I actually have to think about this. I think there is more than one level of happy. There is general contentedness with your life, and then there is in-the-moment happy. I am often not in-the-moment happy -- too many idiots on the road when I'm trying to get to and from work, too many things about my job that change for the worse, stress from trying to get things done and pay the bills. It takes conscious effort to put all that crap in perspective and turn your mood around.
At the higher level, since everyone so far has focused on their SO -- it appears that my path in life is that of childless spinster. It wasn't a conscious choice but it's the way things have turned out. I'm fine with this because I actually find some upside to it, in terms of freedom.
Outside of the significant-other thing, I just try to arrange my life to my liking as much as possible. Living in a neighborhood I like, trying to make my home comfortable, seeking out people that I get along with. Again this takes some effort, and much is beyond my control -- for example the only way to afford living in my neighborhood is to be in an apartment which means more noisy neighbors than if I lived in one of the townhouses. And sometimes your friends are just busy with their own lives so you don't get to spend time with them as much as you'd like. And as mentioned, things keep changing at my job and things I've liked about it are eroding away. The contract with our client is up for bid, so I could wind up being laid off soon; if we win the contract, it's possible that some things will change again, possibly (hopefully) to counteract some of the recent bad changes. We'll see.
Luck plays a part too -- I've been very lucky to have a good family -- parents, siblings, cousins, nieces and nephews that I get along with.
Another thing is music. Music makes me happy. Something I think I got from my father -- he always had music playing in the car whenever we went anywhere, and back when we all lived at home he would turn on the stereo to his favorite music station while we had dinner. And now I always have the stereo on when I'm alone in the car (which is most of the time that I'm in the car) and ever since college I've had a walkman/discman/mp3 player with earphones so I could listen to music while I'm exercising. Unfortunately I can't use my stereo at home because it would bother my neighbors. But a couple of weeks ago I realized that the daily status meetings we have at work every morning were driving me crazy and setting me into a bad mood every day. So I plugged the mp3 player into some cheap portable speakers and have been listening to music while I get ready for work and have breakfast, and it's been helping. This week I'm going to treat myself to a new speaker that will sound better but not be too loud for the neighbors.
I actually don't listen to music when I ride my bike, but I've got a pretty full mental jukebox, and when I'm riding alone I sometimes will sing out loud.
To Crankin's point, I think it is important to eliminate or reduce negative influences when possible. There have been times when I have ended friendships because they had evolved into relationships that caused too much grief. Perspective is also important, and expectations, when there are people that you can't avoid.
Anyway I think I've rambled enough. It's an interesting question, and worth contemplating from time to time. Thanks for asking, Pax.
- Gray 2010 carbon WSD road bike, Rivet Independence saddle
- Red hardtail 26" aluminum mountain bike, Bontrager Evoke WSD saddle
- Royal blue 2018 aluminum gravel bike, Rivet Pearl saddle
Gone but not forgotten:
- Silver 2003 aluminum road bike
- Two awesome worn out Juliana saddles