Recently in Small happinesses Category

I can't remember where I read this quote (if someone knows, let me know so I can give credit!), but I thought it was a great little piece of writing and a good reminder to head out into the wild -- even if that is just a few minutes of silence in the backyard -- this Labor Day:

"If the purpose -- and the beauty -- of large cities is the "absence of physical space between people," as Harvard economist Ed Glaeser says, the point and joy of wilderness is proximity to nothing much at all."

Okay, I admit it: I tried the deep-fried chocolate chip cookies. Whatever negative impact that had on my arterial health was offset by the pure joy of spending the day at the Fair. 

The State Fair was fantastic. I still can't exactly explain the Fair's appeal (see my previous post), but on my recent visit I took note of some factors that, I suspect, contribute to it's fantastic-ness. I also tried to find some wisdom hidden in these factors -- some bit of advice we can extrapolate from the State Fair experience and apply to the remaining 50 weeks of the year. Here's what struck me:

No one at the Fair is stressed out. The Fair is a celebration -- of summer, of hard work (prize-winning preserves, anyone?), of agricultural dexterity (the biggest pumpkins and the sweetest apples!), of giddy, rollicking fun (the rides, the games, the prizes!) -- and stress has trouble gaining traction amid so much joy. In fact, I have begun to suspect that stressing out at the Fair is a physical impossibility. So what's the take-home wisdom? Feeling relaxed isn't just the opposite of avoiding stress. It's about the active pursuit of joy -- and, of course, the celebration of the world's best strawberry jam!

You can't be ironic at the Fair. The Fair is full of kitschy stuff and it's tempting to take an ironic view: "This crop art is good precisely because it's soooo bad!" But irony dies at the State Fair entrance gates. For whatever reason, the Fair is something you can't help but genuinely love, kitsch or not, and I think that authenticity of feeling contributes to the joy of the Fair. Take-away wisdom? It's important to be passionate -- without qualification or apology -- about the things you enjoy and genuinely take pleasure in. Love cross-stitch and quilting? Embrace them! Think weeding the garden by hand is the most satisfying way to spend a Saturday afternoon? Be proud! Prefer alone time to the company of others? Don't apologize! Just because contemporary culture can find the joke in any situation doesn't always mean it should. We're allowed to love what we love -- and when we're out and proud about what we love, we tend to enjoy our lives a lot more.

The Fair is real, interactive and shared. At the Fair, we participate: we're a foot away from the cow giving birth; we walk through and touch the sustainable fabrics and earth-friendly flooring in the eco-building; we're on hand to watch a sculptor standing in a room-sized, glass-walled cooler carve the bust of Princess Kay of the Milky Way out of a 90-pound slab of butter. We're not watching it happen on TV, or reading about it on a blog, or playing it in a video game. Part of what makes the Fair magical is that we're really there, experiencing the experience --smelling the deep fried everything, touching the cotton candy, petting the baby piglets -- in a way we can't electronically. Thousands of other happy people are there, too, which only heightens the joy, in so much as joy is contagious and most things are better shared. In a world where electronic diversions and passive entertainments often rule the day, real experiences enrich our lives that much more. The takeaway? Turn off the TV, take off the ear phones, log off the computer and go do something. Adopt a community garden. Go hiking at the nearby park. Make friends with neighbors at the local coffee shop. Volunteer at a pre-school, or animal shelter, or art museum (whatever most inspires you). There's a joy in being part of something -- of participating -- that can never be replicated in pixels.

Dirt just feels so right.

Happy Friday! We've got some great entries this week for our Small, Good Things appreciation list. Anne wrote in with a wonderful, amazing list of small goodnesses! Here are her top seven:

1. Dirt -- "Today, for example, I was out planting my garden, and the feel of the warm, soft dirt beneath my bare feet made me so happy. So, add DIRT to the list!"

2. Going barefoot -- "Not to mention how exciting it was to be outside in shorts and barefeet and be warm for a change! Hooray for SPRING!"

3. A pillow that's just the right balance between firm and soft, fluffy and cozy.

4. The sound of songbirds chirping outside the window in the morning.

5. The joy of finding a fantastic new tune on iTunes.

6. The excitement of finding an e-mail from an old friend in your Inbox.

7. And of course, my favorite: being outside at just the right time and place to catch a spectacular sunset, marveling at the array of colors and feeling grateful for the gift of eyesight and the time to savor that moment!

And Jen concurs that 8. dog lips are good stuff. Her dog, Zoey, agreed to pose for the camera to prove the point.


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Zoey sleeps, er, poses for the camera.

And my one addition this week is (9.) the wind. A strong-but-not-too-strong wind feels so cleansing somehow. And the rustling sound it makes in the trees sounds like the ocean (which is such a treat for those of us who guard America's Inner Shores).

These happy-making annuals are headed to my garden.

In continuation of my effort to re-brand Fridays as Small Good Things Recognition Day, here are some small goodnesses from this week.

Jamie commented last week that her one of her small, great joys is sitting outside reading a book. Hooray to that! And now that it's spring, the weather is perfect.

MizFit, who I just found out is buying me a Luminous Virtual Window for my windowless office -- ahem -- wrote to say that her dog's chiclet-looking hilarious teeth (MizFit, will you send a picture? Pretty please?!) and her daughter's tiny hands as they complete a task both make her happy. Indeed, isn't watching a child navigate the world anew such a brilliant and wonderful thing! And don't get me started on canine-generated happinesses. We'll be here all day. Here a few other small happinesses for this Friday:

1. The impending holiday weekend -- The Sundays in long weekends are primo days: you get Saturday to unwind and Monday to recover. Sunday is just full-throttle relaxation. Hooray!

2. Lilacs in bloom -- Oh, the sweet smell and gentle colors. It's goodness on branches.

3. The sense of national unity engendered by American Idol -- Culturally and politically, we're a pretty divided country. But we all admire David Cook's voice and want to pinch David Archuleta's cheeks. I say hooray to anything that can bring about national consensus (albeit pop cultural).

4. Caffeine -- Bless you, caffeine. You have gotten me through another week.

5. Bight colored annuals -- Spring has sprung! If a small, good thing knocks on your door this week, let me know. Happy Memorial Day, everyone!

Dolly brings happiness wherever she goes.

Some psychologists have hypothesized that we're often so busy looking for the "big" happiness in our lives (you know, that abiding feeling of contentment, success, fulfillment and security that will make everything okay forever but which never arrives? Yeah, that one.), that we miss all the little happinesses that accrue every day, and, in the process, further erode our chances of feeling happy. Nasty cycle.

So I think Fridays should be Small Happiness Appreciation Day, when we list out and celebrate the small, good things that brighten our lives beneath the radar. I'll start.

1. Burt's Bees Lip Gloss (color: cocoa) -- It's shiny and dewy and all-natural. Plus, it's cheap and whenever I put it on I feel like a movie star. (Pretend you don't know that Burt's Bees is now owned by Clorox.)

2. Cedar Summit Chocolate Milk drunk straight from the bottle -- This incomparable chocolate milk comes in an old-fashioned glass bottle. Every time I take a big swig from the bottle, I am filled with pure, kid-like joy. (Also, if you drink Cedar Summit before bed, you will dream the primary-colored, Golden-Retriever-filled dreams of a third-grader all night long.)

3. Chai -- Chai tea manages to simultaneously taste like your rural country home, Nepal, and Thanksgiving. I like mine spicier and earthier than most commercial brands (too sweet for me). If you do too, you should try Mischief Maker Chai. A mug of Mischief Maker warms the soul.

4. Comedy that makes comedians laugh -- I love watching professional comedians crack up. These are comedy pros, and when something amuses them, it doubly amuses me. Watch Ellen Degeneres bust up while she talks to Gladys from Texas (if you're pressed for time, just go to minute 2:20 and watch for 30 seconds).

5. Dog lips -- Enough said.

 


6. Dogs with pirate casts -- Ditto.

 



7. Tulips -- They mean spring. And spring means warmer weather and sun. And sun means I feel human again.

 

Photo taken this morning in my very own garden!

8. Watching Halvo do those crazy pull-ups with the extra weights -- I'm not so much jealous as I am in awe. The human body can do this? Wow. And, again: Wow.

9. Dolly Parton -- Dolly Parton is an angel sent from heaven. Burn a CD of some of her greatest hits today and listen to it on your commute home. When you get to Eagle When She Flies, crank the volume, roll down the windows and sing along. I challenge you not to cry (the good kind of cry) by the end of the song. Put song on repeat until you're parked in your driveway. What small good things make you happy on a Friday? I'm going to gather ideas for next Friday's post