Protecting Your Space
Last night, after doing a really fun dance workshop, I went to my favorite Japanese restaurant where customers can sit at the sushi bar. Where they first seated me, it smelled really strongly of something like a cross between ammonia and Glade bathroom air freshener. I thought maybe they had just wiped the counter, but […]
The Spirits of the Second Stall
It was my second day in New York City, and I was immersed in a crowd of nervous hopefuls. 100 authors and experts, all eager to get publicity, were jammed into a large hotel ballroom, lining up to meet the nation’s top TV producers, radio hosts, and print media editors. When our number was called, […]
The “Poor Me” Post-it
Plucky and freckled, my neighbor Lana is a young Irish gal who’s always making wisecracks and is quick to lend a helping hand. Lana grew up poor, raised by a quirky single mom whom she says dated men “with more criminal charges than teeth.” To help make ends meet, Lana’s mom would take her daughters dumpster […]
How to Be Happy When Your Life is Crappy
How to be happy is no easy question, nor is there a short answer. Great philosophers and spiritual teachers have spent centuries tackling the quest for human happiness. Letting go of struggle and negativity and freeing yourself to joyously love and be loved is a lifelong journey. Meanwhile, there are a few basic check-points on the […]
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
In difficult situations, it’s often hard to know whether to stay in the situation or walk away, emotionally or literally. Playwright Tennessee Williams advises, “There is a time for departure even when there’s no certain place to go.” On the other hand, Buddhist nun Pema Chodron recommends that we “sit in the fire” until our […]
