William Deresiewicz in a 2012 essay "Toys and Joys" critiques hedonism, tourism, and other bucket-list-isms, and offers instead his thoughts on what's worth doing with one's life:

... When I think about what really makes me happy, what I really crave, I come up with a very different list: concentrated, purposeful work, especially creative work; being with people I love; feeling like I'm part of something larger. Meaning, connectedness, doing strenuously what you do well: not sights, not thrills, and not even pleasures, as welcome as they are. Not passivity, not letting the world come in and tickle you, but creativity, curiosity, altruism, engagement, craft. Raising children, or teaching students, or hanging out with friends. Playing music, not listening to it. Making things, or making them happen. Thinking hard and feeling deeply.

None of which involve spending money, except in an ancillary way. None of which, in other words, are consumer experiences. ...

(cf. FunVersusEntertainment (2006-08-31), ...) - ^z - 2015-07-03