Category Archives: Be More with Less

Something Good (Part Two)

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oaklandbayviewAs promised, here’s Part Two of the list.

1. What Work Do Millenials Want to Do? by Lodro Rinzler on Huffington Post.

2. 8 Truths to Getting Unstuck and Reclaiming Your Freedom from Deva Coaching.

3. Looking to start a yoga practice, need a teacher but don’t want to leave the house? Yogaglo might be worth checking out.

4. Taped Rai – Shadow of The Sun, such a beautiful song.

5. I’ve Gained Weight. Now What Am I Gonna Do? from Drop It and Eat.

6. How To Find Your Calling on MindBodyGreen.

7. The Best Examples of Street Art from 2012. I may have shared this before, but it’s cool enough to do it again.

8. 10 Inspiring Bookshops around the World. This is what’s known in my tribe as book porn.

9. Wisdom from Rumi, “I have been a seeker and still am, but I stopped asking books and the stars. I started listening to the teaching of my soul.”

10. Kid Recites Bible – Then Busts Out George Strait During Pre-School Graduation. Right on, little dude.

harbor11. Good stuff from Be More with Less: I Want to Punch Perfection in the Face and 6 Blogs to Inspire Simplicity and Minimalism.

12. Less Clicking, More Making from Marc Johns.

13. Feeling drrrrrained by emails, blogs, newsletters — the whole Internet? Take back your power. from Alexandra Franzen.

14. The Shero’s School for Revolutionaries with Jen Louden. Lots of wisdom from lots of good people, for free.

15. Important questions from Ram Dass,

Ask yourself: Where am I?
Answer: Here.

Ask yourself: What time is it?
Answer: Now.

Say it until you can hear it.

16. I Am A Yogi on MindBodyGreen.

portofsanfran17. Good stuff from Marc and Angel Hack Life: 7 Miserable Choices You Make Too Often and 9 Things You Do NOT Need to Be Happy.

18. ten-to-go: in the kitchen, on SF Girl by Bay. Beautiful and yummy kitchen items.

19. Truthbomb from Danielle LaPorte, “You have what you need.”

20. From Brave Girls Club,

You can do amazing things with the simplest things. You can have so little and be so happy. You can take small amounts of time and perform life-changing acts…Your heart knows when it’s time, and you will have the strength to do it. And best of all, you will see enormous changes happen in your life when you let the unimportant things go and embrace the things that quietly sustain you and bring you joy…It may not look like the most glamorous life, but it is one filled with joy, peace, and harmony; one where laughter is a welcome and frequent companion; one where worries are few, where long meaningful conversations are many; one that is waiting for you when you are ready to take the steps to get there…Simplify today, one little thing at a time. You can do it. You are LOVED.

oaklandbayview0221. A poem from Rainer Maria Rilke, Go to the Limits of Your Longing,

God speaks to each of us as he makes us,
then walks with us silently out of the night.

These are the words we dimly hear:

You, sent out beyond your recall,
go to the limits of your longing.
Embody me.

Flare up like a flame
and make big shadows I can move in.

Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror.
Just keep going. No feeling is final.
Don’t let yourself lose me.

Nearby is the country they call life.
You will know it by its seriousness.

Give me your hand.

sanfranbridge0222. 10 Things You Should Do Every Day, on Elephant Journal. Again, I’ve shared this before but it’s important enough to take another look.

23. The Art of Decluttering on MindBodyGreen.

24. Me, Myself, & I from Rachel Cole.

25. Note from the Universe,

Nobody, Jill, is who they are based upon one decision, one day, one path, one chance, one relationship, or one anything else. Every day is brand new and opportunity never stops knocking.

26. Perspective from Dawn Dalili.

27. Can I Feel Your Soul Through Your Work? from Jonathan Fields. Word.

28. Everyday Icons: The Writer, an interview with Alexandra Franzen, and a follow-up blog post, Yet another (astonishingly simple) way to write your own bio.

berkeleymural29. Your Story Matters, in which Jen Louden references the workshop we did together this weekend, and makes an incredibly important point — maybe the most important point of all.

30. 8 Creativity Lessons from a Pixar Animator on Zen Habits.

31. Neil Gaiman’s Advice to Aspiring Writers on Brain Pickings.

32. A Chat with Inspired and Unstoppable Tama Kieves on The Mojo Lab.

33. the art of thinking highly of yourself by Justine Musk.

berkeleymural0234. Woman Secretly Filmed Dancing at Bus Stop Lands Prestigious Theater Gig on Gawker. This video makes me all kinds of happy. The fact that it has a happy ending is a bonus.

35. I am buying Sam an elephant, and here’s why: No Friendship Can Compare To This One Between A Dog And An Elephant on Buzzfeed and Elephant and dog best friends love playing in the water together (VIDEO).

36. Tears, Tails, Dickey and Duane from Susan Piver. Just one more reason I love her.

37. San Francisco Adventures! from Vivienne McMaster.

Something Good

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1. Writing and Speaking for Introverts, from Chris Guillebeau on The Art of Non-Conformity.

2. Good stuff from Alexandra Franzen: And So It Goes and “If all else fails…” 10 of the BEST possible worst case scenarios and Terrified Of Missing Out? (Me, Too.) 31 Mantras For Me – And You!

3. Good stuff from Marc and Angel Hack Life: 6 Things You Will Regret About Today and 7 Questions to End Your Week With and 6 Reasons Your Relationship is Suffering.

4. Dear Body, by Vivienne McMaster on Kind Over Matter.

5. Jason Sudeikis, Ed Helms Parody Mumford & Sons in Band’s Video on Mashable. I like it when people can laugh at themselves, don’t take themselves so seriously.

6. Wisdom from Sakyong Mipham, “If we do not appreciate the sensitivity and subtlety of the human heart, how can we appreciate the sensitivity and subtlety of the natural world?”

7. Let’s Talk About Dogs and Euthanasia: When Is It Time? Should You Be Present? a good article by a vet on Dogster about an important topic if you live with and love a dog. I have made this decision twice for my dogs, determined when it was time, when their suffering had surpassed their quality of life, and needed to be there with them, was lucky enough to be, but that might not be the right decision for everyone.

8. Rawness of Remembering: Restorative Journaling Through Difficult Times a new class offered by Esmé Weijun Wang.

9. Good stuff from Be More With Less: How to Master the Art of Slowing Down and Simplicity is Not a Destination.

10. Sex Everyday for a Year from Brittany Herself.

11. How my cat Refurb accidentally raised nearly $1000 for charity.

12. Why I changed my mind on weed by Dr. Sanjay Gupta. I wish more people would take the time to do the research before forming an opinion, before passing judgement — but I think that about just about everything.

13. Somebody Went And Wrote the Ultimate Craigslist Missed Connection on Gawker.

14. You are enough. by Sherry Richert Belul.

15. Amy McCracken on 3x3x365, talking about grief, explains so perfectly what it’s like to live it. And just four days later, she shares the best news ever.

16. Vegan Zucchini Corn Fritters recipe. We have so much zucchini right now that I have an eye out for new ways to eat it. We are also going to try it as a pizza topping.

17. Dear Condescending Advertising Agencies: This Is What Your Ads For Women Look Like on Upworthy. In other advertising news, my dog Sam has real issues with the Kia Hamsters.

18. a ten point guide : the myth and magic of homo sapien introvertus in which Sas Petherick suggests the perfect introvert motto, “I’m okay, you’re okay. Please leave soon.”

19. Burglars Return Stolen Computers To Nonprofit With Heartfelt Apology Note on Huffington Post.

20. A beautiful art installation and explanation from the artist, originally shared by Karen Walrond on her blog Chookooloonks,

21. Crowdsourcing Hope from Hopeful World.

22. So much cuteness (and reminds me so much of my Dexter), As promised, more pics of my half German Shepherd Dog, half Norwegian Elkhound named Reboot! on Reddit.

23. From the Positively Present Picks list: Recipe Remedy, 5 Ways to Get Out of a Slump, 5 Tips to Stop Making Comparisons and Feeling Bad About Yourself, Conquer Clutter in a Month Infographic, and this wisdom from Robert Brault,

Optimist: Someone who figures that taking a step backward
after taking a step forward is not a disaster, it’s a cha-cha.

24. Emerging Women, October 10th-13th in Boulder Colorado. Just another thing to add to the list of amazing things happening that I won’t be doing but probably would if I had unlimited time, energy, and funding.

25. Wisdom from Geneen Roth on Facebook,

I think I’ve probably told you all this before, but I thought about it again this morning and so wanted to write about it again… My friend Natalie Goldberg once told me that we are always practicing something and most of us practice suffering. That really touched me. In each moment, depending on where our attention is, we are either practicing being awake, being presence, or being caught up in our stories. The past, the future. What he or she did, what I will do when, when a particular thing happens and I will finally be happy. You know the way it goes. So, in this very moment, what are you practicing?

When I remembered what Natalie said, I was practicing a familiar kind of suffering. I was believing one of my top ten stories about what’s wrong with me. And then, the moment I remembered what my friend said, I realized I had a choice. I could stop. Right now. Then I noticed that the sun came out in my body. I felt lighter. I felt free. The moment you realize you have a choice, the moment you stop being enthralled by your own fantasy, everything changes. It’s as if a bubble pops and you wake up from your own dream. So–what are you practicing right now?

26. Dancers Among Us, a beautiful set of images.

27. Does anyone know how to stop binge eating? from the Institute for the Psychology of Eating.

28. A Couple Leaves their Jobs to Build a House of Windows in the Mountains of West Virginia from This is Colossal.

29. How to Do Yoga With Your Cats, a sweet and funny video, (and P.S. most cats I’ve known would murder you if you attempted this).

30. This wisdom from Sharon Salzberg,

It is never too late to turn on the light. Your ability to break an unhealthy habit or turn off an old tape doesn’t depend on how long it has been running; a shift in perspective doesn’t depend on how long you’ve held on to the old view. When you flip the switch in that attic, it doesn’t matter whether its been dark for ten minutes, ten years or ten decades. The light still illuminates the room and banishes the murkiness, letting you see the things you couldn’t see before. It’s never too late to take a moment to look.

31. Dear Diary, from Jeff Oaks, in which he suggests, “Let it go. See what happens.”

32. Good stuff from Tiny Buddha: Stuff We Don’t Need: 5 Reasons Why It Doesn’t Lead to Happiness, Discovering the Elusive Truth and Falling in Love with Yourself, Finding Life Through Death: How Loss Teaches Us to Appreciate More, and Wabi Sabi: Find Peace by Embracing Flaws and Releasing Judgment.

33. Will this be the scariest thing I’ve ever done? in which Satya of Writing Our Way Home talks about her plans for a three week digital sabbatical.

34. Choosing to be formidable from Seth Godin. I want to be someone who is “magic about to happen.”

35. Hungry for the Impossible from Rachel Cole. (P.S. Her next session of Ease Hunting starts September 2nd, I took the first and highly, wholeheartedly recommend it).

36. Danielle Ate the Sandwich interview on Living Myth Media. I especially loved her last answer.

37. The story of Aero on K9Runner. If our Sam had been a bit older when Animal House rescued him, this story could have been his. I am so grateful for the people at Animal House and the volunteers like Pete who commit to giving dogs without a home another chance.

38. Caught this guy playing with himself. Don’t let the title fool you, this is one of the cutest, sweetest videos ever.

39. This wisdom from the Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, from the book Beyond Anger: How to Hold On to Your Heart and Your Humanity in the Midst of Injustice

We all depend on one another. For this reason, whenever we act according to self-interest, sooner or later our selfish aims are bound to clash with the aims of the people we rely upon to accomplish our own goals. When that happens, conflicts will inevitably arise. As we learn to be more balanced in valuing others’ concerns with our own, we will naturally find ourselves involved in fewer and fewer conflicts. In the meantime, it is helpful to acknowledge that conflicts are the logical outcome of this combination of self-interest and interdependence. Once we recognize this, we can see that conflicts are nothing to feel shocked or offended by. Rather, we can address them calmly and with wisdom.

40. “All of us have special ones who have loved us into being.” *sob* 10 seconds isn’t going to be nearly enough, Mr. Rogers.

41. What Is a Diet vs. a Way of Eating? from Anna at Curvy Yoga. She’s so smart.

42. Meditation Practice is Your Ultimate Best Friend on Elephant Journal.