The Happy Tractor & The Sad, Divorced, Bitter B.M.W.

Maybe all those cheesy country songs are on to something.
Story-telling, high school sweethearts, grassy fields, physical labor, simple goals, good whiskey…this may be what the happy ones really do think about.

Money. Prestige. Power. Higher Education. Maybe this really is over-rated. Maybe the happiest people on the planet feel the dirt between their fingers each day. Maybe they toil to contribute to something bigger than themselves. Maybe they drink lemonade and watch the sunset and think, "This is all I need."

I'm envious of these satisfied people. I wake up in the morning wondering what my gmail inbox holds. Before I see another human I'm scribbling about fictional ones on my whiteboard. When something mildly good occurs, the next daunting peak emerges, and I gear up immediately. I don't remember to sip lemonade and always think, "Mmmm. Lemonade is good." Although, this may be because it's usually instant mix Countrytime instead of fresh-squeezed.
Either way, I digress....

I'll be honest. I pity people who marry their high school sweethearts. Crazy saps never thought they could find better?! I realize this assessment is unfair and over-stated, and totally judgmental. But really now, shouldn't we be different people at 18 than at 28?
(T.G.A. Sidebar: 28 = T.G.A.'s ideal marriage age for American female.)

Continuing down the list,

I like grassy fields as long as they're lined and dragged for a ballgame.

I like physical labor as long as I get lots of water breaks (during which someone confirms that I am in fact looking more toned.)

I like simple goals as long as I can achieve them quickly.
(mail check, check mail, check out male.)

And I like good whiskey (though I prefer a stiff dirty martini anyday.)

Needlesstosay, I've never been confused for a country girl. I think their music is on to something, though. I think they're happy, and I think when people are happy it's helpful to ask, "why?"

For now, I'll say it's the whole "easy to please" thing. By lowering your standard of living maybe you higher your satisfaction rate. Seems like this could be so. It's a slippery slope, though. Saying "I'm satisfied with my 18" TV/VCR combo" since you cannot afford the fancy flat screen is quite different than saying "I'm satisfied with my horrible high school girlfriend" since you already have her and you don't want to have to hunt down another.

In the greater scheme of things, I'd rather be the happy tractor than the sad, divorced, bitter b.m.w. But, I must admit, couldn't I just be a moderately happy b.m.w.? There's gotta be a few of those driving around, don't you think?