1. Take some pictures with a disposable camera and go through them with a friend after they’re developed.
Kelly is the master of disposable camera photography! The roll she just developed has cats on the film. The picture above is one of my favourite pictures of us from the roll. Cat cameras (and many more cameras!) are all available at Urban Outfitters.
2. Write out the story of your encounter with one of the most interesting people you’ve ever met.
Read about my encounter with The Long Lost Roommate.
3. Eat a really good sandwich.
More on that to come tomorrow.
4. Take a walk through Chinatown.
5. Listen to your favourite author reading his / her own work. Alternatively, listen to someone with an interesting voice read classic literature.
One is my favourites is Allen Ginsberg reading “Howl”.
A very cool book to listen to read aloud is Moby Dick from the project Moby Dick Big Reads. The voices make the story come to life, and make this very long read compelling all the way through.
6. Watch on demand episodes of your favourite cartoons.
My choice is always Phineas and Ferb, or The Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show for something old school.
7. Watch The Goonies.
No explanation needed.
8. Text – or even better, call – one of your favourite people who you haven’t heard from in a while.
9. Write a letter to someone you love telling them how great they are.
10. Put on a pair of colourful mirrored sunglasses.
11. Listen to your favourite artist’s demos or mix tapes.
12. Try a Zumba class. Bring a friend along if you’re nervous about your dance skills!
13. Go to a yoga class.
I started doing hot yoga this summer, and it’s changed my life. Nothing only is it a fun and challenging work out, it leaves me in a better state of mind because it forces me to get out of my head and focus on the present, something I’ve always had trouble doing.
14. Come up with a mantra and write in everywhere.
To go along with what I have been learning from yoga, I’ve been learning how to let go of my past mistakes — and past successes — so I can focus more fully on the present. I have the picture above as the background on my iPhone as a constant reminder.
15. Write out a list of the little things that make you happy throughout your day.
16. Have a solo dance party.
Of course, my dance parties are also to I Don’t Care by Icona Pop.
17. Drink bubble tea.
18. Leave positive messages from yourself on your mirror.
This may seem really cheesy, but it has elevated my mood on bad mornings, and serves as a constant reminder for me to accept myself as I am.
19. Look at all the pictures Chris Hadfield took while he was in space.
His Twitter handle is @Cmdr_Hadfield . His pictures are incredible!
20. Eat the spiciest food you can handle.
21. Print photos and stick them on your wall.
22. Put on a pair of mouse ears and pretend you’re at Disney World.
23. Talk to someone older than you about the things they’ve learned throughout their life.
I love to learn about the Two World Wars. Last summer I went to my great uncle’s funeral. He had been a colonel in the American Army, and while I was at the funeral, I had the chance to talk one of his old friends who had survived the attack at Omaha Beach. The man, who was a little more than five feet tall, said he made it out uninjured because the shots were being fired above his head!
24. Do some research on a topic you would like to know more about.
25. Read some quotations from someone you admire.
One of my heroes is Tom Waits, and on his website is a collection of his Wit and Wisdom.
I leave you now with a line from one of the authors whose work has inspired me the most, Hunter S. Thompson.
“It never got weird enough for me.”
Song of the Day: Kush & Corinthians by Kendrick Lamar
