The Rundown: Happiest Places on Earth

Last week's installment trumpeted the awesomeness that is Wonderland.

As I stated in 10 Things this past Sunday, it was everything I expected and more, easily topping the All-Time Wonderland Trips list.

Wonderland made me think of Disneyland / DisneyWorld, the latter of which I have been to. These places bill themselves as The Happiest Place on Earth if I'm not mistaken, but all I remember of my Grade 4 March Break Vacation to Disney World was that Space Mountain was overrated and The Tea Cups nearly made me barf. What's so happy about that?

There is nothing happy about feeling like you're going to yak, but there is happiness contained in the list below, at least for me there is...

Top Five Happiest Place on Earth
Note: I'm sparring everyone the sappy and sentimental "Anywhere as long as Sarah is there" and "Lying next to Sarah while she sleeps" mentions because #1 isn't always true and #2 doesn't happen anymore now that we have a dog. Luke sleeps between us...
5. O'Neill's Pub in Earl's Court, London, England
O'Neill's is like the Firkin Group of Pubs here in Ontario - a chain that doesn't really feel like a chain - and this one in Earl's Court became my watering hole on my first excursion to Jolly Old. Whether it was just relaxing with a pint and the paper after a long night out, watching Champions League Football with a room full of Liverpool supporters going insane or Monday Night Pub Trivia with Big Dave, this spot quickly found a place in my heart.

4. Along the fence on a Picnic Table at Any Ontario Harness Track
Chirping with friends as they jog by during warm-ups. Getting a close-up look at the longshot I like in the 8th during the post parade. The thundering of hooves as they charge out from behind the starting gate. The crack of the whip and whistles from drivers as the field charges for home. If I wrote a list like this when I was ten, this one would have been there.

3. Chapters
Not all the time - sometimes a trip to Chapters is just a run in, grab something and run out event. I'm talking about the days when you just lose yourself in the store. Hit the Starbucks for a Venti Komodo Dragon with room for dairy, find a big comfy chair somewhere and just lose track of time, either reading or working on something. Sarah and I used to do this fairly regularly in St. John's and we need to get back to doing it again... soon.

2. Middle Cove Beach in Newfoundland
This place has been on my mind a lot lately with the hot and humid summer that has hit Ontario. How I wish I could just take a twenty minute drive out to the ocean and climb along the rock faces to hear the crashing of the waves. I'd even welcome an unexpected splash from the water below. Luke would love it out there too; tons of sticks to crew on, chasing the tide in and out, all kinds of other people and dogs to antagonize...

1. Right Here
Not just sitting at this computer, but sitting here in my home, knowing that Sarah is somewhere in the house with our dog, fully supportive of what I am doing even though it means less time with her. It was the same when "right here" was in the spare room on Crosbie Road in St. John's, in our bedroom in Portugal Cove or in the living room on Wexford Street too and I'm certain it will be wherever we end up next too.

Pictured: That's about what I see my home office looking like in the future...