on happiness

In our quest for ultimate happiness in the form of complete satisfaction, are we just setting ourselves up for disappointment?

The more books that are written for self-empowerment, instructions on how to be Happy, and those on achieving some sort of modern American dream, the more unhappy we all seem to be. It's like people have begun to expect to be happy all the time... and any signs of depression just means you need medical attention.

There's so much focus on self-fulfillment, and messages on how to live The Good Life. I seriously hate watching movies or shows about the 1960s (I'm looking at you, Mad Men and Revolutionary Road), that seem to exist only to point out how desperately sad and caged in everyone was back then. "Thank GOD for all the freedom we have now! WHO wants to live in the SUBURBS?!" the shows yell at you as they blow smoke in your face. "Be selfish, and be directionless, I mean SPONTANEOUS, and BE HAPPY!"

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with wanting it all. It's just that people need to remember that Happiness isn't a goal. It's just an emotion. There's a reason we feel it all-- good and bad.

...But anyway, I'm starting to feel super preachy, so I'll end with something that will hopefully make you... a little happy! =)




Now, aren't you happy you're not in a love triangle with a lazy-eyed girl who's careless with her epileptic dog? Win!

time flies...

Time is something you seem to lose sense of, even when it’s staring you right in the face. The older we get, the faster it seems to go, when really, it’s one of the few stable things in life. Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

A lot of people say timing is everything. I tend to think that’s true only because people let it. Sometimes the most inconvenient timing of something amazing can still be amazing if you’re willing to inconvenience yourself a little. So take a chance, because that perfect moment, where all the stars align, and all the fates come together… well… who has time to wait for that?

sigh...

For some reason I’m in a Wicked mood. The Broadway musical, not the British kind. I don’t know what it is about listening to old songs, whether it’s from a few years ago or a few decades ago, but I find is really comforting. It’s familiar, and brings back feelings and memories. I like that.

Sometimes I feel like all I do is wish for the past, or wait for the future. The present always just seems like a waste of time.

Bah Humbug

I know it’s only Halloween, but it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas to me! Last year I had this problem of lacking any holiday cheer, right up until Christmas Eve. I got some of that last minute holly and mistletoe spirit in me by watching It’s A Wonderful Life on TV. I also got some of that spirit by drinking… well… spirits.

Oh, I kid.

Anyway, the point is, can it be Christmas time already? I know in a month I’ll be overwhelmed with saccharine songs and images of jolly fat men, but right now I’d love the smell of pine needles and ginger snaps.

Last year I worked in a store-that-shall-not-be-named, and the good cheer we had to keep circulating in the air is probably what sapped me of any Christmas joy. The store had one CD of Christmas songs that it would play over and over and over and over again. One CD. That’s like 15 songs. All day long. Paired with the incessant consumerism and dealings with frazzled housewives, I pretty much wanted to throw up all over Christmas and yell “Take that! How do YOU like it?!”

I miss the old days of listening to the Muppets sing Christmas songs from the cassette player in the car. I miss the presents being endless and big under a real tree I went with my family to pick out two weeks before. I miss hanging a wreath outside my door and poinsettias on the dining room table. I miss stockings and hot chocolate and movies starring Tim Allen. Maybe some of that I still have, but now the magic feels as faded as the memories.

Yet I still anticipate this season’s arrival, because despite its inevitable let down, being a Scrooge in December is more fun that being a Scrooge in July.