A Little Bit Soggy

Kansas City got a little snow yesterday, but that wasn't enough to deter the first meeting of the Kansas City Happiness Project! I wore my newly knit leg warmers, which makes me EXTREMELY happy, but they got a little soggy tromping through the melting snow. The group was small but lively--we had a great space to meet, good conversation, and some delicious food! Eddie Delahunt at Cafe & was great, and I think he appreciated our desire to be happier--he's a pretty happy guy himself, so the whole vibe worked really well.

I was a little nervous about whether people would feel like sharing, and what I would say--I was as prepared as I felt like I could be: it's sort of like a book club, but not everyone had read the book. I hope they (and all of you!) will go get The Happiness Project book, and whether you can make it to a meeting or start your own happiness project, I think you'll get SOMETHING out of it.

One of Gretchen's main points about a happiness project is that everyone's will look different--things that make me happy might not necessarily make YOU happy. For example, I love knitting, but that may not be your cup of tea. I like to listen to NPR podcasts of my favorite shows, but some people may think they are boring.

What I liked about the group that came today was that everyone was willing to share a little about their own lives, their own quest for happiness and fulfillment, and anecdotes of their own experiences. In her own project, Gretchen said that the things that influenced her the most and gave her the best insight into happiness were those personal stories, and it definitely rang true today.

We talked about January's subject of Vitality--boosting energy makes you happier! How to boost energy? The group had some great ideas and also some challenges. We are all going to create a few resolutions for January that will boost our happiness, then chart them on our Happiness Resolutions charts and see how we do. As we're working on January's resolutions (now for February since we're getting started a little late), we're also creating our Happiness Commandments--principles for daily living that will help us tackle each day in a happier manner.

Thanks to those of you that came today, and I hope you'll come back again! If you couldn't make it today, know that it was fun and comfortable, and I hope you'll consider attending our next meeting, which will be on February 27th, same location (Eddie Delahunt's Cafe & at 45th and Bell). Now, on to working on my happiness resolutions...

Both Sides of the Coin

I started wondering today whether Facebook makes me happy. Usually it does, I think--I have friends that I wouldn't otherwise be in contact with. Quite a few people I know are hilarious to read about in status updates. I can share my photos and see what everyone is up to. I like those parts.

However, today I read a few things (as I do probably every other day or so) that made my heart hurt. A few things hateful or spiteful, and several things that are just sad or negative. I've always heard that when you input negative things into your brain, negative things are bound to come out. I find that to be true--if I stew all day on negative things I can get myself down.

It makes me wonder whether it is a good idea to look at Facebook so much. That sad, I'm a Facebook addict, so cutting that cord would be quite a challenge.

On the flip side of the coin, something that made me ecstatic today was a personal email from my favorite author, Gretchen Rubin! She read my blog, THEN took the time to send me an email saying she enjoyed my post! I am flattered and excited.

I guess you have to take the good with the bad, right? (Start theme song from The Facts of Life...)

To Happiness (and Beyond)!

2010!

Hi, faithful readers (all three of you)!

It's been a while, I know. It's almost the end of January. 2010. Ten years since Y2K (for which I was in England, without my own personal computer, oblivious to the fright the world was feeling at the impending doom of the switch to a four-digit year in the date).

For the first half of this year, I'll be 30. Three decades old. I've said it before, in person, on Facebook, and probably even on this blog, though I'm too lazy to go back and check that fact: this has turned out to be one of the most amazing years of my life on this planet, and I'm only halfway to 31. I was afraid at first, but for those of you on the cusp of a life-changing number behind your name (and in the words of some of my dearest old friends): IT GETS BETTER.

I'm not much of one for New Year's resolutions. I'll tell you why--I've realized that New Year's resolutions as I learned to make them are too broad for me to succeed. You might be thinking that I should just narrow my scope, but I've decided that making resolutions for the sake of the first day of the year just doesn't work for me. I always fail at keeping them, and then I just feel bad about myself. Isn't that the opposite of the reason we make these resolutions? We mean for them to better us, and for some reason, they don't work for me. So I'm not making any.

I will say, however, that the advent of a new year inspires me. Maybe this is the feeling that motivates some of you to create and keep your resolutions at the beginning of the year. I can't say exactly what it is--the change in the date, maybe, or the fact that the days are getting longer and the sun is out for a few more minutes each day. Maybe it's just the conclusion to the holiday season and the dig-in attitude of preparing for a whole 12 months of something different.

Whatever it is, I'm motivated. To get up earlier, to pursue passions I've put on the shelf. To try something new. I won't say here that my resolution is to write more on this blog--maybe I will and maybe I won't. Tonight I just feel like this is the thing to do.

I have definitely posted before on this blog about The Happiness Project and the new adoration I've found for an author I was introduced to on a whim, Gretchen Rubin. My friend G shared the Happiness Project blog with me last year, and since that first post I read I couldn't get enough. This past week I had the opportunity to meet Gretchen in person when she visited Kansas City on the book tour for her new book, created as a result of a year of studying how to be happier.

After Gretchen spoke to a packed room at the Plaza library, she took a few questions. I couldn't NOT take the opportunity to speak with her some more, so I got up to ask a question. I've joked with friends and family that I'm a little bit obsessed about Gretchen and her project, and I probably speak about it sometimes like a deranged fan (or someone employed by her publicist to talk about the blog and the book). I have just been so moved by what I've read, and by Gretchen herself that I want to share it with everyone I know--I suppose I'm like that about other books I read, or new music I hear, or a story I've just listened to on NPR. I've been incredibly inspired by her thoughts and her project.

What I asked about is whether she's changed anyone's mind about happiness, and she shared an anecdote with me. One person she spoke with told her that he didn't "believe in happiness." I have encountered that point of view myself--people think it's a silly idea to spend time looking for happiness. What Gretchen asked this critic was "do you think you could be happier than you are now?" He had to concede.

I've decided that EVERYONE could be happier, no matter how happy you feel you are now, so I'm starting my own Happiness Project. I've invited everyone I know to join me, whether you can be present or not--I've started a Facebook group to keep you updated on what I'm personally working on for the month, and I hope you'll take a minute to think about it yourself. It would definitely make me happier if you did.

Happy New Year! My hope for this year is more happiness, more growth, and more love. For me AND for you.