My book tour is underway! I’m having a great time meeting readers, listeners, and booksellers, and I appreciate the opportunity to talk about the subject that continues to fascinate me: how and why engaging with our five senses can make us happier. Over the years, I’ve learned that I get so many good insights, examples, and observations during events that I always keep a pad of paper nearby, so I can quickly jot down anything especially interesting while the ideas are still fresh in my mind.
One reason I chose “Wave” as my one-word theme for 2023 was that I was looking forward to “waving” to so many people. And I have been!
One especially thrilling moment from the tour was when I opened an email from my editor to learn that Life in Five Senses was an instant bestseller—on the New York Times, Washington Post, and Indie Bestseller lists. Thank you, listeners and readers! I so appreciate your enthusiasm and support! Hitting the bestseller list is a huge milestone for a writer like me.
Onward,
5 Things Making Me Happy
I was fascinated to read about an art contest around the Japanese folklore tradition of “yokai,” the mischievous or demonic figures responsible for troubles. As the New York Times article “A Japanese Island Where the Wild Things Are” explains, as new worries arise, new yokai can be created to embody them; one contest winner depicted a furry blue creature with glowing red hearts in its eye sockets, which personifies our current craving for approval on social media.
I’m fascinated by repetition. I love visiting the Met every day, and I’m very interested in the work of artists who return to the same subject over and over again—like Cézanne’s many paintings of apples or Stephen King’s use of a particular location from his childhood (a tangled wilderness with a junkyard and a train track) in several novels. So I was delighted when a friend sent me this wonderful portrait of artist David Hockney with his dogs, and many paintings he made of them.
Both my parents grew up in North Platte, Nebraska, and growing up, I spent many summers there with my grandparents. So I was thrilled to see North Platte get a mention in this episode of Better Call Saul as a possible location for a bank.
Speaking of TV shows, I’ve seen every episode of The Office many times. I realized that maybe I love it so much because one of its core themes is one of my own essential themes: “There’s a lot of beauty in ordinary things—isn’t that kind of the point?” That’s the final line of the entire show.
I was fascinated to read the story of how Beatriz Flamini recently emerged after spending 500 days in complete isolation in a cave in Southern Spain. I’m sure there will be tremendous number of insights gained from her experience—the effect on her circadian rhythm and her perception of time, how she dealt with loneliness, and more. My exploration of the five senses had made me realize how difficult it would be to manage so many kinds of deprivation—how did she do it?
Updates
It’s not too late to join our “Go Outside 23 in ’23” Challenge. So far, participants have logged nearly 3 million minutes outside! Take a look at the infographic or join the challenge here.
Happy Arbor Day! We'd love to see pictures of the trees you encounter while getting outside. Share them on Instagram with the hashtag "#Outside23in23" for a chance to be reposted.
This week on Happier with Gretchen Rubin
PODCAST EPISODE: 427
We talk about why, when we’re encouraging someone else to do something, we should consider doing it ourselves. We also discuss a hack to make networking easier, as well as the helpful know-yourself-better question: “Are you a finisher or an opener?”
