What makes you happy?

Happiness is different for every individual, and what makes one happy is also unique to everyone. However in an Opinion piece from the LA Times entitled "Finding Your Happy Place"(http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-weiner2jan02,0,1501976.story?coll=la-news-comment-opinions) by Eric Weiner states that happiness originates from external factors of one's life, environment, and society like the "quality of government, social interactions and, to an extent, money" (Maybe that's why Americans are so unhappy). In the first ever happiness map (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-07/uol-uol072706.php) made by the University of Leicester in Britain, countries are listed in chronological order according to the happiness of its citizens. In today's materialistic society, trivial chattels like luxury cars, I-Pods, or MONEY increase one's "subjective well-being, " so do these external factors really matter? If looked at from a broader perspective, it is the government and society that allows individuals to have such material goods. However, monetarily challenged Latin countries are happier than America. A democratic America, ranked 23rd fairs well in comparison to the decadent chaos into which countries such as Zimbabwe (177th) and the "Democratic Rebublic" of Congo (176th) have fallen in. According to this article, the amount of happiness one can achieve depends on where one is situated. So if one wants to be happy, visit countries such as Denmark (VIKINGS and haven for homo-sexuals (1st country to allow same sex marraige)), Switzerland (watches and Alps), and Austria (Einstein and "I'LL BE BACK")

Tone: enthusiastic

What is happiness to you? What makes you happy? Why?