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Stone Soup

I asked ChatGPT,

What do people mean by happiness?

And — true to its name “Chat” — it had a lot to say. I like the way it ended:

Given some of the themes we’ve discussed before—coherence, living up to one’s potential, Stoicism, and meaning—I find it useful to think of happiness as an umbrella term with at least three distinct parts:

Feeling good (positive emotions)
Living well (acting in accordance with your values and developing your capacities)
Judging your life as worthwhile (meaning and satisfaction)

A person can have one without the others. The richest lives often include all three, though not necessarily at the same time. During difficult periods, meaning and purpose may remain strong even when positive emotions are scarce, and many people later look back on those periods as among the most valuable in their lives.

That certainly has been true for me. What about you?

August 3, 2026

Ben

August 2, 2026

Speed Bump

August 1, 2026

I asked ChatGPT,

What does modern psychology say about living a meaningful life?

It said there are three main components:

Food for thought.

July 31, 2026

Yes, his statement wasn’t “polite,” but I didn’t feel he was trying to be nasty or rude. I assumed he was mainly surprised that I hadn’t been more “successful” in life, that I hadn’t achieved more. In fact I had always been highly motivated, but not interested in what most people thought of as success and achievement. It goes back to Thoreau’s,

If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.

For me it wasn’t striving for something, it was a feeling that I had a path in life and I could tell when I was on it and when I wasn’t. So when he was expressing his values it was all right. It’s not something I hadn’t thought about in the past, but I had no doubt that I was doing what was right for me. And that was a great feeling. It was something to be treasured.

July 30, 2026

Ziggy

Did your ever think/worry about that? It reminds me of when my Father died. His illness had been a hard couple of years for my mother, and she needed a break — with someone who understood. So we had a good week together. One thing we did was visit a couple she hadn’t seen in years, and it was a nostalgic, heartwarming visit. As we were saying goodbye, the fellow said to me,

You were such a smart little thing. It’s too bad you didn’t do anything with it.

So much for that loving mood. I wasn’t offended because I was taking ten years off to stay home with my daughter, and my life had never felt more meaningful. I didn’t try to explain — he reminded me of how lucky I was.

July 29, 2026

Click on the image and wait for the link.

that I burst out laughing when I saw it.

Bottomliners

Is it just me who feels this way?

July 27, 2026

B. C.

Say goodbye to loving-kindness? The B.C. version of Lucy in Peanuts?

July 26, 2026

We had another brief thunderstorm and gentle rain yesterday.

Just in case, I put the dishpan under the light fixture in my study, but it wasn’t needed. 🙂

July 25, 2026