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Mother’s Day is May 12.
Are you looking for a great gift for a mother in your life? Or for yourself?
Are you looking for a great gift for a mother in your life? Or for yourself?
Check out Happier at Home. If you’d
like personalized, signed bookplates to make your gifts more special, request them here (U.S.
& Canada only) . But please request them soon if you want them by Mother’s
Day. I can be pretty slow.
“I Still Feel a Very Strong and Positive Pleasure in Being Stranded in Queer Quiet Places.”
“I can recall in my childhood the continuous
excitement of long days in which nothing happened; and an indescribable sense
of fullness in large and empty rooms. And with whatever I retain of
childishness…I still feel a very strong and positive pleasure in being stranded
in queer quiet places, in neglected corners where nothing happens and anything
may happen; in unfashionable hotels, in empty waiting-rooms, or in
watering-places out of the season. It seems as if we needed such places, and
sufficient solitude in them, to let certain nameless suggestions soak into us
and make a richer soil of the unconscious.”–G. K. Chesterton, “On the Thrills of Boredom”
I feel exactly the same way. Years ago, my sister and I stayed at a small, shabby motel in the middle of Nebraska, and it gave me the most tremendous sense of excitement. Very odd.
Perhaps relatedly, when I’m trying to calm myself, I often envision places that are usually crowded and busy in their empty, quiet times–an empty parking lot, a deserted Metropolitan Museum.
How about you? Do you love diners in small towns, and the like?
A Trip to the Pediatrician’s Office Reminded Me of This Important Truth.
This week, I took both my daughters to the
pediatrician for their annual check-ups. I was a little late, but the need to
turn in camp health forms got me to schedule the appointments, finally.As I walked out of the second appointment this morning, I found myself thinking, “Good! That’s another thing to cross off my to-do list.”
But this afternoon, another thought occurred to me. At various points, several of my friends would have joyfully given all they possessed for a fifteen-minute appointment with the pediatrician that ended with the cheerful words, “Everything looks great! See you in the fall for flu shots.”
Once again, I remind myself: The things for which I’m most grateful are often the things that I take for granted.
One day, we all have that bad visit to the doctor’s office, but this week, our visits were good. And I want never to lose sight of how very, very grateful I am for that.
Secret of Adulthood: By Doing a Little Bit Each Day, You Can Get a Lot Accomplished.
Further Secrets of Adulthood:
We tend to over-estimate what we can do in a short time (say, an afternoon), and under-estimate what we can do over a longer time (a month) a little bit at a time. This realization led me to my very helpful resolution to Suffer for fifteen minutes. (I write about it a lot in Happier at Home, chapter on “Time.”)
At the same time, it’s true that some people prefer to do a lot packed into a short time, and others prefer to do less over a longer period. Are you a tortoise or a hare? I asked a friend, “Are you a tortoise or a hare? If a piece of work took 21 hours, would you rather work for 3 hours a day for 7 days, or 7 hours a day for 3 days?” She said, “I’d rather work for 2 days, for 10.5 hours!” A true hare.
How about you?
We tend to over-estimate what we can do in a short time (say, an afternoon), and under-estimate what we can do over a longer time (a month) a little bit at a time. This realization led me to my very helpful resolution to Suffer for fifteen minutes. (I write about it a lot in Happier at Home, chapter on “Time.”)
At the same time, it’s true that some people prefer to do a lot packed into a short time, and others prefer to do less over a longer period. Are you a tortoise or a hare? I asked a friend, “Are you a tortoise or a hare? If a piece of work took 21 hours, would you rather work for 3 hours a day for 7 days, or 7 hours a day for 3 days?” She said, “I’d rather work for 2 days, for 10.5 hours!” A true hare.
How about you?
Revealed! Book Club Picks for May. Happy Reading.
Because nothing boosts happiness more than
a great book, each month, I suggest:- One outstanding book about happiness.
- One outstanding work of children’s or young-adult literature. I have a crazy passion for kidlit.
- One eccentric pick. This is a book that I love, but freely admit may not be for everyone.
Shop at the wonderful Brooklyn indie WORD, BN.com, Amazon (I’m an affiliate of all three), or your favorite local bookstore. Or visit the library! Drumroll…
An outstanding book about happiness: Barry Schwartz’s The Paradox of Choice. Buy from WORD; BN.com; Amazon.
An outstanding children’s book: J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. Buy from WORD; BN.com; Amazon.
An eccentric pick: Sir James Frazer’s The Golden Bough. Buy from WORD; BN.com; Amazon.
I’ve noticed that many times, when someone describes a book to me, I want to read it less. And often, weirdly, the better a book is, the worse it sounds. So I won’t describe these books, but I love all the books I recommend; I’ve read them at least twice if not many times; and they’re widely loved.
If you read last month’s recommendations…what did you think? Wilson’s Naturalist, Godden’s The Greengage Summer, O’Connor’s Wise Blood.
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