Even when THIS happens...

My front yard today - after a beautiful last week!

I don’t know about you, but the last month has really been a struggle over here - and getting snow after a few days of 60-degree weather didn’t help!

What does it take to be happy -- especially during a pandemic? I’ve been listening to the audiobook The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom by Jonathan Haidt. (I can’t recommend it enough.) One thing I wanted to share with you was his Happiness Formula:

H = S + C +V

The total level of happiness (H) is the sum of your biological set points (S), the conditions of your life (C) and the voluntary activities (V) that you do.

I want to dig into V with you -- voluntary activities -- because it’s one way you can improve your situation directly and immediately. Activities that you choose offer promise for increasing happiness. 

I thought I might share three things I have done over the past year to cultivate happiness, in hopes of inspiring you to pick up an old activity or begin a new one to bring some extra joy into your life.

I don't have a problem... honestly!

Explore my passion for whisk(e)y

Over the last few years, I got reacquainted with whiskey - specifically Scotch - although I have branched out into bourbon and Irish as well. While there’s an element of being careful here (drinking too much with nowhere to go, maybe?) I have really enjoyed learning about the craft and history, digging into documentaries, books and YouTubers. As you can see, I’ve put together a nice little collection. I love trying something new and finding things that align with my tastes. Right now the Glenfiddich’s are some of my favorite Scotches, and Makers Mark and TX are fantastic bourbons.

Favorite Whisk(e)y YouTubers

The guys at The Whisk(e)y Vault are fun and incredibly knowledgeable.

The blurry blob with the red Les Paul is me!

Music

I’ve always loved music both as an appreciation and as an artist -- I play some guitar and had a rock band back in the 90s! In my later adult years, I grew to love Jazz (which often figures in my writing -- along with whiskey!) and we often have music playing around the house (using Amazon Alexa usually). I love Vince Guaraldi and his ties to Peanuts. Some of my other favorites are Miles Davis, Wes Montgomery and Dave Brubeck. But I don’t leave out my Rock side! Rush is my all time favorite, but I like many kinds of Hard Rock or Heavy Metal (often listen to such while exercising!) One of my very favorites is to listen to music/cinematic scores while writing. It really helps set a mood. I also love many types of ambient music (certain types of which I sleep to), LoFi and various forms of synthwave.

Want my album for free?

If you like the hard rockin' tunes of the 90s - you can grab my album for free here!(We were actually pretty decent!)

Magic is just technology we don't understand, right?!

Gaming

I’m not a big gaming nerd (the wife is not a fan - although she likes board games) but I do love gaming. Early in the pandemic we played lots of Jackpot Party remotely. But just for my own enjoyment, I played EverMerge on my phone quite a bit, and I always seem to revisit Candy Crush. But I most enjoy strategic type games. I play the card game Dominion online a fair amount, and lately (for better or worse) I have been playing Raid: Shadow Legends a lot. When times are back to normal, I’ll probably get back together with a group of guys to play poker regularly.

Join me on Raid?
If you'd like to join the fun on Raid, here's my referral code.

What do you do?

The goal is to make a point to engage in these things because they are part of what makes me happy. Certainly writing (and reading) fits in as a creative endeavor, but I figured that was obvious. I’ve seen too many people drop their interests while holed up at home, or not find new ones because what they do love (like traveling) has been compromised.

I just want to encourage you: do the things you enjoy regularly. It’s vital to your happiness. If you’re not sure, start out by trying new things. Talk to friends and family - sometimes they can tell you things about yourself you didn’t realize that might spur an idea.

I hope you find this helpful and that you have a wonderful day. Me, I’ve got a Raid to finish!

Promotion

From time to time I’ll swap promotions with other science fiction authors if they have a book I think you might be interested in. They’ll always be listed here, last, under promotion.

Siouca Remembers (Wanderer Universe) by James Murdo

Cerebral Sci-Fi with an emphasis on the ‘Sci’. If you enjoy Hard Sci-Fi, complex Space Opera, and authors such as Iain M. Banks, Alastair Reynolds and Dan Simmons, then this is for you.

Get the Siouca Remembers eBook Here