Empathy: Make no judgments where you have no compassion.

I found this quote in Jon Winokur's Twitter stream of quotes for writers... but this applies not just to writing but also to life itself.

You can read more about Anne McCaffrey (1926-2011) at Wikipedia; she is the author of the Dragonriders of Pern fantasy books, and she was the first woman to win a Hugo Award and also the first to win a Nebula.

Make no judgments where you have no compassion.

(portrait by Linda Eicher)

Big Library

All I want is peace, love, understanding, and a library BIGGER than the Grand Canyon.

I found this graphic at the Twitter stream of Chitra Divakaruni (yes, the woman who wrote Palace of Illusions that some of you will be reading in Indian Epics!).

I made it into a motivator poster with an image from the Grand Canyon National Park stream at Flickr.

Daily Successes

Successes can be big or small... and you have successes every single day. Keeping track of your successes is a good way to build your happiness and self-confidence, so give this a try. Do it just for a week, and see what you think!

If you have a good week doing this challenge, given the Happiness Jar a try for a week and see if that works for you too!

Duke Ellington on Deadlines

I found this quote in Jon Winokur's Twitter stream, and they are indeed the words of Duke Ellington.

I don’t need time. What I need is a deadline.

Duke Ellington Memorial in Washington DC.

(photo by David Gaines)

The Dalai Lama on Tolerance and Compassion

Here is what the Dalai Lama said in his Ocean of Wisdom (via Wikiquote):

It is the enemy who can truly teach us to practice the virtues of compassion and tolerance.

The Dalai Lama's words have been rephrased and memed as in the graphics below, and I made one here with the quote itself:

Buddha image by Angela Marie Henriette

Here are the graphics which inspired me to make my own; they come from 20 Quotes That Can Change Your Thinking And Perception.

In the practice of tolerance,

one's enemy is the best teacher.

Animated Review of Csikszentmihalyi's Flow

In another post, I shared Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's TED talk: Flow, the secret to happiness.

Here's another video which is an "animated book review" of Csikszentmihalyi's book Flow. (And if you enjoy this book review, you might like the other videos at the FightMediocrity YouTube channel.)

Happiness and Flow

I am a huge fan of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and so I was excited to see that he has made a TED talk: Flow, the secret to happiness. You can read the transcript here, and I highly (HIGHLY) recommend his book: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.

For a graphic that encapsulates some of his thinking, here's something I found in an article on happiness, flow, and leadership:

Deskercise!

Just Google "deskercise" and you can find lots more articles, images, and videos! I picked out three items to include her:


A workout at work? This report in the Washington Post features 12 exercises, with ratings based on which were the most popular and effective, along with simple video animations:

Deskercise! 33 Smart Ways to Exercise at Work
This article contains a whole long list of exercises you can do at work, and many of them you can do at your desk:
1. The Twinkle Toe
2. The Stair Master
3. The Slog, Then Jog
4. The Celebratory Split Squat Jumps
5. The Cubicle Wanderer
6. The Mover and Shaker
7. The Wall (Street) Sit
8. The Last Man Standing
9. The Patient Printer
10. The Silent Seat Squeeze
11. The Seated Leg Raiser
12. The Desk Squat
13. The Lunch Break Hammy
14. The Grim Reamer
15. The Cubicle Dip
16. The Stapler Curl
17. The Namaste
18. The Secret Handshake
19. The Fist Pump
20. The Knuckle Sandwich
21. The Flapper
22. The Casual Lean
23. The Lumberjack
24. The Office Genie
25. The Pencil Pinch
26. The Shoulder Shrug
27. The Pinstripe Push-Up
28. The Nape Shaper
29. The Desk Chair Swivel
30. The “Weeee” Desk Chair Wheel
31. The Posture Perfecter
32. The Fab Abs Squeeze
33. The “Crunch Time” Crunch

Deskercise: 17 Exercises You Can Do At or Near Your Desk
1. Fidget
2. TMJ Exercise
3. Bruxism Exercise
4. Active Arm Stretches
5. Shoulder and Neck Stretches
6. Back Workout
7. Wall Sits
8. Seated Bicycle Pedal
9. Spider Push-ups
10. Shake it Up
11. Wrist Stretches
12. Butt Crunches
13. Calf Stretches
14. Deep Knee Bends
15. Jumping Jacks
16. Shadow Boxing
17. Windmills

Books and Happiness

And, of course, thanks to the miracle that is the public library and also the Internet, you can get books for FREE. :-)

You can't buy happiness... but you can buy books,

and that's kind of the same thing.

You are going to be okay.

I found this at the Post Secret Twitter stream:

You are going to be okay,

but maybe not in the way you planned to be.

Changes

I thought this was a beautiful reflection, inspired by Antoine de Saint-Exupery's The Little Prince, about the loss of Prince and The Thin White Duke in 2016 (fore more David Bowie, see Reading: Perfect Happiness).

“Look up at the sky. …

and you will see how everything changes.”

– Antoine de Saint-Exupery, The Little Prince

(the image comes from the 

Cheshire Public Library Tumblr)

Ths light at the end of the tunnel.

If you are thinking about the "light at the end of the tunnel" as the semester comes to an end, I thought you might enjoy this mind-bending graphic: