It’s time for the Friday Five!
Letting Go of Things. What would you do if you were traveling around New Zealand for three weeks and everything you’d brought with you was stolen on day one? Lovely post by Alison Turner on detaching from “stuff” and making the best of it anyway. (Also check out her “vanscape” photos from New Zealand.)
Do you hate deciding what to wear? Spend a ridiculous amount of time in front of the closet? 8 reasons some people choose to wear the same thing every day, including having to make fewer decisions.
A CEO cuts his wages by 90 percent to increase the starting salary for his employees. No, this isn’t in The Onion. One Company’s Minimum Wage: $70,000 a Year.
Or what if your job was to paint the Golden Gate Bridge? It’s never ending, apparently.
The Moral Bucket List. A New York Times op-ed piece by David Brooks. “I came to the conclusion that wonderful people are made, not born — that the people I admired had achieved an unfakeable inner virtue, built slowly from specific moral and spiritual accomplishments.” What do you think?
Planning your summer vacation? “Taking the Kids” columnist Eileen Ogintz has tips from nearly 20 years on the road in this NY Times Q&A.
Feeling stressed? Anxious? Don’t worry…
Have a great weekend, everyone!
A CEO cut his wages. That’s hard to believe, but yippie! There’s hope. And it might be nice to paint the Golden Gate Bridge. Talk about job security and simplicity. Sometimes I wonder if I could do something like that and be happy.
I thought the same thing about the bridge painting. If I could get over my fear of plunging to my death, I think it would be a terrific job — imagine going home at the end of the day and not thinking about work again until the next morning. 🙂
Hi Jackie,
So glad you identified David Brooks. In another op-ed column, he’s asking people if they
“have found the purpose in life” to send in comments on his website to his new book, A Road to Character: http://theroadtocharacter.com/. Haven’t gotten a chance to look at it, but caught the tail end of him talking about it at the National Press Club (on C-Span) and the crowd was huge, heartwarming, as in people are searching, questioning, yearning. Have a great weekend. Lorraine
Thank you for sharing the link, Lorraine. I love that he is gathering stories from people for his new book. (Reminds me of the StoryCorps idea.)
He poses an intriguing question: “Am I living for my résumé or my eulogy?” I see he has a TedTalk that I’m going to listen to this afternoon.
This is the 5th or 6th time I’ve seen a link to that article about why some entrepreneurs wear the same thing each day. Maybe it’s a message that I need to actually read it? Hehe. Thanks for sharing!
Sometimes I’m jealous of the men in my office who can get away with a rotation of the same 2-3 outfits. It makes life (and laundry) so simple! 🙂
These are some fun and interesting links. That cup! Lol.
I really agree with david Brooks.
Isn’t that cup fabulous? It always puts a smile on my face. 🙂
Have a great weekend, Caroline.
Oh, I need that mug! Thanks for following my blog today — so glad to find your words.
That mug never fails to put a smile on my face. I’m glad we connected and I look forward to reading your posts.
Jackie! The NY Times piece on The Moral Bucket List blew my mind! Duuuuuude what an amazing article reminding me that I’m on the right track in the long run (eulogy virtues) even though at times it may not seem that way. I loved it! Thanks so much for posting! I love the last paragraph when he’s talking about the stumbler. Great piece I’m gonna have to look up his book and whether or not he’s given any talks/lectures.
That piece by David Brooks really gave me a lot of insight. I’m glad you found it meaningful too.
He did a Ted Talk on the topic. http://theroadtocharacter.com/ It’s about 5 minutes and very interesting.
I’m reading David Brooks’ book right now. I look forward to reading the essays on his new blog. I wish I could get to the point of being able to wear the same clothes every day. How freeing. Finding purpose AND fashion free? Perfection
I haven’t read his book, but it’s on my list. When you finish, I’ll be interested to hear your thoughts. Have a great weekend.
Completely off topic – I see you are reading The Storied Life Of AJ Fikry, Jackie: how are you liking that? I so enjoyed that story.
And on another note: I grew up with a dad who painted the Bay Area’s bridges. The stories he told, and the photos he sometimes brought home. The man was fearless like a mountain goat!
Oh, I thought The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry was a terrific story! I cannot resist a story about a bookstore owner. 🙂 I just finished and I’m still thinking about the characters.
How cool that you knew someone who was a bridge painter! That might make a great short story. Hmm… 🙂
I have to read that first one– I do wear the same things ALL THE TIME despite a closet full of clothes. I should just succumb to the desire and make that my thing . . . that I purposely wear the same things and therefore feel no need to own more than those few things. Would be simpler!
Oh yes! I have so many items in my closet that I don’t like because they don’t fit well or the color is terrible. My goal this weekend is to get rid of all such items. Even if that leaves my closet half empty, at least all the clothes that remain will be things that I like. Let’s see if I can do it!