Greetings All,
I don’t Blog much, but I was just asked a great question and had no ready answer. I loved the question so I sat down to think of an answer. It very quickly occurred to me that my answers were really groups or themes. The question and answers follow:

Question:
What are your top 15 absolute favorite parts of life? The experiences and sensations that make you want to get up in the morning and do it all again.

Answer:
I don't know that I have ever made that list. Let's see; in no particular order my favorite things are: (Theme/Explanation/List)

Exploring: Probably my number one favorite thing, but it takes many forms in my life, from hunting the quiet stacks of out of print book stores; to driving the back roads of sleepy towns where America can be found; or hiking to remote destinations that only a few will ever see. Nothing puts me more in the moment than the sensation of something new. If I were forced to define what adventure means to me, it would include the concept of exploring. They say that the difference between a rut and a grave is the depth. Exploring helps me out of my rut and keeps me alive.
- Road Trips across country
- Hiking seldom visited wilds
- Looking for lost treasure
- Harvest Festivals
- Motorcycle rides on roads that really go places

Flying: My favorite dreams have always been about flying. I can vividly remember the sensation of flight when I wake up and it feels like freedom. I don't know if I can explain it any better than that. I suspect that if that doesn't make intuitive sense to you, then it can't be explained. Most of my more extreme hobbies stem from my desire to fly. The Army taught me how to repel off of cliffs, and while that is exciting, it's certainly not flying no mater how fast you go. I became a Paratrooper in hopes that jumping out of an airplane would be like flying. In retrospect that was a really bad idea. The vast majority of Paratroopers jump static line parachutes, where a cord attached to the airplane pulls your chute open when you get out of the plane. Again, that's exciting but not flying. I tried Free Fall Parachuting to see if that was any better than skydiving with the Army. It was much better, but still nowhere near what I was looking for. My most recent failure to experience flight was flying a glider plane on the North Shore of Hawaii. That was almost there, but the canopy separated you from the experience. The only things I have found that are close to my idea of flying are SCUBA diving and Hang gliding. SCUBA you can hover over things and examine the underwater world from any angle at will and at your leisure. I am still learning to hang glide, but it's fantastic, and every flight I feel "it" if only for a moment.
- SCUBA diving
- Hang gliding

Connecting: Humans are funny creatures. We will love, hate, swindle, belittle, bolster, encourage, kill, murder, maim, backtalk, backstab, devalue, discourage, cheat, lie, steal, teach, tease, notice, need, like, learn, validate, underestimate, touch, tempt, ogle, berate, interact, invite, fondle, scheme, undercut, outmaneuver, play, tickle, tease each other/ with each other but we rarely ever connect. It seems that most of the time we are moving through life and it’s this motion that prevents us from stopping and connecting with each other. It takes time. The less distractions there are the better your chances are of really connecting with someone. I could go into a tirade detailing the biggest obstacle to connecting but it would take pages to talk about our emotional armor or shields or walls or baggage or pick your own metaphor. That distance that surrounds us that we feel we need to keep from being hurt… again. The truth is that if you have no experience with those obstacles, you probably will as soon as you meet another human. Some of my favorite experiences are the ones that make you stop for a moment, distract you just a bit, and frequently allow you the chance to connect.
- Sharing drinks: alcohol, coffee, tea, hell even water
- Smoking great cigars
- Sex
- Cooking (together)
- Passionate Debate

Amazement: Adult life jades you to otherwise extraordinary experiences. It seems to me that the function of "adult life" is to make you forget how great it was to be a kid, and I say "FUCK THAT!" I love the saying, "you have to grow old; you don't have to grow up." Many of my favorite experiences center around embracing a child-like sense of wonder and amazement; I catch myself being an adult from time to time. I went to see Penn and Teller perform their magic act in Vegas. During the show, I saw a trick that I absolutely could not figure out. I found myself being an adult trying to work it out. It was a close one, but I quickly caught myself at it and repeated this useful mantra; "ITS MAJIC YOU ASSHOLE." After I remember that the last thing I want is a world where there is no magic, I relaxed and really enjoyed the show. The other affect of "Adult Life" it to make you value the wrong things. I fear that there will come a day when I get caught in a summer rain storm and I worry about what I have in my pockets that can't get wet instead of enjoying the warm rain. Fortunately, it hasn't happened yet. Take pleasure in the little things. Finally, though the experiences are rare, I try to remember that the world is not only made up of the things that I can measure and see. Under the right conditions, you can catch a glimpse of things that don't fit and can't be measured, and that is amazing.
- Magic
- Walking in the rain
- Shamanism

I love that question. If you explain your answers, you get a pretty good glimpse into what makes a person tick. I’m glad I took the time to make this list.

Yours in Service,
Gabriel