Choose Joy!

One of my favorite sayings is "Choose Joy." As often as possible, when faced with two roughly equivalent options, I try to choose the one that makes me happier. Sometimes, that is as simple as not reading the tax code for 15 minutes to look at happy things online. Things like this:

1.
It's a happy tree apron on Etsy.com. For those of you not familiar with Etsy, it's a website solely dedicated to buying and selling homemade items. I love looking at the handmade scarves, quilts, bookmarks, aprons, etc., etc., etc...

2. List of 48 Ways to Be Nice on Realsimple.com; for example: Overtip your breakfast waiter. He probably put forth just as much effort as someone on the evening shift would, but his take-home pay is probably lower.

3. Cool idea for an awesome way to stay in authentic places in Europe: NY Times article about staying in monasteries, convents, and churches!