Happiness...

I've been reading The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner. He travels to assorted countries to see how happy their inhabitants are. Today I read, in the chapter on Qatar:

"So the greatest source of happiness is other people—and what does money do? It isolates us from other people. It enables us to build walls, literal and figurative, around ourselves. We move from a teeming college dorm to an apartment to a house and, if we're really wealthy, to an estate. We think we're moving up, but really we're walling off ourselves."

I find this interesting, considering I live alone and love my space, my separation. But I do enjoy people. Also, I wonder, is happiness the greatest achievement? Maybe I'll find out by the end of the book.

Anyway, I do find that connections with others improve my mood. Feeling useful at the library, helping people do simple things like find a book or use the computer, makes my day better. Making a co-worker laugh, sometimes at my expense, helps too.

Other people-connecting: I've recently had good phone conversations with a couple of close, faraway friends. This afternoon I went to a surprise baby shower for a friend, complete with scones, finger sandwiches and PG Tips. And non-annoying games. On the way home, I stopped at a liquor store where they were having a wine tasting. They had a fantastic syrah...it had been too long since I had one of those.

Late this afternoon, I carried my $15 Wal-Mart float tube (complete with handles, cupholders and a headrest) along the river for about a mile, then drifted back toward the man-made rapids. Altogether: perfect weather, cool water, very lazy thoughts. The toenail I smashed on Tuesday got clean enough so I could see what was going on—and sterilize it, then glue it back together.

This evening, I baked a cake and listened to some favorite music:

• "Rave On" by M. Ward
• "Ordinary" by Late Tuesday
• Louis Armstrong, Bon Iver, Jimi Hendrix and Deb Talan

I've been looking through photos from the last couple of weeks: Seattle with the family, then Kai and Branden's wedding in Hawaii. I love candid shots. I think they show more about the situation and the personality than posed portraits. I'll be posting a lot of photos in the coming days, in these two albums:
Seattle Weekend 2009
Kai and Branden: Hawaii Wedding

Comments

[Mom]

Hi sweetie, it was fun reliving our vacation through your pictures. Thanks for all of your efforts. I'm looking forward to seeing the wedding photos. xxoo mom

[Katie]

I loved the WA ones, and can't wait to see the HI ones!