Smiling Through It All
Next week’s Super Bowl has given me a surprisingly profound opportunity to consider the nature of happiness.
The buzz is palpable in the city as the Rams are poised to play for all the marbles for the first time since the Y2K scare, and since my daughter is both an LA native and football fan, I wanted to get her a jersey to celebrate the recent successes of her hometown team.
Of course, she’s a Patriots fan somehow, so she didn´t exactly appreciate the gesture.
In any event, I’ve taken a lot of bets in the leadup to the big game (I´m pretty sure I will have to dress like Bill Belichick for a solid month if the boys in blue and gold can’t manage to deny Touchdown Tommy his 6th championship) which only serves to reflect the level of emotional currency that fans across the nation have devoted to next weekend´s proceedings.
Win or lose, it has long been my belief that happiness is a choice we make, an attitude we must consciously cultivate whenever possible. Dennis Prager agrees, in fact the respected radio personality says that we should wear a smile like we wear deodorant, and the guy generally knows what he’s talking about.
Beyond the extensive ribbing that is sure to come my way if the Patriots win–sports fans can be pretty creative in their ridicule–I had a real test in putting on a happy face a few months ago when our family home burnt to the ground.
Suffice it to say, I´ve learned a few coping mechanisms over the years.
One of the measures I´ve found most effective in fighting off bad vibes is simply to go outside for a while. It´s not just something your mother used to say, it´s backed by science…a recent study indicated that subjects experienced an improved mood with as little as 5 minutes spent getting some fresh air…maybe you could even leave your phone inside.Another proven way to boost your spirits after some unfortunate roll of the dice is byperforming a selfless act. For example, I fully plan on taking my daughter out for a nice dinner when her Patriots lose next Sunday, giving her the opportunity to leave a nice tip for the waiter. Gotta make lemonade sometimes.
Password Protection
Large scale data breaches were one of the big stories of last year, and 2019 shows no signs of this trend slowing. The most common way accounts are breached is through stolen passwords, but luckily there is a way to find out if someone besides you has matched your username to your password. This is why I chose an extra secure alphanumeric password for all my logins: CcNzFMnk0d.
Wait, pretend you didn’t read that last sentence.
Developing Technology
Remember when it was actually relatively difficult to get photos once they were taken? One had to go to a specific store that was often clear across town and actually wait hours if not days for the finished product.
Now it just takes a couple of clicks and swipes to get your photos printed at any CVS in the country thanks to a dedicated iPhone app. I miss shaking Polaroids just a little bit, but I have to say I like being able to order high-quality prints online…even found this sweet multi-pack of frames on Amazon to keep them all in.
The Future is Calling
Speaking of times long past, only readers of a certain age will recall when even making a three-way voice call required a level of technical skill and a bit of luck with timing and connection quality. Obviously times have changed, and now even setting up a multiple-person chat on FaceTime is a breeze. From busy signals to group video chat, man it’s been an interesting 20 years or so.
The Last Word
Well then, that should do it for this week! Thanks as always for making space in the inbox you actually check for another exceptional edition of ¨Brad´s Blog!¨I´ll be back right on schedule with another heaping helping of geeky goodness, but until then remember, the good you do today may come back to you tomorrow.