I'm 40

 

I somehow didn’t see this coming. One day, you’re young, hot, and have your life in front of you. The next, you’re worried about gas prices, the upcoming winter and a suspicion your cat only likes you for the wet food. Is aging better than the alternative?  I suppose but the older I get, the more this quote resonates with me:

“Youth is wasted on the young.”

You look at older people and can understand that each day brings you closer to looking like them but somehow, it is still a shock. It’s relentless as well. Each second we get older. Tick tock, tick tock. 

Today will be the youngest you will ever be again. Tick tock. Tick tock. 

Is your back a little tighter? Need to squint to read that recipe? Feel a little heavier? Tick tock, tick tock.

When I taught kindergarten in Thailand in 2011, those kids were about 5 years old. Those kids are now in university! Those kids will soon have their own kids; it is all very unsettling. 

I was grabbing lunch the other day and one of the few remaining Microplay’s was in the plaza I was parked in. 

(Microplay was/is a video game store that was similar to Blockbuster)

When I was in grade 9, the owner called me and asked if I wanted to work there. It was a dream come true. 

Apparently, I was there often enough for him to know who I was and thought I would be a good employee. We would get movies before they were released, take home games to try out and have opinions about and basically just hangout and talk about movies and video games and call it work. This was so long ago that I remember taking a DVD player from Microplay home because we would rent them out to people!

I summarized this experience to the two Microplay employees and I wouldn’t exactly categorize their interest level in my story as high. 

When I was a kid, we sold fruit punch out of these fridges!

People don’t really want to hear stories from old people. My stories are only going to get worse and I will forget whatever interesting stories I do have and will just end up yelling about the wind (man, I hate the wind; Ottawa is so windy and it’s not great for big bubbles)

Are there upsides to getting old? I’m sure there are older people than me that trick themselves into believing the best is yet to come. It isn’t and that’s okay but let’s not lie to ourselves. They do studies about happiness and in a shocking twist, things are about to get worse!

I think 80 year olds might be happier because they know they don’t have to take out the garbage or shovel ever again.

Have my first 40 years been better than most? I think so. Will the next 40 be? Stay tuned.

“Aging seems to be the only available way to live a long life.”

Kitty O’Neill Collins

Do You Even Hygge?

 

I was once like you; clueless of the lessons hygge had to offer. I am here to show you a softer, warmer, cozier, friendlier, and more fulfilling way to experience life.

 

Two weeks ago, I had never heard of hygge. I have a deep love for free library books (and Nintendo Switch games). I find books I might like or that I might be interested in, pick them up from the library, wait a few weeks and return most of them unread. However, this book was smaller than the others and had pictures so it skyrocketed up my list.

 

So, what exactly is hygge? It seems like it is a main aspect of Danish culture of cozy traditions that make you slow down, rest, relax with friends and cherish the moment you are in. People in Denmark rank among some of the happiest people on the planet despite having less than optimal weather. How do they do it? Many credit hygge. What might make up a hygge experience? It seems like candles are at the top of this list. People in Denmark use by far the most candles per capita in Europe. Fireplaces are also high on the list for turning up the hygge. 

Other elements that help set the mood are hot drinks, Christmas, board games, music, books, Sundays, stormy weather, alcohol and pets. According to The Little Book of Hygge, the hygge manifesto involves atmosphere, presence, pleasure, equality, gratitude, harmony, comfort, truce, togetherness, and shelter. Imagine being in a cabin, a snowstorm is raging outside, a fire it lit, you are with some of your closest friends after an exhausting day of skiing, having a cocktail, listening to nostalgic music, wrapped up in a blanket, reminiscing with those you care for most. That (apparently) is hygge.

 

Ok, Mr. Hygge expert, what kind of food and clothing are associated with hygge?

Think cake, coffee or hot chocolate. It’s about indulgence and treating yourself. Pastries, baked goods, and desserts. Stew, sausages, or Danish meatballs in curry. Doesn’t this make you want to be in Denmark in terrible weather with your close friends all cozied up?

Comfort is king for hygge clothing. Sweaters, sweat pants, cozy socks, big blankets, layers and scarves set the tone. This sweater is from a popular Danish show that exemplifies hygge fashion: 

 

The author works for The Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen and apparently, spending time with people you love will make you happier. According to a study, the ideal number of people it takes to hygge is 3-4 people. You can hygge alone or with loads of people but it seems like only a few close friends is optimal. I can get onboard with these small gatherings. I would much rather hangout with a few close friends than be at a bigger event with strangers. There is a staff room where all the teachers in lunch; I wouldn’t be caught dead in there at 12:05pm. However, when I have prep at 3pm, not a soul is around and I find that much more agreeable. Maybe I am hygge.

 

Want to bring hygge into your daily life but also cheaply? The book recommends playing board games, make a fire, watch an outdoor movie, sledding or playing together.

 

Some other winter activities could involve TV nights or a ski trip. Spring activities might include a weekend cabin or cooking over an open fire. A summer picnic or watching the Perseid Meteor shower is oh so hygge. Fall activities are eating chestnuts, foraging for mushrooms or a soup cookoff.

 

The book recommends these items for your hygge emergency kit:

-candles

-high quality chocolate

-your favourite tea

-your favourite book

-jam

-woolen socks

-a nice blanket

-a notebook

-music

-photo album

 

These places are apparently very hygge:

 

 

This video sums up hygge quite succinctly:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pl74ybpyNLk

 

Winter seems like a great time to add more hygge into our lives. Turn on your record player. Turn off your phone. Reminisce about the Bubble King. Now that is hygge.

“Happiness consists more in small conveniences or pleasures that occur every day, than in great pieces of good fortune that happen but seldom.” Benjamin Franklin