Mr. Snow's Laugh

"The strange thing was that next door to Remi lived a Negro called Mr. Snow whose laugh, I sweat on the Bible, was positively and finally the one greatest laugh in all this world. This Mr. Snow began his laugh from the supper table when his old wife said something casual; he got up, apparently choking, leaned on the wall, looked up to heaven, and started; he staggered through the door, leaning on neighbors' walls; he was drunk with he; he reeled throughout Mill City in the shadows, raising his whooping triumphant call to the demon god that must have prodded him to do it. I don't know if he ever finished supper. There's a possibility that Remi, without knowing it, was picking up from this amazing man, Mr. Snow. And though Remi was having worklife problems and bad  lovelife with a sharp-tongued woman, he at least had learned to laugh almost better than anyone in the world, and I saw all the fun we were going to have in Frisco."

Up until this point, what seems to have consisted of a good time to Sal is partying a great deal and attempting to "make it" with a woman. He simply followed others' and his own hedonistic pleasures, which is what brought him happiness. He previously also admired most the two greatest self-centered characters in the plot thus far, Dean and Carlo, for their philosophical banterings and crazy lifestyles, even though they treat him with a great deal of condescension and apathy. Once Sal get to Frisco, however, we see another side of him being fulfilled by his friend Remi. He truly enjoys Remi's good, generous nature, and for the first time since the book began, he has a friend that makes him feel significant to his daily life. Through the quotation above, we can see that Sal appreciates Remi's hearty laugh and light-hearted nature and sees it as something that will bring him happiness, just as his partying did before.

Does Sal seem happier in Frisco with his friend Remi, despite the problems that arose at the end of his stay, or more so with his friends in Denver? According to your answer, what do you think Sal values more--a more hedonistic lifestyle or simply living and have good times along the way?