What is something that you recently appreciated or respected a lot more than you used to?

My ex girlfriend…

I went to an air show at an Air Force base a couple weeks ago. Even though it was my second time, I experienced the jets and airplanes that flew a lot more this go around. I watched almost all of the air events. It is amazing what these pilots can do and are capable of. I couldn’t even imagine doing it myself. I gained a ton of respect for air pilots and the amazing job they do year round.

@ipso Interesting, care to elaborate?

..just being flip

You really should attend one of the Red Bull Air Shows. It is amazing! It’s like Formula One but in the air.

O so many things. Most recently is having the ability to keep my desk clean. I think most people take this for granted. I took it for granted before I got sick. Now I know it is a gift to be able to stay organized. I can see my son struggling to learn this, even as I write this.

@ipso I’ve seen commercials for those. They look bad-ass!

Being alive.

Warm days.

Grass.

I’ve come to respect spirituality and religion a lot more. I think it’s because I have been studying religions and spiritual systems in great depth in a few of my philosophy classes, and I feel like I truly know them now, at least to an extent.

Peace and quiet

The state in which I’ve lived for the past 5 years. There’s not a lot of it I explored until a year or so ago, I’m not a fan of deserts but my partner has since taken me into the mountains and valleys for snow play, rock climbing, a train ride and out sailing on a lake. I have found beauty appealing to me here enough to stay just barely sane.

Small towns.

When I grew up in one of those towns where you could fart at one end and by the time you drove to the other end everybody there could tell you what it smelled like. I could not wait to turn 18 so I could leave. Now I have grown to appreciate the sense of community that comes with a small town. It is one of those things that I think city folk generally miss out on.

Craftsmanship is also high on my list. For the most part in our society the lowest price for a marginally functional product wins out in the marketplace. Of course, there are some things that should, by there nature be thought of as simi-disposable and for short term use only. However, I have grown to realize that for some things I would rather pay a premium for a very well made item that I will be able to use for years instead of buying a piece of junk that will break the first time it is used.

Seriously, my health & general well being. I mean, that shit I normally take for granted but you know, it’s great to be fit. To basically have no restrictions on what I can do.Yeah, long may that continue.

A good night’s sleep. When I was younger, I thought I didn’t need a lot of sleep because you “can’t have any fun when you are sleeping.” Not anymore. Getting a good night’s sleep or, even better, being able to sleep late and just loll in bed is a luxury I appreciate more than anything these days. Accordingly, I am willing to spend a fairly good portion of my income on nice sheets, fluffy pillows, comfy blankets, etc.

A good mattress. I used to think expensive mattresses were a waste, slept most of my years on a futon roll and loved it. So I thought. A year and a half on a nice mattress has seduced me to dark side. In fact, I have occasionally asked myself how much this mattress played into the appeal of my partner and our quality time together. It should be part of couples counseling and marriage contracts to be willing to fork out a few grand for the conjugal bed.

@Neizvestnaya So true. I bought a really nice bed and I have to drag myself away from it. Wonderfully soft sheets, super soft fluffy pillows….I wish I was there right now. My SO constantly tells me he never knew how wonderful a bed could be until he met me and we kid about how he’s been enlightened. We actually refer to our pillows as if they were animate (we call them The Fluffies). I have, on occasion, been known to send him an email purporting to be from them. Problem is, we have a very hard time finding them, and when we do locate a retailer who has them, we stock up. We joke that when we build our dream house, it will have a walk-in closet specifically for Fluffy storage.

If one of us oversleeps or sleeps especially late, we say “I was seized by the Fluffies.”

After spending a week with Mom, who has macular degeneration of the eye and hearing aids, it was a wake-up call to what it is like to lose your sight and hearing after a lifetime of having it. Not a day goes by now where the value of both doesn’t cross my mind.

@diavolobella and @Neizvestnaya Would you mind sharing what brand/type of mattress you have?

@Pied_Pfeffer: It’s a Sealy Posturepedic Armani Ultra Plush Euro Pillowtop.

Being in my right mind.

Recently, I saw someone having a meltdown on a train. One moment, there was a homeless guy sleeping on a seat. The next, he was up, ranting and raving with apparently no clue that his delusions weren’t real. It was if no one else was on the train but him as he was battling the demons in his head. And the people around him, including myself, got very uncomfortable and left the car as soon as possible. Sure, the conductor was alerted and I’m sure the cops were summoned to fetch him, but this is NYC. He probably went to Bellevue, where he’ll get some meds, but he’ll be on the streets again in 3 days.

For all the issues I’ve had to deal with in my life, I have never had the sort of frightening delusions that left me homeless, desperate and wandering around in a schizophrenic haze, subject to all sorts of danger.

@Pied Pfeffer. Mine is a brand made here in Nashville. I’ll have to check it when I get home, but I think it’s either a Fluffo or a Southerland. It’s a pillow top/pillow bottom. Oddly enough, it was not expensive at all, but it’s amazing.

Pennsylvania farms and countryside. Holy shit….before I moved away I was so sick of seeing nothing but BEAUTIFUL ROLLING HILLS AND PERFECT LITTLE FARMS AND TREES AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE. All I did was complain! Then I went home 6 months later and stood with my jaw dropped. It is so gorgeous. I never appreciated it. Now, don’t get me wrong, Colorado is beautiful, SO BEAUTIFUL and the mountains, there is nothing like them. But I miss the farms, the country, the green-ness, the colorful leaves, everything.

someone here on Fluther (who shall remain nameless)

The depth of conviction of the American right.

Terrifying.

Something that might sound silly, but remembering my husband’s name. For a few weeks after a surgery, he had to remind me daily what his name was and how he was connected to me. When it all came together it was a wonderful moment. I am still having a lot of memory issues, but even today I could remember something that happened right before my surgery. It just came back to me. I’m thankful and appreciate the fact that I can roll over and say, “Good Morning (hubby’s name)!” For a brief moment, he seemed like a stranger to me. I never want to know that feeling again, not knowing his name.

^ Good to see you here @cak – it’s been like forever!

After a ten-day hiatus, with only a few minutes here and there, I am back and like this question as it allows me to say how much I appreciate Fluther. I still don’t have a pc, but I will soon. I am using a temp. one, and it reminds me that it’s nice to have a computer. I could live without one, but it’s something I appreciate having. Gilad Shalit has been held captive by Hammas terrorists for over 5 years now – he doesn’t have running water, is probably tortured regularly (from our past experience with these situations) and lives in a 2 by 2 meter cell. Every time he’s on the news, I re-appreciate pretty much everything and anything. It could’ve been me.

My old job. I may be quitting my new job in order to work with my old agency. I was so ready to leave that job, until I started working in a job that kicks my ass. Hindsight is 20/20?

The longer I live, the more I understand and appreciate cliches.

American people. I visited last month and couldn’t get over how friendly, polite and welcoming the people were (at least in the two states I visited). The Americans have an unfair reputation in some other countries but they are some of the nicest people I have met.

@Leanne1986, as an American who thinks we have an unfair reputation, I’d like to thank you for that. That was lovely.

Regulation.

Of the food industry. I just saw the movie The Future of Food (2004) for the first time. Proper labeling for Genetically Modified food has been very successfully brushed under the rug in the US.

@ipso, I second that, for the financial institutions!!!!

Hard to argue with that.

The movie Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) comes to mind on that score.