Way To Be Happy No. 32

Be like this guy.

Way To Be Happy No. 31

Imagine something different.

Way To Be Happy No. 30

Appreciate some art.

Way To Be Happy No. 29

Substitute faith for expectations.

Way To Be Happy No. 28

Just say no to expensive and hard-to-get hallucinogens.

Way To Be Happy No. 27

Help something grow.

Way To Be Happy No. 26

Don't cling to old notions of what's valuable in life. Be thankful for the gift of questioning.

Way To Be Happy No. 25

Just do something?

Way To Be Happy No. 24

Overcome jealousy.

Way To Be Happy No. 23

Visit Seattle.

The Seattle Rock Orchestra, by the way, is a 30-piece orchestra. I'm trying not to think about how I can't be at this show, and having some luck with that. It's good not to agonize over what you're missing.

Way To Be Happy No. 22

See Aretha Franklin in a 500-seat auditorium, if you can. Better yet, write about it this well.

Way To Be Happy No. 21

Try something different for a while.

I'm not using Facebook for a while. Not sure how long. Yes, I'm missing some things. It's reconnected me with friends I hadn't heard from in a long time and found I still really like. But it seemed to constantly draw me in and suck up too much of my time.

In truth, for all its flaws, Facebook is too brilliant a tool to give up forever. But going without it for a while ought to be refreshing, and instructive.

Way To Be Happy No. 20

See a movie you know next to nothing about.

Once you're set on seeing the movie, you might as well know as little as possible about the plot. And if you don't have any expectations other than, say, "It'll be a sci-fi film about aliens," then everything good about the movie is gravy. Even if it's basically a thorough condemnation of the human race.

Way To Be Happy No. 19: Laugh

Looking at the brochure for the arty Nissan Cube, I asked myself, "What would Andy Warhol drive?" So I Googled that very phrase and found this.

Way To Be Happy No. 18: Ask yourself ...

... at the end of the day, what would it have gained you to be unhappy?

Way To Be Happy No. 17: Learn something

This picture was taken in 1924 by the Russian photographer and artist Aleksander Rodchenko. Not only does it look amazingly contemporary, but the subject, poet Vladimir Mayakovsky, was a pretty contemporary figure, too, a sort of Henry Rollins of the early USSR.

"The poet, two years younger than Rodchenko, had been a celebrity since 1913. He saw himself as the "drummer" of the Russian Revolution and wrote a vernacular poetry meant for declamation. Most at home in the heroic era up to 1924, he cultivated the menacing look of a gangster." -- Ian Jeffrey, How to Read a Photograph

The directness of the pose, the severity of his expression, and the masculine physicality against that rather natty suit point directly to today's fashion photography. It's a long way from what most of us think of as a "1920s" look.

Way To Be Happy No. 15

Rediscover a food from your youth.

I first had this bread on family vacations at Sea Ranch when I was in college, or even before. Wonderful, chewy, perfect for toast. After I moved to Northern California, for some reason I didn't like it for a long time. Now it's my favorite sandwich bread.

Way To Be Happy No. 14

Wait until tomorrow.

Way To Be Happy No. 13

Close your eyes. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Think of a place where you felt safe. Probably a place with lots of positive associations and few negative ones. Go there in your mind. What does it look like? What does it sound like? How does it smell? What's it like in the morning? At night?

Just place yourself there and remember the details. Or invent them, if you're that kind of person. Let that place calm you.

Way To Be Happy No. 12

Stop complaining. (Thanks for the ancient link, Jessica!)

Way To Be Happy No. 11

Sometimes, having a good cry. This ought to do it.

Way To Be Happy No. 10

Take the time to catch up with an old friend.

Way To Be Happy No. 9

Watch something surprising.

Way To Be Happy No. 8

Stop worrying about that thing. You know, the one you can't do anything about now.

Way To Be Happy No. 7

Be ethical.

Way To Be Happy No. 6

Try hard, finish what you can, and forgive yourself about the rest.

Way To Be Happy No. 5

Appreciate your hunger, if you know it will be satisfied.

Way To Be Happy No. 4

Listen to your friend's funny story.

Way To Be Happy No. 3

Do something that makes you lose track of time.

Way To Be Happy No. 2

Collaborate with other people for a good cause.

Way To Be Happy No. 1

How can I help people through this blog? We all want to be happy, and we all know ways to do it. There's always research into this, too. Here's one of my own ideas.

If you are an envious person, remember that you have your life and other people have theirs, and your true needs are unique. To be happy, you have to discover your own needs and try to fulfill them. What other people have is irrelevant to you.

If you aren't an envious person, be thankful for that!