endorphins

Nothing like the smell of freshly cut grass as you walk (briskly, almost jogging) along the river while the sun is setting and you're simultaneously releasing any stress you've felt before that moment.

Nothing like the feeling of satisfaction when you're giving a lecture, students are responding (nodding, mostly), and then they brighten up during the discussion when they realize that they get what you're saying about Elizabeth Gaskell and ecocriticism (specifically, deep ecology) and you realize that what you're saying is connecting in their heads. This is so totally what you're supposed to be doing with your life!

Nothing like that complete relaxation you feel when you've been doing work all day, you're tired, and you pull back the covers (if, in fact, you've made the bed) and slip into your queen-sized, pillow-top bed with red cotton-sateen sheets.

Nothing like the smell of napalm in the morning... (can't forget that one: "Thanks Apocalypse Now")

And, especially for E. and Detroit R.: Nothing like that moment of realization when you've just released the ball down the lane, your tri-coloured 1965 laced-up shoes slide gently on the floor, and you just know that that ball is headed for a strike.