The Simple Advice on Happiness That I Just Can’t Get Myself to Follow

A comic + thoughts

All images by the author.

Some things make me happy, like spending time in nature, eating good food, exercising, completely disconnecting from the Internet, spending a night under the stars, and, if I had deer friends, hugging them, I suppose.

And there are lots of things that get me into a funk, like working too much, checking the news, not eating well, being stuck in a routine life, and comparing myself to others.

So, if I was rational, I should be doing all the happy things and way less of the funky things. Unfortunately, though, I don’t seem to be rational.

Instead of heading down to the beach and taking a glorious dip in the refreshing ocean, I often stay home sweating like a dodgeball-playing sumo wrestler wrapped in cellophane. Instead of going every weekend on a camping trip, I stay home with my face pressed against a glowing screen. Instead of cooking something nice, I eat three-day-old leftovers…