Things I've Enjoyed Recently

1. Cancer fiction (e.g., The Fault in Our Stars by John Green and I Kill Giants by Joe Kelly)
2. Essays by Kathryn Schulz and Josephine Livingston

Success

Success is the freedom to do what you want.

Overheard today

Preschooler 1 [Holds banana up to ear like a phone]: Hi Mommy!
Preschooler 2 [Smiling, runs to kitchen to grab banana, and mimics preschooler 1]: Oh, hi there, mommy. How are you?
Preschooler 1 [Looking incredulously at banana]: MOMMY??

Being Known

You know, I think people look at - I think the base of fame is, everybody wants to be known, honestly. And people look at fame as that's, like, the ultimate being known and whoever's famous, man - man, they've got their crap together. But in actuality, if you're known by people who love you and you're known, that's all the knowing you need. And actually, people who are famous and have - have a lot of people know them, that can actually make you less known, personally, because a lot of factors are involved in that.

So it's that sense of, yeah, I might have confidence professionally. Like, I might be more comfortable in front of the camera. I might - since I've had all these experience, I'm a lot more comfortable in kind of the craft of it. But in terms of personal value and personal growth and personal confidence, that's a whole other game. That's whole other - just, you know, just a journey of healing in my life or whatever and having friends around me who support me and love me, and me seeing the value in that - the most value in that. I think that's a different game.

- Actor Tony Hale on Fresh Air

Daily Rage: How much does it cost to have a baby?

Nobody knows.

Daily Learn: Adorno

Three Significant Ways Capitalism Corrupts and Degrades Us
1. Leisure time becomes toxic - Free time should be an opportunity to develop ourselves and to acquire the tools to change society. But in the modern world, leisure has devolved into the "culture industry," designed to keep us distracted, unable to understand ourselves, and without the will to alter our political reality.

2. Capitalism doesn't sell us the things we really need - Our real wants are carefully shielded from us by capitalist industry so that we end up forgetting what we truly need and settle instead for desires manufactured for us by corporations without any true interest in our welfare. Though we think we live in a world of plenty, what we really require to thrive - tenderness, understanding, calm, community - are disconnected from the present economy.

3. There are proto-fascists everywhere.

The primary obstacles to social progress are cultural and psychological rather than narrowly political or economic.

The May 26 Mark

*Read a news article about a foreign country every day.
*Sign up to volunteer for something.
*Talk to a family member.
*Try to make Jess laugh.

Previously:
* No caffeine and chocolate after 3 pm.
* No screens after 10 pm.
* Spend 30 minutes outside everyday.
* Stop saying "good job" to my daughter. Use more specific praise instead.
* Use smile.amazon.com when ordering off of Amazon.
* Have a conversation with a friend or family member every week.
* Read a book just for pleasure.
* Be more forgiving of myself and others.
* Say "Thank you" more and "I'm sorry" less.
* Laugh more.
* Try to understand other people's thinking, especially if they disagree with my own.
* Create something.
* Fail. Try to laugh it off afterwards.
* Spend an hour everyday being present with my wife and daughter.
* Brush and floss my teeth every night before bed.
* Try something out of my comfort zone.

Nine Ways to Bring Joy

1. Get enough sleep.
2. Schedule stillness.
3. Move your body.
4. Connect with nature.
5. Strengthen your relationships.
6. Get in the zone.
7. Play more.
8. Be of service.
9. Express yourself.

From Psychcentral.

Oakland Warriors