How do I tell when I'm happy? I have had lots of trouble with answering the question for myself. Here's a report on my discoveries.

First problems were my misconceptions about the nature of happiness. From having lots of tragic intense experiences, what I didn't want was obvious - and it was repulsive: a huge NO! I made the mistake of assuming that what I did want would have that same intensity of feeling. The admonishment to "Find my passion" did not help.

Inside of me, it turned out that happiness is subtle. Happiness is absorbing, It is something that I do so naturally it's pretty easy to miss it in action. Something I'm doing that makes me happy doesn't tell me that it is making me happy - only in retrospect does this realization of "I was happy!" happen for me.

Actually, I find the opposite strategy of slowing down to be a productive strategy. Except at my current pace, it seems that I'm slowed to the point of irritating productive, functional people. I've been accused of being passive-aggressively slow, which is not what I intend.

I do feel a bit self-righteous when I'm driving exactly five miles over the speed limit and I still hold up a line of cars behind me. I can feel the anger of those who are tail-gating me.
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If you've always been confused about music theory, this book will make it understandable. If you've written music by ear and don't know what you did, this book will give you the tools to be a better composer and communicate with other musicians. If you're worried about how to pass your college level music theory class, this book will rescue your ass. If you were afraid to open the can of worms about delving into music theory because it's too complicated, this book will be your Rosetta Stone.

To Endgain - to be an endgainer - endgaining

Thought you might enjoy learning an interesting new word. It has been in use by the Alexander Technique community since 1930s, invented by F.M Alexander. The word endgaining describes the irresistible urge to gain an intended goal that activates a habitual response connected to using one’s will. It describes the dark side of the expression, “Go for it!”  - the troublesome limitations of using one’s will in the face of a new challenge.

When I first came to Hawaii, I wondered where the smart people were. Found some of 'em. This is a pic of me with the the hardcore movers and shakers of my writer's group who meet at Tutu's House in Waimea-Kamuela. Luckily, where this group meets is located a short walk from my home these days.

It's really fun to read what they're writing in installments as they do it, because most of them are fiction writers.

It's quite a common assumption that just because you both speak the same language, that there are not serious cultural differences. I spent ten years with guy from a very British family who had come to the USA to work as librarians. Our connection came partly from his need for quite a bit more demonstrative affection than was part of his former UK culture.
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When I was a kid, I learned by imitation; gaining rapport with my teachers was irresistible. When I was a teen, I learned by accident, in spite of myself. I was lucky to have teachers who accepted that I was learning while half asleep. Once I got to college, I began to learn by absorption - so I started to choose my teachers carefully because I realized I had no idea what I was absorbing. After college, I thought knew how to spot a fantastic teacher.

Since the art of telling stories is so essential for the articulation of almost anything that is communicated, I thought I'd bring forward the continued inspiration for new creative inventions that I get from the field of screenwriting. What fascinates me about screenwriting is how it is the art of selecting what is relevant to a story that "drives" the plot line forward - and of course, what is left out as extraneous.

I've worked for a long time to make small talk meaningful. It's my favorite application of thinking skills. From my experience, even standing in line in a supermarket talking to others can be a fascinating experience, if someone can figure out what people have to offer each other in the time they have together to spend now.

What I look for in others to indicate what this "magic topic" might be is their spark of interest, beyond the niceties of over-used one-liners.
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