Five Things Making Me Happy (Every shade of green / scent bottles)

Hello,

This week, I’m so happy to be home. One of my favorite lines from Samuel Johnson keeps running through my mind: “To be happy at home is the ultimate result of all ambition, the end to which every enterprise and labour tends.” (The Rambler No. 68) Agree, disagree?

My book tour was a terrific experience. All my travels went smoothly—superstitiously, I didn’t say anything about my airport luck until I was off the road—and I loved getting the chance to talk to readers and listeners about the five senses, a subject that still absolutely fascinates me. (If you’re curious, you can read more notes from the tour here.)

At the same time, as someone who loves habits and routine, these days I’m taking enormous pleasure in drinking from my favorite giant mug and making my own breakfast chaffle every morning.

Onward,

5 Things Making Me Happy

I love walking in springtime Central Park. Every shade of green is on display; I can’t open my eyes wide enough to take in so much beauty.

As I’ve mentioned, I’m a big fan of using dates as a catalyst for reflection, and May is Mental Health Awareness Month—a great reminder to take steps to support our own mental health, as well as the mental health of others. One very useful resource is the podcast Meditative Story. It has an unusual and thought-provoking format: each episode combines immersive story-telling from people like Sharon Salzberg, Krista Tippett, David Duchovny, and Dan Harris (and me) with meditation prompts suggested by host Rohan Gunatillake. Great for people working on a mindfulness practice.

I created the “Four Tendencies,” a personality framework that divides people into four categories: Upholders, Questioners, Obligers, and Rebels. I love spotting the Four Tendencies out in the world and discovering new ways that people harness the power of their Tendency. I was fascinated to read “They Spend Time on TikTok to Stop Living Check to Check.” It describes how some people post payday videos on TikTok as a way to hold themselves accountable for spending wisely. A novel and apparently very effective strategy—mostly for Obligers, I’m guessing.

A quest is more fun than a jaunt, so I love to have a reason to search out specific artwork during my daily visits to the Met. A friend told me about several scent bottles on display, so I had a great time hunting them down. Beautiful. From now on, every time I visit, I’ll see these small objects with new clarity.

Speaking of scent, I was intrigued by new research in mice that suggests a connection between the smell of menthol and a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. It’s very preliminary, of course, but an interesting—and to me, surprising—line of investigation.

Updates

This month’s Habit Jump-Start in the Happier™ app will help you tap in to the sensations of the natural world. With seven days of prompts, you’ll discover ways to heighten each of your five senses outdoors. For those participating in the Go Outside 23 in 23 challenge, this Jump-Start offers creative ideas for how to spend your 23 minutes outside. It's free to join, and starts Sunday, May 21st.

This week on Happier with Gretchen Rubin

PODCAST EPISODE: 430

For this Very Special Episode, we discuss dozens of hacks for entertaining, suggested by listeners and ourselves. We have suggestions and tips for making tasks easier, lowering the bar, doing preparations efficiently, and generally having more fun.

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