I was watching a video today of Lin-Manuel Miranda asking Jodi Benson (the voice of Ariel) to sign the DVD cover of his copy of The Little Mermaid. The look of pure joy on his face just made me smile. That kind of love for something is completely contagious and infectious. It makes me feel good to see that happen. It made me think about how much I love it when I meet someone who tells me about something they love. Now, I’ve never met Lin-Manuel, but he is utterly transparent about things that bring him joy. And one of my themes for the year is about finding more joy, so why not seek out some more people who love things!
Here are some things I love.
- Two of my very favorite moments of joy were meeting Kermit the Frog while wearing my Sesame Street tshirt (2006) and seeing the original ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz (2019).
- Every one of my dogs has had a theme song. We sing it to them often. Olive’s theme song is All of Me by Willie Nelson but you have to change the lyrics to “Olivine, why not take Olivine? Can’t you see, I am no good without you.” (because that’s her full name).
Here are some other expressions of love that maybe you haven’t happened across, but you should keep an eye out for them.
Both Wil Wheaton and John Scalzi tell the world about how much they love their wives. If you are a nerd of my generation, you absolutely know who Wil Wheaton is and you should read his blog. Scalzi is an awesome sci-fi author also with a blog. I’ve read some of his books (Old Man’s War series) multiple times. I once saw him do a reading at a little library in Roseville MN and he was absolutely charming. In a world where “the old ball and chain” and badmouthing your spouse is all too common and considered a funny joke, these two are a breath of fresh air. They seem like good humans.
The Dogist is just a constant stream of people unashamedly loving their dogs. His whole job is walking down the street and asking people to tell him stories about their dogs. As a person who generally wants to meet all of the dogs, I love seeing the posts come up on my feed.
Stanley Tucci’s series about traveling through Italy is mesmerizing. Tucci in Italy is streaming in many places. I am a vegetarian and have been for decades, but they way he talks about some of the carnivorous things he is eating makes me want to try them all.
This specific episode of Mr Rogers Neighborhood where he visits with artist Eric Carle is one of my absolute favorites. Mr Rogers is the epitome of transparent joy. If you’ve ever heard the term dopamine dressing, dressing like Mr Rogers in my cardigan and sneakers is absolutely dopamine dressing for me.
So I want to know: what is something YOU LOVE? or tell me about someone who loves something so much it makes you smile. Do it. Leave a comment. Share the love.
I am a big fan of Ottolenghi’s recipes and restaurants. I’ve visited his restaurants in London, bought many of his books, and got to see him speak at the 92nd Y when Beth and I were visiting NYC. The audience asked questions and mine was read: What are your favorite kitchen tools? His was a citrus juicer, his co-author’s was a fish spatula. I was giddy with joy when Ruth Reichl (who was moderating the interview) said “Good question!”) and delighted by their answers. I don’t use a citrus juicer so often, but I second the usefulness of the fish spatula. I use it for everything. It’s not just for fish. This happened during my summer of sadness – my niece spent the summer in the hospital and I had realized that my elderly dog Lily was not doing well. It was a lovely moment of joy and delight among so much weight. I still think of it fondly.
That’s such a great story. I just got a new citrus juicer which I like a lot. LOL.