started casual biking again after 20+ years. Then started creating videos (slow TV, no commentary, just POV) https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCkTuqgUxzTaLZ6lGidtd5iw/video...
Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
361–370 of 545 posts
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#362Video walks on Youtube. If you haven't heard of them before, they're simple first-person videos where the filmer walks around some area with a stabilized video camera - no talking, just walking. I've really missed traveling and watching video walks while exercising has been a great way to satisfy that travel craving a bit and also trick my brain into experiencing some semblance of normalcy (not sure I could remember…
I started doing that but with cycling. Shameless self promotion: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCkTuqgUxzTaLZ6lGidtd5iw/video...
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#363Getting better at talking about relationship problems with my partner. Whenever we talk about an issue, the issue is smaller afterwards. Even the things I convinced myself I should just live with. It’s still a work in progress, but what progress I’ve made has been massively worthwhile.
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#364Buying a home. But not for any of the typical reasons. If you told me back in February that I'd buy a home in 2020, I'd have told you to get lost. I lived alone in a small apartment, with a "necessities" mentality, and homeownership was on my radar for 5-10 years out. Why invest in exercise equipment when I go to a gym, a decent WFH setup when I work in an office, or kitchenware when most of my meals are eaten at wor…
Buying a home for me as well. I bought mine in December '19 before COVID hit. Before that I had been living in a small apartment with thin walls, which meant I could hear my upstairs neighbor all hours of the day.
Going from a 1-bedroom apartment to a house has been huge during the pandemic. I actually have different rooms I can use to help break up the monotony. I think I would've gone crazy having to work from home in my old place since it was so small.
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#365Family game night on Jitsi video conference.
Went from seeing my parents and siblings in person once a year to seeing them virtually every week. I'm much more involved in their joys and struggles. It's a healthy dose of laughter and silliness every week.
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#366I'm not sure if it's the absolute biggest contributor, but learning to unicycle during this period has helped me a ton. I love learning new physical skills like dancing or figure skating, so picking up the unicycle has been great in many ways. It forces me outside, it gives me something to keep working on and improving, and it even has some social aspects since being outside and unicycling means people will often comment on it (from a distance, of course).
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#367Buying a dishwasher. 1. Less drudgery means more time to relax 2. Less pressure to minimise kitchenware use means more ambitious and enjoyable cooking 3. I just get a little jolt of happiness when I walk into the kitchen and see my large cuboidal son sitting there
Interestingly, I found the dishwasher produced more stress than handwashing. Living alone, it takes days to fill up the dishwasher to a level where running it isn't wasteful. Every day, I'd eye how full it was and judge whether it was "worth it" to run it that day. Meanwhile, any time I cooked invariably the pot or pan I needed was sitting dirty in the dishwasher. With hand washing, I just spend 15 minutes usually every other day and
During the summer I live off-grid in a small travel trailer. Every night I fired up the water heater, did that day's dishes, and took a shower outdoors. A bit of drudgery, but actually relaxing and not at all stressful.
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#368Buying a home. But not for any of the typical reasons. If you told me back in February that I'd buy a home in 2020, I'd have told you to get lost. I lived alone in a small apartment, with a "necessities" mentality, and homeownership was on my radar for 5-10 years out. Why invest in exercise equipment when I go to a gym, a decent WFH setup when I work in an office, or kitchenware when most of my meals are eaten at wor…
isn't it harder to socialize when you're not surrounded by people in gyms, an office, and so on? I personally would put that above home ownership, especially while I don't have a family.
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#369Video walks on Youtube. If you haven't heard of them before, they're simple first-person videos where the filmer walks around some area with a stabilized video camera - no talking, just walking. I've really missed traveling and watching video walks while exercising has been a great way to satisfy that travel craving a bit and also trick my brain into experiencing some semblance of normalcy (not sure I could remember…
Thanks I did not know this existed.
I have started a small side project which is somewhat related. I started it because I saw the beneficial aspects of walks and wellness from my own journey over the last few years. It is something I wish existed in the world but does not. The idea seemed so small and inconsequential that i thought it could make a good non-profit that has a significantly positive impact on wellness. There is a model in where it would be self-sustaining. If anyone is keen to chat about the intersection of wellness, physical activity and walking drop me a message!
Re: Ask HN: What was the biggest contributor to your happiness in the past year?
#370Taking college classes again. I didn’t appreciate the experience in my youth, but now I love it.