Vitamin D levels are low and the news is bleak. But being sad won’t achieve anything, so here are 10 suggestions for ways to lift your spirits.
‘Tis June. For a while ‘twas Gemini season, but that has been closed early due to rain. All that’s left now is cold snaps and global instability. So… how to be happy?
1. Be like Bridget Jones
There is no obsession as healthy as a mini-break obsession. As Bridget Jones says, a mini-break means true love (here not restricted to the romantic). Go away for the weekend. Make it long with a day of annual leave on the side, or keep it a simple overnighter that requires only booking a bed for one night and packing one pair of undies and socks. Ideal destinations involve natural hot springs, somewhere you can go for a little walk, op shops, a bakery with a good big brekkie involving lots of baked beans and a pub where you can chat to the locals over a good chicken schnitty. Don’t overthink it!
2. Lie on your couch crying for two days
Life is all about balance, so if you cry for two days straight I calculate that you’re going to be nothing but a ray of sunshine for about two weeks afterwards.
3. Swim in the ocean
I know, there’s going to be all those people that think “Oh but I run cold,” or “I got cold so easily” or “I hate being cold”. I used to be just like you! Being cold was my greatest fear. I’d wear merino socks under ski socks all winter. I’d shiver by the heater and not want to move. I’d avoid showering because then I’d be wet, and thus cold. It turns out that in most circumstances being cold is not as bad as you think it’ll be. It also turns out that the beach, and the lovely sea are still there during the winter. The sea is cold in summer too, so the difference is minor. Going for a swim is nice, you feel so refreshed and alive and brave – is that not happiness?
4. Bake some ginger crunch
Not only do you get ginger crunch, but you get to give ginger crunch to people who will be so grateful and you will simply GLOW with goodwill.
5. Chat to Uncle Iroh (or anyone wise) on ChatGPT
6. Don’t be a loser
Uncle Iroh says that even the most powerful benders and the wisest generals can feel invisible without true companionship. So even if you feel like a loser, know that kindred spirits are out there, waiting to find you or for you to open the right door (I think the door is in your heart). He has three tips: be a good companion to yourself, reach out and let yourself be seen, even if you’re a weirdo. I would suggest not inviting people out for coffees or catch ups. Both these things seem like work. Instead invite people to do something fun, perhaps one of these activities under $20 like feeding pigeons.
7. Take a sick day
Sickness comes in all shapes and sizes. One of these shapes and sizes is having that feeling in your gut that going to work all the time is simply not living. Take that legal entitlement.
8. Find a leaf that looks like a corn chip
I flung open the office door and there it was, lying peacefully in the hallway, a crispy, triangular corn chip. But why? We were at least 100 metres from the kitchen, the natural habitat of corn chips, and it was 9 o’clock in the morning, not corn chip time. I bent down to retrieve the mystery chip only to find that it wasn’t what I thought it was. From the shortest side of the triangle, a little stem protruded. This was no chip at all, but a perfectly formed leaf, blown off from its tree and dried perfectly to the exact shade and texture of a salsa dipper. Life is not always what it seems. What a joy!
9. Wake up early
And get out of bed too. Make yourself a cuppa and watch the sun rise. The overachievers might like to try walking up their local maunga with a thermos. Apart from the lovely colours of sunrise and the buzzy feeling of watching the day begin, psychologists have found that people who get up early “report higher levels of positive affect” (and yes they accounted for problems like depression and neuroticism that are associated with sleep disorders). Don’t scrimp on sleep though, tuck yourself in earlier than usual – it’s dark anyway!
10. Keep a pet spider
Having pets is an excellent gateway to happiness. They reduce stress, help you get exercise, offer companionship, a sense of purpose and even social connection as people are drawn to cute little fuzzy things like puppies and spiders. Pet spiders don’t need much – a jar with holes poked in the lid, a few leaves and sticks and a small supply of fresh insects. You can take them anywhere with you in your pocket, like a good luck charm or a worry doll. Most of all, they would be the perfect pairing to the corn chip leaf.
