We are not alone in feeling that things have never been so bad, that the world is in seriously dire straits. Psychologist Steven Pinker offers some clarifying strategies that shift our view.
Read MoreFacebook Made Me Stand in the Corner, Echoing Michael Druks’ Prophetic Artwork
Facebook’s strange punishment when I inadvertently published an “offensive” image on their platform mirrored the artwork Michael Druks made 45 years ago.
Read MoreIkigai: What is Your Reason For Being?
When a friend sent us a VENN diagram of the Japanese concept of Ikigai last week, we found we couldn’t get its big fat question out of our mind.
Read MoreBig DIY Linen Projects and Room Dividers + Where to Find the Extra Wide Linen to Make Them
In our age of diminishing spaces that have to serve many purposes, linen projects like room dividers, curtains, draped slip covers and spreads hold many possibilities. The logistical question: where to buy really wide linen?
Read MoreCapture Ideas on Sticky Notes to Make Them Actionable, Kanban Style
A meeting with Design Technologist Joe Fraga taught me a dead-simple method of capturing ideas and making them organizable AND actionable.
Read MoreA Strong Sugru-like Adhesive You Can Make
Designer Stephen Johnson’s colorful adhesive dough prototype will bond all sorts of materials, including wood, glass, stone and metal and is strong enough to bond furniture parts together. We wondered if we could make some ourselves…
Read MoreWe Found a Way to Be Rich By Doing Almost Nothing
We’ve found novelist Ann Patchett’s Times article My Year of No Shopping to be a potent catalyst for creating wealth.
Read MoreMary Oliver’s Anthology Devotions: Hymns to Possibility
We often weave poetry into Improvised Life’s articles, taking John Ashbery’s view that The poem is a hymn to possibility. Of the many poets we publish, Mary Oliver is probably the most frequent. We’ve been delighting in her five-decade-spanning anthology of poems, called Devotions. Excerpts here…
Read MoreIrving Penn’s Lesson in Setting Boundaries
When I worked with legendary photographer Irving Penn years ago, he gave me a tangible lesson in setting boundaries to maintain the flow of his work.
Read MoreArtists and Writers on Unexpected Ways Trees Impact Us
In the strange, original About Trees, we came across BEWILDERNESS, the best word we’ve heard to describe where we live.
Read MoreEvery Decade, She Gives Up Something She Hates
Recently we heard of a woman who, with each new decade, gives up something she hates. She stopped dying her hair. Ten years later, she stopped wearing the dresses. At first we wondered why she only gave up things she hated only every decade. Then we got real.
Read MoreWe Discover A Low-Stress Work Strategy and Begin Again
During our recent working vacation, we tested out a strategy that yielded the secret to navigating a mountain of work without stress:
Read MoreSolar Eclipse: How to Experience the Awesomeness + Free Safety Glasses
What’s all the hubbub about next Monday’s solar eclipse about? We’ve put together a succinct guide, from where and how to view it wherever you are, to readings from art, philosophy, poetry, to where to find free eclipse glasses.
Read MoreE. Jean on Life, Decor, and The Best Piece of Advice She’s Ever Given
E. Jean Carroll, the longest running advice columnist in history, lives alone on a small island in the woods of upstate New York.This short video profile gives us a glimpse of a pure original whose carved out a completely original life, in the mainstream, yet completely OUT.
Read MoreReminder: Where Good Ideas Can Come From
Where Do Ideas Come From? is a video that features vastly different answers to the question from some seriously creative people, from David Lynch, Susan Orlean and Chuck Close to a couple of kids.
Read MoreWhy Not Now? (Vivian Stancil’s Leap)
This 2-minute video tells the story of one of the most inspiring leaps we’ve seen of late. Complete with the perfect mantra for change.
Read MoreWhat Does Self Care Look Like To You? (Solange)
Solange’s extrordinary album, A Seat at the Table, has been described as an expression of the right to feel it all…Her song Borderline (Ode to Self Care) begs the complex question: What does self care look like to you? Here’s her answer, and ours.
Read MoreThe Heartening Museum of Failures
(Video link here.) Dr. Samuel West, Director of the Museum of Failures in Helsingborg, Sweden collects innovation fails made by big companies. Through them, he hopes to share an essential lesson.
Read MoreSurprise, Astonishment, Wonder: The Intimate Oliver Sacks via Insomniac City
Insights into the very original Sacks, or perhaps we should say Sacks’ very original insights and thinking, culled from Bill Hayes’ perfect memoir Insomniav City, make delightful weekend reading. Here’s a sampling…
Read MoreFinding Your Fuel
Having just turned a BIG birthday, I’ve been thinking hard about what fuels me, and what I pursue that is not powered by good strong fuel. Fuel to me equals meaning, as well as pleasure. Taking stock is useful; it’s simple process, really, that you can do throughout your day.
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