their fans had their hands clasped together as if in prayer - “Dear Diety, please let out team hold on to pull out this upset win so that the other team might lose this athletic competition” Somehow, with war, famine, pestilence, etc around the world I just don’t see Jesus following the sportsbook as closely as some people hope he should.
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Putting the top down on a warm sunny day
After a long, hot bike ride, coming home, grabbing a beer on the way upstairs & getting into the cold shower while the steam is still rising off your body.
“Because it feels so good when I stop.”
There’s a junior version of this which you can experience when Friday is a holiday and you wake up on Sunday having forgotten that there’s still another day left in the weekend.
I occasionally experience autonomous sensory meridian response ( ASMR ), an extremely pleasant tingling sensation.
Unfortunately, I can’t trigger it myself. I’ve tried watching those supposed ASMR-inducing ‘whisper’ videos once or twice but I just feel ridiculous watching them.
It sometimes happens when I’m having a pleasant conversation with somebody, or someone is demonstrating or explaining something to me in a friendly, helpful way. It can be triggered by either males or females-- there’s no sexual component to it whatsoever, though my wife can often trigger it by giving me an unexpected backrub (it has to be a surprise; if I ask for a backrub I never get ASMR).
The first turns after waiting on line for first chair on a 24" powder day.
A scalp massage. Say what you will about my ex-husband (and I’ve said many things on many occasions), but he used to rub my head when I had a headache and it was like a switch that turned the pain OFF and simultaneously relaxed me into sleep. If you don’t have a headache, it’s even better.
That’s the only part I miss about getting my hair done; the pre-styling wash felt so good.
Popping a turgid, angry zit that has a firm, well-formed plug and a decent-sized reservoir of fluid. Bonus points if it’s a double plug.
If you don’t have one handy, there are plenty of YouTube channels for it. I’ll spare you the link, but they aren’t hard to find.
The feeling of my cat sitting on my bare feet.
The first bite of pizza.
Getting into bed with freshly cleaned sheets.
Back massage from cat.
When hundred pound dog tries to sit on my lap bc it’s thundering outside.
Foot squeezing especially when I’m tired or stressed.
Hot bath with Epsom when stressed.
Water mister on my face at Burninman when it was 105 in the shade. BLISS
And this oddity. There’s a gym exercise called a wall sit or sometimes “the Throne” where you stand with your back to a wall and gradually sink down till your legs are right angles, thighs parallel to floor, shins perpedicular to floor. Hold for one minute or until the burning gets so bad that you are panting and your legs start to fail. Keep holding… so when I got up after doing this there was a sensation in my legs of such pleasure that it was almost orgasmic. Not orgasmic enough that I was willing to do that exercise ever again, but interesting nonetheless.
When, hours after swimming, you move your head just right and a warm ooze of water releases from your ear. Especially satisfying because most of the time you didn’t even know there was water in your ear, but now it feels better anyway.
The last day of school, it doesn’t feel metaphorical to say that a huge weight lifts from my shoulders. My step bounces like it hasn’t for ten months. My wife laughs when she sees me.
Especially right after a shower.
…
Also, when a baby or pet naps on your chest. Even better if there’s purring.
Or if your ears just pop for no apparent reason when you didn’t know they were congested. Everything is suddenly so loud!
A barefoot, near-perfectly-weighted female walking across my back, sending me into a blissful state before faux-swan diving on top of me, her body warmth surging through the nooks and crannies of my being like poured hot fudge sauce enveloping scoops of ice cream.
Also, a kiss following liberal application of chocolate mousse - or chocolate mousse-like substance - to the lips of the one I love.
Nobody has mentioned actual sex - especially tantric sex, in which the ecstasy can last quite a long time.
When I was a kid, I remember the feeling of the first major snowstorm of the season. (That does NOT trigger the same emotion in this adult.)
Some music produces the feeling.
Falling asleep with a good book
It’s difficult to attain maximum acceleration on a literbike—they’re light and ridiculously overpowered, so too much throttle can flip the bike over its back. But if I get the throttle just right, the front wheel will float an inch or two above the track for a few seconds, then come down so softly that I can’t discern the exact moment of contact. Amid the chaos of acceleration—the ascending engine and wind noise, the blur of numbers on the digital speedometer—it’s an oddly calm feeling.
It’s difficult to attain maximum deceleration on a sport bike—they’re short, light, and have ridiculously powerful brakes so too much brake pressure can flip the bike forward. If I get it just right, the back tire will leave the ground, but only by an inch or so. The front of the bike is pointed forward but the floating back of the bike can swing very slightly to one side, until the tire gently taps the track, then swing to the other side for a similar tap on the track. It’s an oddly calm sensation amid the panic of shedding speed before an approaching turn.