Do you think of yourself as a primarily happy person, or do you have a darker worldview? Why is that? Do you think people who know you have the same opinion about your lightheartedness or lack thereof?

-- ann monroe (monroe@chorus.net), February 18, 2000

Answers

I'm primarily a happy person. I think I'm able to choose to be happy because I try to focus on the positives in everything. If something goes badly, I stay calm and deal with it. Once it's over with I am glad to have gotten past it and I hope I learned something beneficial from it. If I get upset, depressed, or anxious about something, I try to put it in perspective with the bigger picture. I'm usually able to cope with it in such a way that I'm in a decent mood again quickly. There's a lot more to it (and me) but that's a general overview. I should mention that it helps that I have a very stable and happy environment at work, home, and when with my friends. Without that, happiness would be more elusive, but I'd strive for it anyway. -Aaron

-- Aaron (lordloki@serv.net), February 18, 2000.

I think primarily i'm an easy-going person, above all. i don't know really if this gravitates to happiness or decrepitude. i think what generally occurs is that i appear very light-hearted. i don't like to have other people worry about me, i don't enjoy burdening others. in some ways i learn to let things be and realize what my limits are in striving for a sense of grounding. i enjoy to delve into myself, and share myself with others, and this generally leads to me extrapolating on my generally optimistic view on life, and my unending belief in the capacity for humans to have positive influences on each other. however, we all have things we'd rather not be told.

-- Diego (drafael@hotmail.com), February 19, 2000.

You can be uptight and happy at the same time... I'm living proof! But most of the time I'm very happy inspite of my inability to be "lighthearted" all the time.

-- Dean Cullen (deancullen1@msn.com), February 19, 2000.

Oh boy I've had people accuse me of not paying attention because I'm happy all the time. I have a smile on my face most of the time, and even when not actively smiling I have a lighthearted attitude. Once in a great while I need to be dark and alone, and work the demons out of my soul,(or at least give them time to breath), and I enjoy (?) that part of me too. But really, I'm not starving to death in some war torn impoverished city somewhere am I?

-- Pete sublord of Homemade Cake and Safe Driving (PLeMay816@aol.com), March 06, 2000.