What does it mean to be happy, especially in America?
Is it a uniquely American pursuit, this search for happiness, this need to regularly measure the temperature of our joy and pleasure? I think so. At times we are obsessed with being happy — or at least appearing to be.
My social media feeds prove this. I’ve yet to spot a frowning face or downward gaze on my sporadic scrolls. No slumped shoulders, either. We curate the images for the world to see us as at our best: radiant, smiling, living a life of rainbows and unicorns.
We shouldn’t blame Facebook or Instagram or TikTok for this, though. Long before tech gave us the platform to put our best foot forward, the founding fathers made sure to guarantee we could chase happiness. And chase it we have, in its various forms.
Providing insight into happiness — what it is, where you find it, how it can be achieved and sustained — has become something of a cottage industry. There are projects and programs, YouTube videos and TED Talks, workshops and business webinars on the subject. There seems to be no excuse for anyone to be unhappy these days. Not with so much material on hand to provide guidance. You simply have to work on pumping more positivity into your life.
Just out of curiosity I typed “happiness” in the search tab of Amazon, the company with the bluesmile logo, and found more than 60,000 books on the subject. The titles insinuate that this happiness thing can be seriously hard work. Consider these: Happiness Workbook,” and “The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living,” and “The How of Happiness: A New Approach to Getting the Life You Want,” and “The 48 Laws of Happiness: Secrets Revealed for Becoming the Happiest You.”
In case we waver in our public display of the giddy emotion, we have tools to help us along. For instance, an American sound engineer invented the laugh track and an artistic genius gave us what is now the ubiquitous smiley face. We can also croon Bobby McFerrin’s “Don’t Worry, Be Happy,” an anthem that’s perfect for our morning shower.
I’ve been thinking of happiness ever since I read the most recent annual survey on global happiness. Released days ago, the 2021 World Happiness Report puts Finland in top place for the fourth time in a row. It’s followed by Iceland, Denmark, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, in that order. When looking at a three-yearaverage from 2018-2020, the U.S. slipped to 19th place, down a notch from last year. (More disturbing, we ranked in 13th place just five years ago.)
Surprisingly, the pandemic didn’t have as much of an impact on the order as I expected, namely because the top countries have a strong social net and, according to researchers they have “al
All the puzzles on this page were prepared for publication on Saturday and ran in our digital edition. They are repeated here as a courtesy for print readers.
Use the clues to fill in the grid.: ways ranked very high on the measures of mutual trust.”
Which makes me wonder if individual happiness can be measured in the same fashion, by the depth of mutual trust and the strength of relationships. So far, more than six decades into the chase, this is what I’ve learned:
Stalking happiness can be exhausting. I’m convinced that no one is meant to be happy all the time, or even most of the time. Thinking otherwise can make even the most well-adjusted among us feel deficient, incompetent.
Life has also taught me that it’s OK — appropriate, actually — to allow sadness to seep in. Some situations demand it, and it’s best to lean into it. To embrace it. To let the heartache sit on my lap or hard against my chest. There will be days, entire weeks, when hope hides and the world turns dark and getting up requires more energy than I possess. But I know this to be temporary.
Happiness does return, sometimes unexpectedly, often in short bursts, and always in the form of social connection. My instant happy-makers are my children and grandchildren. Time with friends. An unanticipated call. Family gatherings and shared vacations.
If I had only mastered these lessons sooner.
Ana Veciana-Suarez writes about family and social issues. Email her at avecianasuarez@gmail .com or visit her website anavecianasuarez.com. Follow @AnaVeciana.
No. They are brothers, with Josh the elder. They are the sons of Frank Mankiewicz, the journalist, political operator and former president of NPR; Frank died in 2014. For those of you aware of other celebrities named Mankiewicz, Frank was the son of Herman Mankiewicz, famous as cowriter of “Citizen Kane” with Orson Welles; Herman was played by Gary Oldman in the recent movie “Mank.” Herman’s brother Joseph was another Hollywood legend, whose credits include writing and directing the classic “All About Eve.”
Mom” is also a show that, as I mentioned awhile back, lost a major player before this season. Anna Faris, who played Christy, departed, reportedly to pursue other opportunities. The remaining cast, headed by the marvelous Allison Janney, is still strong. And, according to some reports, the ratings remained good even with some slippage post-Faris. But there may have been other factors at work.
Eight seasons is a pretty good run for a series and costs such as salaries tend to rise when shows last long. According to Deadline.com, Janney’s contract was done after this season, so the show may have been facing a tough negotiation — or simply Janney deciding to move on. At the same time, Deadline noted, the show’s deal with CBS runs out at the end of this season, adding more dealing to be done. And who knows how that would have worked out? For now, then, enjoy the remaining episodes, which will end with a series finale on May 6.
I have to say “not.” In the third episode of the first season, when Rainbow takes Diane to her workplace, we see that she is an anesthesiologist.
It can be tricky finding that 1948 movie, especially because searches of “Road
House” tend to direct folks to the Patrick Swayze film of the same name. Still, a DVD of the Wilde/Widmark film — an admired example of film noir — was released in 2008 and can be found on Amazon.com. (Search Road House Widmark to skip Swayze). Prices start at about $14 for used copies, much more for new.
This is a theme puzzle with the subject stated above the grid. Find the listed words in the grid. (They may run in any direction but always in a straight line. Some letters are used more than once.) Ring each word as you find it and when you have completed the puzzle, there will be letters left over. They spell out the alternative theme of the puzzle.: