How’s it going?! I’m in a really good mood today (the funk is all gone – yay)! For one thing, I saw THE DARK KNIGHT RISES last night at midnight! My man and his brother have always been big midnight-movie-goers when they’re really excited about a film, and I think all of us were more excited about Batman than we’ve been in a long time! But worry not – ye shall find NO spoilers here, though I highly recommend going to see it!
I do, however, find it extremely sad that the individual in Colorado would ruin this experience for so many others who were excited to see the film. My heart goes out to the families of those killed and injured. What a terrible tragedy.
I find myself faced with this dilemma, living in this modern world – how do we carry on in the face of tragedies like this? Who am I to work on a blog about happiness when there is so much unhappiness, trauma and strife in our culture?
And my answer is: Because it’s one of the few things I can do. I truly believe that living a smaller, slower life can alleviate some of the misery and violence we currently face. I’m not trying in any sense to be high and mighty, nor to assume that my purpose is to eliminate any of the world’s troubles. I do, however, think that in dark times, we need more places to go for a ray of sunlight. If I can provide a smile or something that makes anyone feel just a little bit lighter, I feel privileged. I will continue to try to spread happiness wherever I can.
{End speech!}
So, this is what’s going on for me today – a healthy lunch while I look over some content planning for the blog.
In the meantime, I thought I’d share some favorite links and things. Happy Friday to you!
Marie Forleo interviewed Mastin Kipp of The Daily Love on how to follow your purpose even when it seems insane in the membrane! This is a long one, but SO good.
Danielle LaPorte blogged about inspiration and how you can’t please everyone.
Leo Babauta of Zen Habits wrote an amazing post on how to simplify. Love it!
“Simplify everything. That might sound hard, but with practice it’s actually fairly easy, and leads to a quiet, content, lovely life full of space, with only the things in it that matter to me: my family, my writing, with some reading and workouts thrown in.”
Gala Darling wrote a post on surviving Mercury Retrograde. Not sure how much I believe in astrology but gadgets do certainly seem to be sketchy during retrograde times! She also wrote a great post on getting amazing sleep – and now I am seriously curious about that gel-cooling pillow.
This is an absolutely fascinating article on women who hire male escorts. There’s a certain…bittersweet element – I don’t know, am I crazy?! What do you think?
Elsie from A Beautiful Mess (one of my top 5 blogs) wrote about 10 places you can get inspired, plus a great DIY on some super cheap & chic wall art! Too cute!
UCC Green Tea in a can reminds me sooooo much of hot, humid summers in Japan. Each time I was waiting at the train station, I’d gladly deposit 100-yen for the crisp cool taste of canned green tea. I got so excited when I saw the familiar green can at Whole Foods – now I buy one every day. Sounds weird, but you have to try it!
That being said – iced tea with cream is my new favorite thing. The barista at Whole Foods gave me iced tea instead of coffee on accident. I poured lots of cream in, and to my happy surprise it felt like I was drinking a yummy Thai iced tea (sans sugar) all morning. I promptly went and got another when I finished my shift at work. If you love Thai iced tea but don’t want to bombard your bod with sugar, you have to try it!
Thought Catalog made a list of the 19 things you gotta do before the end of summer! I love most of these!
I wore my hair like this yesterday, just not quite as messy! (And, um, also – I totally love their website!) It was actually pretty easy to do and I felt like a ballerina all day.
I am totes in love with my new Venus Tank from lululemon in black. It is the perfect everyday top, whether you’re going to work out or not. And before you comment on the price, I have a lululemon scoop neck tank from 2006 that I still wear – it still looks new!
Heaven help me: I’m hooked on playing Sim City Social on facebook. Be my neighbor?
My friend Jen linked to these amazing DIY macrame bracelets that are too fab for words. I want to make them!
Enjoy your weekend! ❤
small life, slow life 