By David Himmel

• Life is hard. Living with your self is even harder sometimes.

• When you’re watching one of those dating reality shows with your partner, and you wonder if you’re as much of an unbridled asshat as the people on your screen… Well, your partner thinks so.

• Being self-aware of your shitty behavior is an acceptable quality. Having the ability to be less shitty as often as you can is what counts. Because being aware you’re an asshole and then, just, being that asshole doesn’t absolve you of assholery. It confirms that you’re an asshole. And perhaps an even bigger one because you’re aware of it.

• How we feel in our hearts does not determine how everyone else feels.

• Controlling your own mindset is the greatest superpower.

• I saw a bumper sticker on a car that read, “I’m a leaf on the wind. Watch me soar.” If this was meant to be an encouraging statement, it really shouldn’t be. A leaf on the wind has no agency. For one, it’s a leaf, but sticking with the metaphor… a leaf on the wind is a dead, passive thing. It goes wherever the wind takes it. It doesn’t really soar so much as it does float. An eagle, even a parakeet can soar on the wind. Be a parakeet on the wind, not a leaf.