In the acknowledgement section of Julia Child’s The French Chef cookbook, she mentions her husband Paul, and refers to him as the man who is always there. She then mentions all these roles he plays in her life. He is the fish illustrator, he is the dishwasher, and the porter, and resident poet, and husband, […]
always there, cookbook, julia child, Support
In the final season of Seinfeld, George Costanza’s father, Frank, is diagnosed with high blood pressure and he’s told to deal with that by saying “serenity now” when he feels himself getting angry. In typical Frank fashion, he doesn’t say serenity now, he screams it over and over again while looking skyward and raising his […]
episode, seinfeld, Stress, stress reduction
The other day I asked Alexa what the key to happiness is, and Alexa said, “I’m sorry I don’t have an answer for that.” I’m not sure I have an answer either, but there are two things that had that occurred to me that are extremely important for having a happy life. One is to […]
alexa, gratitude, happiness, Technology
The 2005 comedy “Waiting” is about the team of people who work at a chain restaurant, sort of like a Fridays, called Shenanigans, and it’s about the wait staff’s relationships with one another and also with customers, and how they cope with the stresses of working in a fast-paced restaurant environment. One of my favorite […]
bishop, Movie, shenanigans, waiting
If you told my mother you were about to share something with her that you wanted to be kept just between the two of you, my mother would smile and look at you in the eyes and say, “I won’t even tell myself”. That was her guarantee of confidentiality and it reminds me of two […]
funny phrase, secret, secrets, telling secret
There was a study years ago that found that when people looked at images in color versus black and white, they remembered those images much more readily. But even further, that if they saw images of nature in the actual natural colors of that scene versus something that was enhanced, they remembered that even better. […]
black and white, color, nature, nature walk
On my way into work every day I pass under an arched underpass and there’s a railroad track that goes across it. I’ve always noticed a bright yellow sign with the height of the underpass shown on it, but today I noticed something that I’m sure has been there for years. There’s a little tiny […]
fine print, sign, signage
I saw a video recently by a home organizing expert who was suggesting that if people want to reduce clutter, they and their family mementos or things that are important to them, that they’re not sure if they should let go of, to take a picture of that item and that way you know they […]
keepsakes, mementos, throw away
One of my favorite songs is by the legendary Willie Nelson called “Nothing I Can Do About It Now.” It’s a song about letting go of past regrets because there’s nothing that can be done about those things. The lyrics capture an important truth—not everything from our past is within our power to change. This […]
I was listening to a recording of a relaxation exercise the other day and near the beginning, the facilitator said, “See if you can make yourself 10% more comfortable.” I thought that was an amazing suggestion. Most of us, upon hearing that, try to figure out a way to make ourselves 10% more comfortable. Not […]
