Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Holy Donuts

I wrote a song about donuts. And played it on my ukulele. And made a (lame) video for it.




Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Happier

A couple of months ago, I discovered an app called Happier.
The concept is to share three things a day, three small moments that bring you happiness. I find it to be very helpful in downplaying the negative and stressful parts of day to day life.

As one of Happier's founders recently wrote on their blog, "While chasing some unachievable state of the BIG HAPPY I had ignored so many of the small happy moments that were part of my everyday – the sound of my daughter’s footsteps as I put my key in the door and she ran to meet me, grabbing our favorite Spanish Latte with my husband on a morning walk, hearing a friend tell me I made her smile. I became a lot happier when I started focusing on these small moments, elevating them out of the routine, pausing to actually be grateful for having them in my life."


I was asked to be part of a Q & A for their blog. I really enjoy sharing the good news of Happier and was, well, happy to contribute.



UPDATE:

As Tim King mentions below, part of the power of sharing small happy moments comes form receiving positive responses from others. That's why Happier is so great (and why, I think, it's harder for it to be useful if you're using it in the "private" mode - if no one else sees your updates, there'll be no feedback).

The more I use Happier, the more I appreciate the helpfulness of it. The app is not about a bunch of Pollyanna's sharing how great everything is. It's about finding even one, small, positive thing amidst an otherwise unredeemable day. It's about reshaping your own thinking to be aware of even the tiniest happy moment. So maybe, just maybe, you'll start feeling happier all the time.

Here's founder Nataly Kogan's wonderful TEDx talk about the power of Happier - and pancakes. Mmmmm. Pancakes...

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Ukulele Goldsmith

So I've been busy trying to accomplish the most natural thing in the world - play Jerry Goldsmith songs on ukulele.

First up, the theme from the TV show Man From UNCLE. Who knew there were any lyrics at all?



Next, the Love Theme from Logan's Run - As We Follow the Sun.



Brings tears to my eyes.

And speaking of tears, you will certainly experience a lump in your throat while listening to my ukulele cover of Jerry Goldsmith's exquisite love theme from Star Trek: The Motion Picture, A Star Beyond Time.



Jerry Goldsmith is certainly smiling down on me now. Or, um, perhaps, spinning in his grave.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Happy St. Asimov's Day!

Today is Isaac Asimov's birthday.

To celebrate, here is a photo of me with some - only some - of my Asimov books.


Yes, I am a nerd.

Meanwhile, I would also like to remind you of my short story, In Memory Yet Green (also the title of the first volume of Asimov's autobiography). The story appears in the anthology My First Time, which is now on sale for only $2.51.

I will now celebrate the way Isaac would - by writing.