1. The One Feeling I Didn’t Allow: When joy feels risky… from Andrea Gibson. “Falsely we believe that if we feel the heights of joy, we will have a longer and harder fall. But joy is not a tall building we can crash from. Joy is the cord of a parachute that can save us.”

2. So, What’s In the eCourse? from Jena Schwartz. “From getting started to getting unstuck, Getting Words on the Page may change the way you relate to your writing practice – and yourself!” This is going to be a great course and Jena is one of the best writers, coaches, teachers, humans out there — so if this calls to you, I wholeheartedly recommended you sign up.

3. American Experience. “For 35 years, American Experience has been television’s most-watched history series, bringing to life the incredible characters and epic stories that have shaped America’s past and present. American Experience documentaries have been honored with every major broadcast award, including 30 Emmy Awards, five duPont-Columbia Awards and 19 George Foster Peabody Awards. PBS’s signature history series also creates original digital content that innovates new forms of storytelling to connect our collective past with the present.”

4. WORK APPROPRIATE Podcast | My Industry is Failing: Veterinary Medicine Edition with Karen Fine. “For those of us who are pet lovers, a good vet clinic makes all the difference. But for those working in vet clinics, things can be really hard. In fact, veterinarians have a risk of death by suicide at a rate 2-4 times that of the general public. How did things get to be this way, and what hope is there for improvement? Dr. Karen Fine, DVM and author of The Other Family Doctor, joins host Anne Helen Petersen to answer listeners’ questions about working in the vet industry – and how pet owners can offer support.”

5. My Benihana, Myself. “What learning to flip shrimp tails and build onion volcanoes taught me about the gift of performance, and its emotional toll.”

6. How to Be More Alive: Hermann Hesse on Wonder and the Proper Aim of Education. “It bears repeating that what makes life livable is our ability — our willingness — to move through the world wonder-smitten by reality.”

7. Throwing shade or throwing light? from Seth Godin.

8. When The World Crumbles, I Eat Cereal from Frederick Joseph. “And so, I implore you to find your bowl of cereal. Your symbolic refuge, the simplicity of your past becoming a sanctuary in the complex present. You will find that there is a certain kind of magic in these memories. They do not promise to fix the world, or mend our broken spirits overnight. What they do promise is the strength to carry on. They remind us of our resilience, our capacity to dream, our ability to find joy in the simplest of things, and our inherent knack to defy the darkness and create our own light.”

9. Something Worthy of the Sea from Summer Brennan. “An essay with two poems.”

10. DMs from New York City on The New York Times. “Messages, Graffiti and Hand-Written Notes From Across New York City.”

11. Sigur Rós – Andrá (Official Video). “I wished to show how Sigur Rós is the soundtrack of our lives through happiness, pain, hope, grief, and love. The short documentary, Andrá, celebrates the way in which Sigur Rós captures and channels the humanity that unites us all.”

12. 7 Things To Let Go Of For A Happier Life from Courtney Carver at Be More With Less.

13. Tiny Love Stories: ‘I Left Any Room She Entered’ on The New York Times. “Modern Love in miniature, featuring reader-submitted stories of no more than 100 words.”

14. How to Make the Most of Your Alone Time as an Introvert. All of these make sense to me, but the “take solo trips” for me mostly means “walk the dog” or “go to the grocery store” but I’m also slightly agoraphobic, so…

15. America’s unique, enduring gun problem, explained. “The factors that lead to tragedies like the Philadelphia shooting are deeply ingrained in US politics, culture, and law.” 

16. People Who Take Regular Daytime Naps Tend to Have Bigger, Healthier Brains, Study Finds. Have you noticed my big, healthy brain?

17. Toni Morrison Lists the 10 Steps That Lead Countries to Fascism (1995).

18. New Interactive Fort Collins Colorado Mural Is Stunning and Promotes Mental Health. I shared a picture of this last week but didn’t know its story.

19. What’s a Luddite? An expert on technology and society explains.

20. Enchanting miniature animal sculptures by Katie Doka.

21. Abandoned Materials Are Upcycled Into Charming Bug Sculptures.

22. ‘Please Be Seated’ by Paul Cocksedge. (Instagram reel) “‘This work was an instinctive response to the space and the rhythm of people through it, based on early sketches by hand. It solves the practical problem of creating an artwork that fills a public square and engages passersby, without obstructing the space.’ ‘Please Be Seated’ features 1,152 reclaimed scaffolding boards. Each one has been planed, sanded, and cut to become part of a series of huge curves and concentric circles.”

23. These wild animal encounters are crazy! (Facebook video)

24. Simple Anxiety Hacks for Dealing With Crowds.

25. Things I want to watch: SmartLess: On The Road | Official Trailer (video) and Dreamin’ Wild | Official Trailer (video).

26. Roller Kingdom Commercial. (Facebook video) So bad it’s hysterical. 

27. Modern Love: Kissing a Fellow Janitor Amid the Trash on The New York Times. “After two assaults, I sought healing on the coldest, driest and windiest continent on Earth.”

28. Obituary for a Quiet Life. “When the notable figures of our day pass away, they wind up on our screens, short clips documenting their achievements, talking heads discussing their influence. The quiet lives, though, pass on soundlessly in the background. And yet those are the lives in our skin, guiding us from breakfast to bed. They’re the lives that have made us, that keep the world turning.”

29. The Thread Vibes Are Off from Anne Helen Petersen. “This is pretty much what Threads feels like to me now: a place that’s ostensibly interesting (look, so many people are already here!) but is actually totally boring. It’s “fun,” but definitely not funny… It’s not entertaining or clever like TikTok. It’s just new and there, like a bowl of sub-par chips and store-bought guac at a party, asking “Aren’t you hungry? Aren’t you? Aren’t you?””

30. PBS Short Film Festival 2023. “Since 2012, the PBS Short Film Festival (originally named PBS Online Film Festival) has been a platform and partner for promoting short films from independent filmmakers that are presented by public media partners and PBS member stations. Many of the films cover social issues that traditional film festivals tend to shy away from such as identity, culture, family, and race.”

31. The Tyranny of Good. “Good is an internal tornado and an external affair—you are working off an imagined external judge and jury, or as Anne Lamott once described—you are treating everyone in your life like a flight attendant trying to make all of the passengers happy. But if you can tolerate this messiness. If you can tolerate the terror of being what you have been calling ‘bad.’ You can come to understand something crucial: good is a very, very small world.”

1. No Sparklers for These Folks on The New York Times. “Whether because of crowds, politics or a loss of patriotism, some Americans are conflicted about celebrating the Fourth of July.” I feel this — it’s hard to celebrate “independence” and “freedom” when there’s so little of it, so many without.

2. The Work of Happiness: May Sarton’s Stunning Poem About Being at Home in Yourself. This is so gorgeous and true.

3. NYT Ethicist’s Weight Stigma Problem from Ragen Chastain. 

4. “July Had Tried to Kill Them” from Robert Jones. Jr. “That is what I believe my smile and my happiness are: a tiny form of resistance; a kind of healing. Despite all of the energy expended by the powers-that-stole to guarantee my imminent destruction, here I be: finding moments to escape their treachery and dodge their tyranny to fully remember and fully embrace who I am and who I come from such that my lips can’t help but part and frame my teeth with love. As long as I’m alive, there is a chance to do something that eases, that improves, that inspires, that loves.” Also from Robert Jones, Jr. Please Help Adanne Bookshop Relocate: “A Black woman-owned bookstore is in need of our help.”

5. Epiphany 4: Blessing in the Chaos.

6. Drawing This Changed My Life. It can change yours too. from Danny Gregory. (video) “For 25 years, I’ve been drawing the same subject. It’s expanded me in so many ways. You should try it too. I’ll explain why and how in this video.”

7. Lucian James on weirdness: “Weird is often a controlling label to pathologize those who depart from conformity, a marker to tag them as problematic. But when you own your own weirdness, you become yourself. When you dare to be your full weird self, you’re fully original, and that’s what leaves a legacy.”

8. (Zen Garden) Raking wave patterns in the sand at the garden of Ryoan-ji Temple. (video) “I had the opportunity to film the raking wave patterns in the sand at Ryoan-ji Temple, the most famous Zen Garden in the world.”

9. Becoming a Buddha – A Shingon Buddhist 10-step Program. “Kūkai returned to Japan in 806 to found Shingon Buddhism and to spread his teaching of “becoming a Buddha in one’s current body” (Jpn. sokushinjōbutsu). ..Here, I would like to focus on his outline for becoming a Buddha in 10 steps described in his ‘Ten Mindsets’ (Jpn. Jūjūshinron). In this text he uses his system of ‘ranking the doctrines’ (Chn. panjiao) to map the way from ignorance to wisdom, from suffering to liberation, and from hiding to manifesting Buddhahood.”

10. On Unlearning. I was reminded of the Mary Oliver poem Just as the Calendar Began to Say Summer because Hugh Hollowell shared it in his recent Life Is So Beautiful newsletter. I Googled to find the text, a post where I could link to the poem, and came across this lovely blog entry from Rachel Ishiguro Yoga Therapy and loved what she had to say. Hugh’s newsletter also reminded me of the You Are Not Alone Murals project.

11. Cognitive Dissonance from Jena Schwartz’s Monday Dispatch. “The planet may be on fire, but that doesn’t mean what we do and who we are doesn’t matter. If anything, it means it matters even more.”

12. At the Market, a poem by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer, which reminds me of Small Kindnesses by Danusha Laméris.

13. The Power of Unplugging with Tiffany Shlain, the latest episode of The Conversation with Amanda de Cadenet. “What does technology amplify in your life, and what does it amputate? In her book, 24/6: The Power of Unplugging One Day a Week, Tiffany Shlain shares how her family unplugged one day a week and how you can achieve digital wellness. Terms like ‘digital detox’ and ‘internet addiction,’ were developed to identify the problem a device can play. In addition, Tiffany explains what her family calls a ‘technology Shabbat.’ So, where do you want to place your time and attention?” (podcast) 

14. Signs you’re a ‘highly sensitive person’ — the missing personality type, according to some researchers. “When you understand that your brain processes the world and stimulation around you differently, you can do everything possible to give yourself compassion and also set up your life in a way that enhances your traits instead of challenging it.” In related news, Being a Highly Sensitive Person Doesn’t Make You Weak.

15. Why Introverts Might Get the ‘Weekend Blues’ — And How to Cope.

16. Oh, your heart from Patti Digh, “what having a heart attack taught me about heart health.”

17. From Lion’s Roar: The Healing Power of Feeling (“‘The way to find freedom from difficult emotions is to find it right within the feelings themselves,’ writes Andy Karr in his new book, Into the Mirror. Here, he shares a practice for locating and working with difficult feelings in the subtle body to ultimately heal them) and The Life-Changing Words of Mary Oliver (“The beloved late poet Mary Oliver Oliver was known for her poems that contemplate the relationship between nature and spirituality. Rick Bass looks at Oliver’s poem ‘The Summer Day,’ which asks, ‘What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?'”).

18. For Whites Only: Affirmative Action from Frederick Joseph. “The Supreme Court continues to be a tool for white supremacy.”

19. Wellness Didn’t Save Us. Neither Will Productivity. “Dr. Pooja Lakshmin explains why ‘life hacks’ are actually part of the problem.”

20. The Restaurant of Mistaken Orders. (video) “A story about an unusual Japanese pop-up restaurant that serves a lesson along with food.”

21. The Beauty of a ‘Walk and Talk’ on The New York Times. “Taking a stroll with someone is a wonderful way to strengthen your social connections.”

22. 19 Creative Ways to Get a Little Self-Care Outside.

23. Deciding to Let Go. “What misconceptions hold you back from releasing what hurts you?”

24. Being With Loss, a practice and teaching from Upaya Zen Center. (video) 

25. ‘Choose drugs?’ 30 years after he wrote Trainspotting, Irvine Welsh says life is tougher now. “People can’t get jobs. People will never buy a house. They can’t buy nice things. Everything is fucked even if you’re not on drugs,” he says. “It [the book] almost becomes some kind of inspiring clarion call: let’s do fucking drugs, man. We’re fucked anyway. Let’s just go for it.”

26. A new start after 60: I was devastated by divorce at 70. But at 102, I know the secrets of a well-lived life.

27. It’s never too late to become a strong swimmer. Here’s how to start.

28. ‘There is no trust now’: Student loan borrowers respond to Supreme Court decision.

29. Is gun violence an epidemic in the U.S.? Experts and history say it is.

30. 4 tips to help you cope with climate anxiety.

31. 50 Wholesome Memes And Posts That Remind Us The World Isn’t All Bad. A large percentage include cats. Coincidence? I think not.

32. Does Everyone Have An Imagination? “How do you know if you have a ‘mind’s eye’ or not, and is it good or bad if you don’t?” Eric has this, so I’m always interested. 

33. Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Great ‘Indiana Jones’ Adventure on The New York Times.

34. “Yes, But”: 35 Illustrations That Depict Our Society’s Contradictions.

35. In ‘Soil,’ Colorado poet Camille Dungy embraces the beauty of an ‘unruly’ yard.

36. Social media can be a tough place for diet choices. (video)

37. Bighetty & Bighetty. “Four brothers — and their Cree-speaking puppets — show the joyful side of Indigenous life.”

38. Murray Hill is ready for drag kings to finally have their crowning moment. “The ‘Drag Me to Dinner’ host shines a spotlight on drag kings.” In related news, Murray Hill Is Ready to Share His Personal Life on The New York Times. “‘I’m really inspired by the younger generation to be more open,’ said the famous drag king, who shared photos from his very busy Pride month.”

39. Recipe I want to try: Blackberry Loaf. In related news, The Best Veggie Burgers ranked by America’s Test Kitchen. My favorite is still the original Gardenburger. 😦

40. 75 Years Ago, ‘The Lottery’ Went Viral. There’s a Reason We’re Still Talking About It. on The New York Times.

41. Incredible ‘bird feeder’ photos give a whole new perspective on our feathered friends.

42. 35 Times People Went Out Of Their Way To Make Their Gardens And Yards Unique But Ended Up With These.

43. New photography exhibit puts a century of queer men in love on display.

44. Maps, Everyday Ephemera, and Watercolor Drawings Record José Naranja’s Travels with Fantastic Detail.

45. Alison Bechdel: ‘The Bechdel test was a joke… I didn’t intend for it to become a real gauge’. “The US graphic novelist on having her landmark comic strip, Dykes to Watch Out For, turned into an audio series, ​growing up in a funeral home, ​and ​​her famous women-in-film test.”

46. The Hobbies I Tried During Lockdown | Bobby Dazzler | Sarah Millican. (video) I love her so much.