You'll note I said "present" not "alive." You seem to be talking adrenaline, which is actually something I tend to avoid. Too many close calls.

There are two terms you might find interesting - the first one is "flow" which is nearly impossible to find anything under. The other is "Csikszentmihalyi", pronounced, "chick sent me high", hich is just about as statistically significant a search term as you could hope to find. Basically, his argument is that we are at our most "alive" and "present" when executing something requiring expertise in which we are experienced. Video games exist because of "flow", as do most artistic and technical professions.

I know that when I'm mixing, I can look at the clock and 5 hours have passed. "Flow" is that thing that allows long drives to become short.

Now - when do I feel "alive?"

Fuckin' ridin' the longboard down Dockweiler with the wind at my back and Ambient Expanse on the 'buds. 'cuz you know what? If I fall over, it'll hurt, not kill me or cost thousands. But I haven't fallen over in a year.