I am happy when there is a reason. Otherwise, when stable, I am content and at peace most of the time.

Like... i am happy when I cuddle a kitty, do something successful, hear good news, experience something extraordinary... but those are moment, but most of the times it's not rainbowy happiness.

I feel in our society many people are chasing elusive happiness that they actually cannot appreciate the little things.

My baseline is kinda pesimistic though. (Not on any meds, managing fully on my own with occasional hand picked herbal connoctions). And the general setting of my country is kinda grumpy. Seriously, Americans that come to live here discuss on their expat forums why don't we smile more and we explain time and time again that we do smile when there is something to smile about and that sitting on bus or subway is no reason to be smiling. Smiling with no reason is actually considered symptom of low IQ (smiling like an idiot), or something being of mentally. We have so many phrases that show derrision of pointless smiling (AMerican smile, smiling like a Moon over a manure...). So maybe coming from this culture, I don't expect to go out and have unicorns pooping happiness on me... so I am actually pleasantly surprised when things go well and experience brief happiness over that.

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